Agentic AI course options: certifications and courses compared
For a first agentic AI course, take OpenAI's free Agents and Workflows (1.5 hours). For an exam, Microsoft's AI Agent Builder Associate is open now; NVIDIA's and Google Cloud's are only announced.
Should you take a course or a certification?
Start with a course if agents are new to you: it teaches the skills, and Agents and Workflows is free, 1.5 hours, with a badge. Take a certification once you build agents at work and want proof in a proctored exam.
Which agentic AI certification can you book?
- Power Platform or Copilot: Microsoft Certified: AI Agent Builder Associate (AB-620), $165.
- Azure developers: Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Apps and Agents Developer Associate (AI-103), $165.
- Databricks: Databricks Certified Context Engineer Associate, $200, valid for 2 years.
- Salesforce: Salesforce Certified Agentforce Specialist, $200 plus tax in the US.
- Oracle Cloud: Oracle Agentic AI Foundations Associate (1Z0-1157-26) is free.
The catch: several agentic exams aren't open to everyone. NVIDIA-Certified Professional Agentic AI (NCP-AAI) and Professional Agentic Architect are announced but not open yet. AB-100 and AI-500 need an Associate certification first, and Claude Certified Architect - Foundations (CCAR-F) is for Claude Partner Network members only.
Which agentic AI certifications are there?
| Certification | Issuer | Type | Level | Price as shown | Who can take it | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Certified Architect - Foundations (CCAR-F) | Anthropic | ExamProctored online or at a test center | Foundational | Not stated by Anthropic | Partners only | Active |
| AWS Agentic AI Demonstrated | Amazon Web Services | Microcredential | Not stated | Not stated by Amazon Web Services | Check the issuer's page | Active |
| AWS Databases for Agentic AI Demonstrated | Amazon Web Services | Microcredential | Not stated | Free | Check the issuer's page | Active |
| AWS Securing Agent Identities Demonstrated | Amazon Web Services | Microcredential | Not stated | Free | Check the issuer's page | Active |
| Agentic AI Builder (AGB-110) | CertNexus | Assessment | Not stated | Not stated by CertNexus | No requirement listed | Active |
| AI Agent Fundamentals | Databricks | Microcredential | Not stated | Free | No requirement listed | Active |
| Databricks Certified Context Engineer Associate | Databricks | Exam | Associate | $200 | No requirement listed | Active |
| Professional Agentic Architect | Google Cloud | ExamProctored online or at a test center | Professional | $120 plus tax (beta); $200 plus tax | No requirement listed | Announced |
| IBM RAG and Agentic AI Professional Certificate | IBM | Course certificate | Not stated | Not stated by IBM | No requirement listed | Active |
| LangChain Certified Agent Engineer | LangChain | ExamProctored online | Not stated | $99 | No requirement listed | Active |
| Microsoft Certified: Agentic AI Business Solutions Architect Expert (AB-100) | Microsoft | Exam | Expert | $165 plus tax | Needs another credential | Active |
| Microsoft Certified: AI Agent Builder Associate (AB-620) | Microsoft | ExamProctored | Associate | $165 | No requirement listed | Active |
| Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Apps and Agents Developer Associate (AI-103) | Microsoft | ExamProctored | Associate | $165 | No requirement listed | Active |
| Microsoft Certified: Multi-Agent AI Solutions Expert (AI-500) | Microsoft | Exam | Expert | $165 plus tax | Needs another credential | Active |
| NVIDIA-Certified Professional Agentic AI (NCP-AAI) | NVIDIA | ExamProctored online | Professional | $200 | No requirement listed | Announced |
| Oracle Agentic AI Foundations Associate (1Z0-1157-26) | Oracle | Exam | Foundational | Free | No requirement listed | Active |
| Salesforce Certified Agentforce Specialist | Salesforce | ExamProctored online or at a test center | Not stated | $200 plus tax; ¥30,000 plus tax; $100 plus tax (retake); ¥15,000 plus tax (retake) | No requirement listed | Active |
| Agentic Automation Associate | UiPath | Exam | Associate | $150 plus tax | No requirement listed | Active |
| Agentic Automation Builder Professional | UiPath | Exam | Professional | $300 plus tax | No requirement listed | Active |
| Agentic Automation Professional | UiPath | Exam | Professional | $300 plus tax | No requirement listed | Active |
Which agentic AI courses are there?
| Course | Cost | Length | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Model Context ProtocolAnthropic | Free | 1 hour | Free badge |
| Claude Code in ActionAnthropic | Paid. Price on the provider's page | 1 hour | Certificate |
| Introduction to agent skillsAnthropic | Free | 1 hour | Certificate not stated |
| Claude Code 101Anthropic | Free | 1.5 hours | Free badge |
| Claude Platform 101Anthropic | Free | 1.5 hours | Free badge |
| Model Context Protocol: Advanced topicsAnthropic | Free | 1.5 hours | Free badge |
| Enterprise Agents and Use CasesGoogle | Free | 1.5 hours | Badge |
| Agents and WorkflowsOpenAI | Free | 1.5 hours | Free badge |
| Claude Code: A Highly Agentic Coding AssistantDeepLearning.AI | Free for a limited time. Certificate paid | 2 hours | Paid certificate |
| Introduction to Gemini EnterpriseGoogle | Free | 2.3 hours | Free badge |
| Gen AI Agents: Transform Your OrganizationGoogle | Free | 2.3 hours | Free badge |
| Introduction to Claude CoworkAnthropic | Free | 2.5 hours | Free badge |
| AI concepts for developers and technology professionalsMicrosoft | Free | 3.9 hours | Certificate not stated |
| Claude Code: Software Engineering with Generative AI AgentsVanderbilt University | Paid. Price on the provider's page | 5 hours | Certificate |
| Get started with AI applications and agents on AzureMicrosoft | Free | 5.6 hours | Certificate not stated |
| Agentic AI and AI Agents: A Primer for LeadersVanderbilt University | Paid subscription. Price on the provider's page | 6 hours | Certificate |
| Building Agentic AI Applications With LLMsNVIDIA | Paid. Price on the provider's page | 8 hours | Certificate |
| Building RAG Agents With LLMsNVIDIA | $90 | 8 hours | Certificate |
| Agentic AIDeepLearning.AI | Free to learn. Certificate paid | 9.9 hours | Paid certificate |
| Architect AI solutions for business productivityMicrosoft | Free | 11.4 hours | Certificate not stated |
| Agentic Automation TrainingUiPath | Price not stated by provider | 20.1 hours | Certificate not stated |
| Artificial Intelligence for HR Certificate ProgramAIHR (Academy to Innovate HR) | $1,125 | 33 hours | Professional certificate |
| AWS Generative AI Developer Advanced Learning Plan (includes Labs)Amazon Web Services | Price not stated by provider | 45.3 hours | Certificate not stated |
| Applied AI and Data Science ProgramMIT Professional Education | $3,900 | 15 Weeks | Certificate |
| Microsoft AI & ML Engineering Professional CertificateMicrosoft | Paid subscription. Price on the provider's page | 6 months at 7 hours a week | Professional certificate |
| AI Agents for BeginnersMicrosoft | Price not stated by provider | Not stated by provider | Certificate not stated |
| Claude AI Tools for Beginners SpecializationSkillsBooster Academy | Paid subscription. Price on the provider's page | 4 weeks to complete at 10 hours a week | Professional certificate |
| Building with the Claude APIAnthropic | Free | 1 week to complete at 10 hours a week | No certificate |
| Transform business workflows with generative AIMicrosoft | Free | 1 day | Certificate not stated |
| Work smarter with AIMicrosoft | Free | Not stated by provider | Free badge |
| Transform Your Everyday Business Processes with Agents (MS-4019)Microsoft | Free | Not stated by provider | Free badge |
| Introduction to Microsoft 365 and AI administrationMicrosoft | Free | 1 day | Certificate not stated |
| Monitoring Production AgentsLangChain | Free | Not stated by provider | Certificate not stated |
| AI Agents CourseHugging Face | Free | Each chapter in this course is designed to be completed in 1 week, with approximately 3-4 hours of work per week | Free certificate |
| Introduction to Deep AgentsLangChain | Free | Not stated by provider | Certificate not stated |
| Introduction to LangChain - PythonLangChain | Free | Not stated by provider | Certificate not stated |
| Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Apps and Agents Developer AssociateMicrosoft | Paid. Price on the provider's page | Not stated by provider | Exam certification |
| IBM RAG and Agentic AI Professional CertificateIBM | Free to learn. Some parts paid | 8 weeks at 3 hours a week | Professional certificate |
| Architecting agentic AI business solutionsMicrosoft | Free | 3 days | Certificate not stated |
| Introduction to LangSmith DeploymentLangChain | Free | Not stated by provider | Certificate not stated |
| Building Reliable Agents with LangSmithLangChain | Free | Not stated by provider | Certificate not stated |
| Design and build integrated AI agent solutions in Copilot StudioMicrosoft | Free | 3 days | Certificate not stated |
| Introduction to AI in Azure (AI-901T00)Microsoft | Free | Not stated by provider | No certificate |
| Agent in a Day - Online workshopMicrosoft | Free | Not stated by provider | Free badge |
| Develop AI apps and agents on AzureMicrosoft | Free | 4 days | Certificate not stated |
| Generative AI for Finance and Accounting SpecializationEdureka | Paid. Price on the provider's page | 8 weeks to complete at 5 hours a week | Professional certificate |
| AI Agents: Complete Beginner's Guide SpecializationLearnQuest | Paid. Price on the provider's page | 4 weeks to complete at 10 hours a week | Professional certificate |
| No-Code AI for Business Professionals SpecializationBoard Infinity | Paid subscription. Price on the provider's page | 12 weeks to complete at 5 hours a week | Certificate |
| Applied Agentic AI for Organizational TransformationMIT Professional Education | $3,250 | 8 Weeks | Certificate not stated |
| No Code and Agentic AIMIT Professional Education | $2,850 | 14 Weeks | Certificate |