6 Best CRM Certification Programs for 2023
Jess served on the founding team of a successful B2B startup and has used a wide range of sales and marketing tools over the course of her 15-year career. She uses her industry knowledge to deliver the best answers to your questions about sales tools and sales management.
This article is part of a larger series on CRM.
Customer relationship management (CRM) certifications help advance technical skills and user knowledge of the features through accredited training courses. CRM education allows businesses to maximize product value by better organizing data, generating more sales, optimizing marketing campaigns, and providing quality customer support. Individual users can also use certifications to boost their resumes for professional advancement. We evaluated dozens of programs to arrive at the six best CRM certifications to help get the most out of your CRM.
The top certifications, along with their most applicable use cases, include:
- Best for new marketers using HubSpot: HubSpot Marketing Software Certification
- Best choice for administrators who want to customize their Zoho platform: Zoho CRM Certified Administrator
- Best for admins seeking a quick CRM certification for free: Freshdesk Product Expert for Admins
- Best for small Zendesk for service team members: Zendesk Omnichannel Agent Specialist
- Best CRM certificate for those looking for a resume boost: Certified Salesforce Administrator
- Best for beginners seeking broad CRM knowledge: Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM Certification
Best CRM Certifications Compared
Provider | Certification Name | Price | Duration | Key Topics | Course Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | HubSpot Marketing Software | Free (requires paid subscription) | 4 hours | Automation and email and content marketing in HubSpot | Beginner |
 | Zoho CRM Certified Administrator | Must contact for pricing | 4 days and 6 hours | Zoho CRM integrations, system, settings, customization, and automation | Intermediate to expert |
 | Freshdesk Product Expert for Admins | Free | 60-minute test plus optional courses | Setting up and operating Freshdesk and scaling platform to operational needs | Intermediate to expert |
 | Zendesk Omnichannel Agent Specialist | $199 | 225 minutes of courses plus 45-minute exam | Zendesk interface navigation and omnichannel ticket management | Intermediate |
 | Salesforce Administrator Certification | $200 | 70+ hours of courses and exam prep | Salesforce CRM configuration, customization, and user management | Expert |
 | Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (CRM) | Free for courses and $99 for exam | 6+ hours of lessons | Microsoft Dynamics 365 sales, marketing, and service app features and automation capabilities | Beginner |
Pro tip:
Did you know enrolling in specific CRM training courses for a certification could heavily influence which product your business chooses? If you or one of your users learned to operate a particular product, you may feel more inclined to invest in that same provider later. To understand all the factors that go into selecting a CRM system, check out our guide on how to choose a CRM system.
HubSpot Marketing Software Certification: Best for Entry-level Marketers Using HubSpot
What We Like
- Courses and educational modules are free
- Curriculum is designed for beginner-level CRM users
- HubSpot Academy also offers other free certifications in sales, marketing, content management, and operating the CRM
What's Missing
- Users must subscribe to the Pro or Enterprise plan to receive the certification
- Courses are specific only to using the HubSpot Marketing Hub
- No third-party learning options for any HubSpot Academy courses
HubSpot Marketing Software Certification Summary at a Glance
- Cost: Free for courses (certification requires a subscription to Pro or Enterprise plans)
- Duration: 4 hours and 12 minutes
- Course delivery: Lesson modules (13), videos (59), and quizzes (10)
- Validity period: 13 months
Course Topics
- Contact management
- Content marketing
- Email marketing
- Lead generation
- Automation
HubSpot Academy is an excellent online resource of courses for both HubSpot and non-HubSpot users. It includes various sales, marketing, and service management curriculum, many of which offer a 13- to 25-month certification upon completion. Some of the popular certifiable courses include inbound marketing, content marketing, social media, inbound sales, sales enablement, and developing a sales plan—just to name a few.
HubSpot Academy also provides CRM software training relevant to using HubSpot’s CRM and marketing automation software—bringing us to the HubSpot Marketing Software certification. As HubSpot is highly acclaimed for its marketing capabilities, marketing professionals should take advantage of this course and certification option. It’s specifically designed to help beginners operate the Marketing Hub platform’s contact management, content marketing, lead generation, email marketing, and automation features.
Despite the HubSpot CRM certification cost being $0, one downside is that there isn’t any way to obtain the certifications without going directly through HubSpot Academy. As some businesses and users prefer using a third-party course provider, we recommend pursuing Salesforce Trailhead or Microsoft Learn certifications that allow direct and third-party engagements to undergo the lessons and teaching modules.
HubSpot Marketing Software lessons (Source: HubSpot Academy)
Pro tip:
Certifiable or not, providing frequent product training to employees is one of the best ways to boost CRM adoption at an organization. Check out our guide on the six ways to increase CRM adoption to learn best practices that help get user acceptance and consistent product usage.
Zoho CRM Certified Administrator: Best for Customizing Zoho CRM
What We Like
- Comprehensive curriculum with everything an admin needs to know to set up their CRM to meet their goals
- Long certification validity period lasting two years upon completion
- Users have the option to do courses online, at a Zoho site, or have Zoho Spark reps come to their office
What's Missing
- No transparent pricing—dictated by the courses needed, number of users, and where the lessons take place
- Takes a long time to finish courses and obtain certification
- Lessons are specific to managing Zoho CRM
Zoho CRM Certified Administrator Summary at a Glance
- Cost: Must contact for pricing
- Duration: Four days and six hours of lessons, then 60 minutes to one day for examination
- Course delivery: Online, onsite, and classroom options for 19 total lesson modules
- Validity period: Two years
Course Topics
- Setting up and using Zoho CRM integrations
- Customizing the CRM system and managing business processes
- Managing sales territories, targets, and performance in Zoho
- Configuring CRM settings and managing data security, and hierarchies in Zoho
- Implementing workflow automations
In addition to providing a CRM system and other native software tools for businesses, Zoho administers online training and certifications through its Zoho Spark service. Within Spark, users can enroll in online or in-person courses and become certified as a Zoho CRM administrator, developer, sales rep, or sales manager.
We consider Zoho one of the top CRMs in terms of customizing a system to meet all sales operations, creating workflow automations, and offering an endless supply of integration options. That said, for an organization to take advantage of these essential features, they need a CRM administrator who understands all the technical components. For example, how to customize the system, connect with external applications, manage users, create automations, and operate the modules.
The Zoho Certified Administrator accreditation and its courses enable businesses to do just that. After completion, participants will have gone through every module and individual tool Zoho CRM has available, as well as all the ways Zoho CRM can supplement organizational growth. It also covers the different system and platform customization options they can use to manage the features, data, and individual users.
One issue with the Zoho CRM Administrator certification is that it takes a long time to obtain—lasting over four days to complete the courses and examination. This is due to the detail each lesson goes into regarding each CRM module, customization options, and system settings component. The Freshdesk Product Expert Certification for Admins is an excellent alternative for a fast-track certification, requiring just a 60-minute exam.
Zoho CRM administrator certification lesson plan (Source: Zoho)
Freshdesk Product Expert Certification: Best Fast-track Administrator Certification
What We Like
- Free certification for administrators
- Experienced users can get the certification by taking the test without taking any courses
- Certification can be acquired quickly by just passing the exams
What's Missing
- Freshworks Academy currently only offers three certifications
- Unclear to how long the certification is valid for
Freshworks Product Expert Certification Summary at a Glance
- Cost: Free
- Duration: 60-minute test plus optional courses ranging from 15 to 60 minutes each
- Course delivery: Online modules and test
- Validity period: Not indicated
Course Topics
- Setting up and managing Freshdesk
- Scaling a customer support team using Freshdesk features
- Creating workflows and automations in Freshdesk
Freshworks Academy is a relatively new education service that’s slowly adding on new certification options as a way for users to solidify their knowledge of the Freshworks products. While there are only three current certifiable courses in Freshworks Academy, users can still get access to dozens of free courses that last up to 60 minutes max. These cover topics like customer success management, customer service, field service management, and much more.
The Freshdesk Product Expert Certification for Admins is great because of how quickly administrators or Freshdesk agents can get certified. The courses are optional, and the certification requires participants to pass a 60-minute test once they feel ready. Plus, the certification exam is free to take.
One issue with the Freshworks Product Expert certification is that it’s unclear how long it stays active. If you are an administrator with no preferred CRM affiliation but want to obtain a certification with a long and clear validity period, we recommend the Zoho CRM Certified Administrator. Though it takes a little over four days to acquire, it goes in-depth into managing Zoho CRM, lasts up to two years, and is excellent to have on your resume.
Freshworks Academy certifications page (Source: Freshworks)
Zendesk Omnichannel Specialist for Agents: Best for Service Reps Using Zendesk
What We Like
- Certification is valid until new product version gets released
- Lesson modules of videos and readings are entirely on-demand, allowing users to go at their own pace
- Zendesk Training also offers courses and certifications for admins and developers
What's Missing
- Relatively expensive to take the exam
- Course is specialized primarily for customer service and support in Zendesk
- Passing rate for exam is only 65%
Zendesk Omnichannel Specialist for Agents Summary at a Glance
- Cost: $199
- Duration: On-demand courses totaling 225 minutes plus a 45-minute exam
- Course delivery: Online modules (7) for Zendesk omnichannel engagement and a certification preparation course
- Validity period: Valid until product version changes
Course Topics
- Zendesk interface navigation
- Ticket management basics
- Managing omnichannel tickets
Zendesk is a popular software provider that offers both a CRM system for sales and a robust customer support solution for managing tickets and communicating with customers. To help give users the most value, Zendesk supplements its software capabilities with the Zendesk Training service that provides CRM certification courses online. There are CRM training materials for Zendesk admins, developers, and agents to set up a CRM system and operate its sales and support features.
Because Zendesk is well known for its contact management, multi-channel communication, and customer ticket management modules, we recommend its Omnichannel Specialist Certification for Agents training. Upon completion, users become experts in how to operate and navigate the Zendesk customer service platform. It also details how to best handle inquiries and manage tickets from all channels, including email, live chat, and telephone.
One issue with Zendesk Training certifications is that it’s relatively expensive to take the courses and exam—starting at $199, with other certifications going up to $899. For low-cost certification options in sales, marketing, and even some customer service, we recommend HubSpot Academy, in which many courses are free regardless of whether you’re a HubSpot user or not.
Zendesk Omnichannel Agent Specialist Exam information (Source: Zendesk)
Certified Salesforce Administrator: Best Resume Booster
What We Like
- Simple revalidation process that only requires one maintenance module per year
- On-demand course modules and trailhead study guides that let users learn at their own pace
- One of the most highly marketable CRM software certifications to help users get promotions, new jobs, or pay raises
- Courses and practice exams can be taken through third-party providers
What's Missing
- Fairly expensive certification to acquire
- Lengthy process to take the courses and prepare for the exam
Certified Salesforce Administrator Summary at a Glance
- Cost: $200
- Duration: 68 hours and 25 minutes of courses and one hour and 40 minutes for the preparation course.
- Course delivery: Online self-paced modules plus an exam preparation course
- Validity period: One year, and revalidation requires one maintenance module per year
Course Topics
- Customizing the Salesforce platform
- Managing Salesforce users
- Configuring Salesforce system settings
- Operating Salesforce features and capabilities
Salesforce is one of the most popular CRM and business software providers globally. Many businesses, large and small, adopt Salesforce technology, which is why the provider offers tons of certifications and courses for Salesforce administrators, architects, developers, marketers, consultants, and designers. That said, it’s the Certified Salesforce Administrator accreditation that stands out for CRM users.
For starters, this certification is valuable whether or not you actually manage a Salesforce CRM platform. Many recruiters within software deployment, sales enablement, or automation design industries see this certification as a standout job qualification. Additionally, if you were deploying and managing a Salesforce CRM for a small business or large sales team, being a certified administrator gives you expert knowledge on customizing the platform, using the features, and managing users.
While useful to have on a resume, the Salesforce Administrator certification is both expensive and takes a while to obtain. The best CRM admin accreditation for price, speed, and convenience is the Freshworks Product Expert Certification —requiring just an hour-long test users can take when they feel ready at no cost.
Salesforce Certified Administrator exam outline (Source: Salesforce Trailhead)
Dynamics 365 CRM Fundamentals: Best for Certification for Broad Product Knowledge
What We Like
- Offers course flexibility through self-paced online, Microsoft instructor-led, and third-party-led options
- Courses are available for free
- Provide feature knowledge on Dynamics 365 sales, marketing, and service applications
- Certification renewals are free and easy
What's Missing
- Examination costs $99 to take the test
- Courses and certifications are only applicable to Microsoft apps
Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM Certification Summary at a Glance
- Cost: Free for the online courses and $99 for the certification exam
- Duration: 6+ hours of total lessons
- Course delivery: Online (self-paced) modules (10) or instructor-led units (78)
- Validity period: One year
Course Topics
- Core capabilities of Microsoft Dynamics 365 apps including Dynamics 365 sales, marketing, customer service, and field service
Many organizations invest in popular Microsoft tools like Outlook, OneDrive, and Teams, and the lesser known ones including Microsoft Project and PowerBI. There’s also the Dynamics 365 CRM solution, which encompasses the integrated business software organizations can use to complete workflows and manage their entire business. Some of the modular options include systems for sales, supply chain management, marketing, service, and finance.
These end-to-end, advanced software capabilities include product training and certifications offered by Microsoft Learn. While there are hundreds of certification options, depending on one’s job title, skill level, and specific software, the Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (CRM) certification stood out the most. It’s designed for beginners, and the courses explore and certify one’s knowledge of a wide range of Microsoft product capabilities within sales, marketing, and service applications.
Those who enroll in the Dynamics 365 courses may not like that they need to spend $99 to take the exam for the certification. Though there is no way around this for the Microsoft-specific certification, employees new to the workforce should consider HubSpot Academy as an alternative. It offers free certifications great for entry-level employees in various business and CRM functions, including sales, marketing, and customer service management.
Microsoft Learn Dynamics 365 CRM certification page (Source: Microsoft)
How We Evaluated the Top CRM Training Programs
To evaluate the best CRM certifications and training courses, we considered two specific value-based attributes of each certification. The first was the overall prestige of getting certified—in other words, whether it could help someone get a promotion, pay raise, or a new job position by having it on a resume. We also looked at each certification in terms of the most valuable features in the provider’s CRM system.
For example, HubSpot is well-known for its marketing and automation features. Therefore, having Marketing Software certification by HubSpot helps users better operate its drip campaign, email, and content management features. Ultimately, the business using HubSpot can get more value from the system overall. Finally, we considered some roadblocks to obtaining and keeping certifications, such as training program price, course duration, and validity period.
CRM Certification Statistics
Not sure if CRM certifications can offer you or your business tangible benefits? These CRM certification statistics might change your mind:
- Sponsoring CRM and other technology-certified training programs for your employees offers direct value to the organization. Eighty-one percent of businesses report increased work quality and value contribution from hiring certified employees.
- It is estimated that CRM certification and recertification interest increased by 200% from 2021 to 2022, mainly resulting from professionals looking to expand their skill sets and look favorably on a job application.
- The average return on investment (ROI) of a credentialed employee is roughly $10,000 of added value to a business.
- For individuals who recently received a technology certification, 28% immediately received a pay increase, 55% were rewarded within three months, and 77% saw a boost in compensation within six months.
- Earning a CRM, IT, or other technology certification helps job seekers with non-tangible returns. For example, 21% received a promotion, and another 23% found new jobs in the same industry thanks to obtaining certifications.
Source: Pearson VUE
Bottom Line
A CRM certification helps individuals boost their employment qualifications for better job positions while allowing businesses to get more out of their CRM features through technical skill development. Each of the top CRM certifications on this list can be used to specialize in a particular CRM or one of its features or help a job candidate stand out in the employee recruitment process.
