18 Free Online Marketing Courses in 2026 (Many With Certificates)

The best free online marketing courses in 2026 are Google's Fundamentals of Digital Marketing and the HubSpot Digital Marketing Certification for a broad overview, and free courses from Google, HubSpot, Semrush, Ahrefs, Yoast, and Meta if you want to learn one specific skill. Many of them end with a free certificate or award you can add to your CV and LinkedIn profile.

Course	Provider	Best For	Duration	Free Certificate?
Digital Marketing Course For Beginners	Reliablesoft	A first overview of digital marketing	5 lessons	No
Fundamentals of Digital Marketing	Google	A complete beginner program	40 hours	Yes (Skillshop award)
Digital Marketing Certification	HubSpot	A quick certified overview	10 lessons, 30 videos	Yes
Digital Marketing Associate courses	Meta	Facebook and Instagram advertising	Self-paced	Exam has a fee
Google Analytics Certification	Google	Analytics and reporting	75-minute exam	Yes
SEO Course For Beginners	Reliablesoft	SEO basics	5 lessons	No
The One-Hour Guide to SEO	Moz	SEO in one hour	1 hour	No
SEO for Beginners	Yoast	SEO with a certificate	About 2 hours	Yes
SEO Course for Beginners	Ahrefs	Practical SEO tactics	2 hours	No
Google Ads Search Certification	Google	PPC and Google Ads	Self-paced	Yes
Affiliate Marketing Course For Beginners	Reliablesoft	Starting affiliate marketing	5 lessons	No
Affiliate Marketing for Beginners	Ahrefs	Affiliate content and SEO	1 hour	No
Social Media Mastery	Canva	A quick social media primer	23 minutes	No
Diploma in Social Media Strategy	Alison	Social media strategy	Self-paced	Diploma for a fee
How To Build Your Social Media Marketing Strategy	Udemy	A short strategy course	48 minutes	No
Content Marketing Certification	HubSpot	Content marketing	14 lessons, 54 videos	Yes
Advanced Content Marketing with Brian Dean	Semrush	Growing a blog	About 4 hours	Yes
Email Marketing Certification	HubSpot	Email marketing	12 lessons, 31 videos	Yes

Learning marketing doesn't have to be expensive, but not all free courses are worth your time. We’ve hand-picked the free courses below to cover every major online marketing channel, and checked each one at the source. Below you will find what each course covers, who it suits, and where it falls short.

18 Free Online Marketing Courses In 2026

1. Digital Marketing Course For Beginners by Reliablesoft
2. Fundamentals of Digital Marketing by Google
3. Digital Marketing Certification by HubSpot
4. Digital Marketing Associate courses by Meta
5. Google Analytics Certification by Google
6. SEO Course For Beginners by Reliablesoft
7. The One-Hour Guide to SEO by Moz
8. SEO for Beginners by Yoast
9. SEO Course for Beginners by Ahrefs
10. Google Ads Search Certification by Google
11. Affiliate Marketing Course For Beginners by Reliablesoft
12. Affiliate Marketing for Beginners by Ahrefs
13. Social Media Mastery by Canva
14. Diploma in Social Media Strategy by Alison
15. How To Build Your Social Media Marketing Strategy by Udemy
16. Content Marketing Certification by HubSpot
17. Advanced Content Marketing with Brian Dean by Semrush
18. Email Marketing Certification by HubSpot

How To Choose A Free Marketing Course

Start with two questions:

Do you want a broad overview or a specific skill? - If you are new to marketing, start with a general course like Google’s Fundamentals of Digital Marketing or the HubSpot Digital Marketing Certification. If you already know which channel you want to work in, go straight to the SEO, PPC, affiliate, social media, content, or email section below.

Do you want a free certificate for your CV? - Check the last column of the table above. Google, HubSpot, Yoast, and Semrush give you a free certificate or award when you finish. Meta and Alison let you take the course for free but charge for the certificate. The rest are free to watch but don’t include a certificate.

A free course is also a good way to find out whether you enjoy a topic before you pay for a complete program like our Digital Marketing Full Course. If you prefer reading, these free digital marketing ebooks cover the same channels.

General Marketing Courses

1. Digital Marketing Course For Beginners by Reliablesoft

• Best For: A first overview of digital marketing
• Duration: 5 lessons
• Provider: Reliablesoft (instructor: Alex Chris)
• Certificate: No

The Digital Marketing Course For Beginners is our own free course. It is a good option for learning the basics of digital marketing before you decide whether to enroll in a paid course.

The instructor has more than 20 years of marketing experience and explains the fundamentals in an easy-to-digest format.

Upon completing this course, you'll know:

• How digital marketing works
• How to get free traffic from search engines with SEO
• How to use video to reach a broader audience
• How to build campaigns on channels like email, social media, and PPC

Where it falls short: it does not include a certificate. To get certified, you need the paid Digital Marketing Full Course.

2. Fundamentals of Digital Marketing by Google

• Best For: A complete beginner program from Google
• Duration: 40 hours (17 modules)
• Provider: Google Skillshop
• Certificate: Yes (a Skillshop award)

Fundamentals of Digital Marketing is one of the most popular free marketing courses online. Google relaunched it on Skillshop in January 2025, and it now has 17 self-paced modules with a total learning time of around 40 hours.

The course covers current digital marketing topics, from AI tools to video marketing, with practical exercises and real-world examples. It has an average rating of 4.6 from more than 3,000 reviews.

When you finish, you earn an award you can add to your Skillshop and LinkedIn profiles. You need a free Skillshop account to take the course.

Where it falls short: at 40 hours, it is a bigger commitment than most free courses on this list.

3. Digital Marketing Certification by HubSpot

• Best For: A quick, certified overview of digital marketing
• Duration: 10 lessons, 30 videos, 8 quizzes
• Provider: HubSpot Academy
• Certificate: Yes

The HubSpot Digital Marketing Certification is a free course that covers the main digital marketing channels, including SEO, social media, email, and content marketing.

It is one of the fastest ways to get a free, recognized certificate in digital marketing, with 10 lessons, 30 videos, and 8 quizzes.

Where it falls short: it covers each channel at an introductory level and leans on HubSpot’s inbound marketing approach.

4. Digital Marketing Associate courses by Meta

• Best For: Learning Facebook and Instagram advertising
• Duration: Self-paced courses; the exam has 60 questions in 90 minutes
• Provider: Meta Blueprint
• Certificate: The courses are free, but the certification exam has a fee

Meta Blueprint offers free courses to prepare for the Meta Certified Digital Marketing Associate exam, Meta’s beginner-level certification.

The topics covered include:

• How to set up a business presence on Facebook and Instagram
• How to design and run a Facebook and Instagram ad campaign
• How to measure and optimize your campaigns

Where it falls short: the courses are free, but you have to pay to take the certification exam.

5. Google Analytics Certification by Google

• Best For: Learning analytics and reporting
• Duration: Self-paced training, then a 75-minute exam
• Provider: Google Skillshop
• Certificate: Yes

One digital marketing skill that is always in demand is analytics. Analytics gives you valuable information about your users and helps you make informed decisions for all your marketing campaigns.

The Google Analytics Certification covers basic and advanced Google Analytics 4 concepts, such as reporting, conversion tracking, and audiences. When you are ready, you take a 75-minute exam to become Google Analytics certified.

Where it falls short: the training is dense for complete beginners, so you may want to learn the basics of GA4 first.

For more free courses with certificates, see our lists of the best digital marketing courses and digital marketing certifications.

SEO Courses

6. SEO Course For Beginners by Reliablesoft

• Best For: Learning SEO basics
• Duration: 5 lessons
• Provider: Reliablesoft (instructor: Alex Chris)
• Certificate: No

This free SEO course by Reliablesoft Academy teaches you the basics of search engine optimization. It’s a good choice for starting your online marketing learning journey.

Through the course, you’ll learn:

• How search engines work
• What SEO is and why it’s essential
• How to get started with technical SEO
• How to do on-page SEO
• How to approach off-page SEO

Where it falls short: it does not include a certificate. The SEO Certification is part of our paid Digital Marketing Full Course.

7. The One-Hour Guide to SEO by Moz

• Best For: SEO fundamentals in one hour
• Duration: 1 hour
• Provider: Moz (instructor: Rand Fishkin)
• Certificate: No

The One-Hour Guide to SEO is a short video series taught by Moz founder Rand Fishkin.

It covers the SEO fundamentals: strategy, keyword research, keeping searchers happy, on-page SEO, technical SEO, and link building. No registration is required.

Where it falls short: it is an older series, so it doesn’t cover recent changes like AI search.

8. SEO for Beginners by Yoast

• Best For: SEO basics with a free certificate
• Duration: About 2 hours (20 short videos)
• Provider: Yoast Academy
• Certificate: Yes

The SEO for Beginners course by Yoast Academy is a free course with about two hours of video, split into 20 short clips, plus quizzes.

By the end of the course, you’ll know how search engines work, what keywords are, and the basics of SEO copywriting and technical SEO. You get a certificate and badge when you finish.

Where it falls short: it is a beginner course, and some examples are geared toward WordPress and the Yoast plugin.

9. SEO Course for Beginners by Ahrefs

• Best For: Practical SEO tactics
• Duration: 2 hours (14 lessons in 5 modules)
• Provider: Ahrefs Academy (instructor: Sam Oh)
• Certificate: No

The Ahrefs SEO Course for Beginners is taught by Sam Oh, VP of Marketing at Ahrefs, and suits beginners, small business owners, and marketing team leaders.

The 14 lessons cover technical SEO basics, keyword research, on-page SEO, and link building.

Where it falls short: many examples use Ahrefs’ own tools, which are paid.

For more options, see our list of the best free SEO courses.

PPC Marketing Courses

10. Google Ads Search Certification by Google

• Best For: Learning PPC and Google Ads
• Duration: Self-paced
• Provider: Google Skillshop
• Certificate: Yes

PPC is one of the most important online marketing channels, and Google Ads is its main platform. Learning it is essential if you want to become a PPC specialist.

Google offers 11 free Google Ads certifications on Skillshop. The Google Ads Search certification, now called Google Ads Search Professional, teaches you how to design, set up, and optimize Search campaigns. You prepare with free Skillshop courses and then take the exam.

Where it falls short: it focuses on Google’s own products and recommendations, so it won’t teach you other ad platforms.

Our guide to PPC marketing certifications includes more PPC courses with certificates.

Affiliate Marketing Courses

11. Affiliate Marketing Course For Beginners by Reliablesoft

• Best For: Starting affiliate marketing with no experience
• Duration: 5 lessons
• Provider: Reliablesoft (instructor: Alex Chris)
• Certificate: No

The Free Affiliate Marketing Course explains how to use affiliate marketing to make money with digital marketing.

It starts with an overview of what affiliate marketing is and how it works, then gives practical advice on building an affiliate business with no prior experience.

Where it falls short: it covers the fundamentals only and does not include a certificate.

12. Affiliate Marketing for Beginners by Ahrefs

• Best For: Affiliate content and SEO
• Duration: 1 hour (16 lessons in 5 modules)
• Provider: Ahrefs Academy (instructor: Sam Oh)
• Certificate: No

This affiliate marketing course has 16 lessons grouped into 5 modules, totaling about one hour.

Upon completing it, you’ll know:

• How affiliate marketing works
• How to select an affiliate program
• How to create and promote affiliate content

Where it falls short: the lessons use Ahrefs’ tools, though you can follow along with other SEO tools.

Continue learning with our guide to the best affiliate marketing courses.

Social Media Marketing Courses

13. Social Media Mastery by Canva

• Best For: A quick social media primer
• Duration: 23 minutes (12 lessons)
• Provider: Canva Design School
• Certificate: No

Social Media Mastery is a free course from Canva Design School made up of 12 short video lessons.

It shows you how to use social media to grow your brand, build communities, and create engaging content, and how to choose which channels to focus on.

Where it falls short: at 23 minutes, it is an introduction, not a complete course.

14. Diploma in Social Media Strategy by Alison

• Best For: Learning social media strategy
• Duration: Self-paced
• Provider: Alison
• Certificate: Diploma available for a fee

If you want to learn social media marketing, the free Diploma in Social Media Strategy by Alison is a good starting point.

You’ll learn how to set social media goals and create a social media strategy. You need a free Alison account to enroll.

Where it falls short: the course is free, but you have to pay if you want the diploma.

15. How To Build Your Social Media Marketing Strategy by Udemy

• Best For: A short strategy course
• Duration: 48 minutes (9 lectures)
• Provider: Udemy (instructor: Ethan Bridge)
• Certificate: No

How To Build Your Social Media Marketing Strategy is a free Udemy course that teaches you what makes a social media strategy successful and how to set clear goals with actionable steps.

Where it falls short: it was last updated in 2021, so platform-specific details may be out of date.

Explore more free social media courses and social media certifications.

Content Marketing Courses

16. Content Marketing Certification by HubSpot

• Best For: Learning content marketing with a certificate
• Duration: 14 lessons, 54 videos, 11 quizzes
• Provider: HubSpot Academy
• Certificate: Yes

The Content Marketing Certification by HubSpot Academy is one of the most complete free content marketing courses, with 14 lessons, 54 videos, and 11 quizzes.

You’ll learn a framework for consistently creating good content and a process for repurposing the content you already have. You need a free HubSpot Academy account to register.

Where it falls short: some lessons show HubSpot’s own software.

17. Advanced Content Marketing with Brian Dean by Semrush

• Best For: Growing a blog with content marketing
• Duration: About 4 hours (20 lessons)
• Provider: Semrush Academy (instructor: Brian Dean)
• Certificate: Yes

Advanced Content Marketing with Brian Dean teaches you how to grow a blog with content marketing. It has 20 video lessons, and you can earn a Semrush Academy certificate when you finish.

Topics include writing long-form content, optimizing blog posts, and promoting your work beyond your website.

Where it falls short: it focuses on blogging, so it won’t cover other content formats in depth.

See the best content marketing courses for more options.

Email Marketing Courses

18. Email Marketing Certification by HubSpot

• Best For: Learning email marketing with a certificate
• Duration: 12 lessons, 31 videos, 9 quizzes
• Provider: HubSpot Academy
• Certificate: Yes

The Email Marketing Certification by HubSpot Academy is a free course with 12 lessons, 31 videos, and 9 quizzes.

It teaches you how to build an email marketing strategy, create emails people want to open, and measure and improve your results.

Where it falls short: like other HubSpot courses, some examples use HubSpot’s own email tools.

Visit our list of email marketing courses with certificates for more training programs.

Are Free Marketing Courses Worth It?

Yes, as long as you choose well. Free courses from Google, HubSpot, Semrush, and Ahrefs are made by companies that live and breathe online marketing, and many of them are as good as paid alternatives for learning the basics.

Their limits are depth and structure. Free courses usually cover one topic at an introductory level, so you need to piece several of them together, and many don’t include a certificate. If you want a structured path from beginner to job-ready, a complete paid program is usually faster.

Whichever route you choose, apply what you learn on a real website or campaign. That is what turns a course into a skill.

How We Chose These Courses

We used the following criteria to choose the courses on this list:

• Free to take - Every course can be taken for free. Where a certificate costs extra, we say so.
• Available today - Courses that have been discontinued or can no longer be reached were removed.
• Checked at the source - Durations, lesson counts, and certificates come from each provider’s own page, not from other reviews.
• Every major channel - The list covers general marketing, SEO, PPC, affiliate, social media, content, and email marketing.

Three of the courses are our own free Reliablesoft Academy courses. We included them because they are a free, practical starting point.

Additional Learning Resources

• Digital Marketing Full Course - an all-in-one course for learning online marketing, with certification.
• Websites To Find Online Courses - a curated directory of high-quality online learning providers.
• Google Certifications - free and paid certifications from Google.
• Coursera Certificates - the best professional certificates on Coursera.