17+ Best Free Digital Marketing Courses And Tools In 2023

Updated: May 19, 2023

Written by Eddy Ballesteros Personal Finance & AI Expert: Learn More

Ever wanted to get into digital marketing but struggled to put funds together for a college course?

Well, put your money away because you'll find out where to learn online marketing today and how you secure jobs with a free digital marketing course.

This will probably be the last article you will need to read to get the best free digital marketing courses & tools today.

There are a ton of online scams and time-wasters, so I made sure to put in a lot of research and no gimmicks to provide you all with my favorite social media marketing tools. 

If you purchase through our partner links, we get paid for the referral at no additional cost to you! For more information, visit my disclosure page.

Believe me when I tell you I've spent thousands of dollars on online courses that I could have just learned for free or what others call “Youtube University.”

This entire article should make you better than 90% of marketers out there so please take the time to read and write down your favorite online marketing tools and marketing courses.

Let's get started!

Google Ads Certification

Why Should You Take A Free Digital Marketing Course?

Whether you're looking to improve your employability or simply learn more about different types of marketing, taking a free course is a great way to get started.

There are many reasons to take free digital marketing courses. First, they provide a great introduction to the fundamentals of digital marketing.

Free digital marketing course

With so many different channels and strategies to consider, it can be helpful to get an overview of the landscape before diving in. Second, many courses offer a digital marketing certificate upon completion, which can be a valuable addition to your resume.

And finally, most courses come with all the materials you need to complete the coursework, so you don't have to go out and purchase any additional resources.

What Are The Best Free Digital Marketing Courses?

When I first started in the online marketing space, I became a victim of FOMO, or Fear Of Missing Out Syndrome

It happens to the best of us, and then I often regret not focusing on one topic at a time.

So take each free digital marketing course and complete it from beginning to end.

These training courses and certificates are only a way to learn, but nothing will change if you never execute what you learn.

Some of these digital marketing classes will offer:

  • Google Certificates
  • Email Marketing
  • Paid Ads
  • Job Opportunities
  • Understanding Traffic Analytics
  • Social Media Marketing Strategies
  • An introduction to digital marketing

Let's get started.

1. Google Ads Certification

Best Free Digital Marketing Courses

Google SkillShop

Become a google nerd expert and learn how to run ads correctly with search engine optimization.

Once you understand this and take all of the free Google ads courses that they offer, you will become well equipped for running ads and working with Digital Marketing agencies.

You can learn how to work with:

  1. eCommerce Brands
  2. YouTube Ads
  3. Service Based Businesses
  4. Brick & Mortar Companies
  5. Bloggers
  6. Course Creators & more
  7. Google Analytics

So whether you are running ads for your local business, a friend, or an agency, it will benefit you in your new career by taking these free online classes.

Start the Google Certification Training Today.

Google Digital Marketing Training Courses

Google Ads Display Certification

Google ads display will allow you to target customers when they go onto their favorite websites! This mostly contains information on how to structure your banners.

Google Ads Search Certification

This training involves search intent, meaning when a customer searches for a certain keyword you are bidding for the top search query.

Shopping Ads Certification

This course teaches you how to create Shopping ads. This includes rich product information, such as a product image, price, and company name.

Google Ads Apps Certification

 By Google - "Demonstrate your mastery of creating Google App campaigns to deliver business impact. Certified users will show they understand the fundamentals of campaign creation and advanced optimization strategies.”

-

Resource- https://skillshop.exceedlms.com/student/path/29785-google-ads-apps-certification

Once you complete the training and receive your free Google certifications, you will be able to use these new skills to either start a side hustle with search or display ads, start a google ads agency, or become a google ads freelancer.

I currently use search ads for one of our offers in the finance niche, and overall, it has helped me leverage our competitors' data!

You will also be able to display your certification on your website, resumes, and job titles. So get to learning! Starting a profitable side hustle as a google ads specialist can be a very rewarding career.

2. Youtube Creator Academy

YouTube Creator

Learn how to start and make money with a youtube channel with six core training modules.

If you're looking to start and grow a youtube channel, I recommend you take the time to dive deep into the youtube creator academy.

There are other courses out there, such as Think Media's youtube course academy, but if you're on a budget, this is probably the best way to go.

YouTube Creator Courses

What You'll learn:

  • How To Start A YouTube Channel
  • How To Grow With YouTube Shorts
  • How To Run Ads & Promote Your Channel
  • Learn How To Build A Community

Click here to watch the free online classes: https://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/home

3. SEMRush Academy

Semrush training

Just like the Youtube Creator academy. SEMrush contains six core training modules to help you grow as a content marketer.

I will say that 40% of the lessons deal with SEMRush as software, but overall, you will learn a lot from the local SEO section of the course.

When you complete the academy you should be an expert in:

  • SEO
  • PPC
  • Content Marketing
  • SMM
  • Competitive Research
  • SEMRush Software expert

Take the Free course and Get a Free trial of SEMrush here!

4. Ahrefs Academy

Ahrefs Academy

The Ahrefs academy will sharpen your digital marketing skills and show you how to grow your SEO knowledge.

Ahrefs is an SEO tool that is the backbone of my affiliate marketing tools and has helped me grow my traffic.

In this course, you'll learn how to:

  • Use Ahrefs Like a Pro
  • SEO training
  • Blogging Like A Business
  • On-Page SEO & Off-Page SEO

Learn how to start a blog completely for free with their blogging course, or you can also check out my favorite program on how to start an affiliate marketing site.

Best Blogging Course
Blog Growth Engine MasterClass By Adam Enfroy
5.0

The Blog Growth Engine is a step-by-step training that will get you started with your first profitable blogging business using affiliate marketing. This course has helped me start this blog and made it possible for people all over the world to read my content!

Pros:
  • Learn affiliate marketing
  • How to rank your blog posts
  • How to do link-building
Cons:
  • Not a get-rich-quick scheme
  • SEO is a long-term play
  • Need to understand WordPress
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

5. SkillShare

Skillshare

Take advantage of SkillShare and take any online course from graphic design to digital marketing for 14 days FREE.

If you do not end up finishing or liking the online course marketplace, you can always cancel, but they have many highly skilled course creators on the platform.

I took a course on how to use iMovie video editing, which gave me a basic understanding that cut some of the learning curves. 

You can also learn:

  • Animation
  • Graphic Design
  • Video Editing
  • Growing A Personal Brand
  • Online Business

6. Pinterest Academy

Pinterest Academy Courses

Pinterest Academy will have nine courses for you to explore. Pick and choose to create the perfect lesson plan for your goals.

Course includes:  

  • A peek into Pinterest
  • Campaign objectives
  • Creative strategy
  • Creative inspiration
  • Targeting and buying
  • Setting up a Pinterest business account
  • Building and launching a campaign
  • Managing and measuring a campaign
  • Planning and strategizing a campaign

When completing the course, you should understand how to run Pinterest ads! I know many bloggers who decided to take the route of a Pinterest ads manager and make a killing online! Either way, it's free.

Take the Pinterest Ads Manager Course

7. Later's Social Media Courses

Free Instagram social media training by Later

Later is an Instagram-partnered automation tool that includes free courses to become an IG Boss! One of the only reasons I put later on this list was because they are an Instagram partner, and I wouldn't want to direct my readers to any unethical practices.

They recently started focusing on TikTok and now provide a few workshops on how to grow on their platform as well.

Take Later's courses today.

8. Hubspot Academy

Hubspot academy contains free courses to start a digital marketing empire. Check it out here and sign up for their free lessons. This one might take you all a while to finish but it is so worth it! The Hubspot academy consists of Marketing, Sales, Service, and Tutorials.

Their most popular courses include:

  • Social media marketing certification course
  •  SEO Training Course
  •  Inbound marketing
  •  Inbound Sales
  •  Content Marketing

9. LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning

Another great social media based free course I recommend anyone to take is for LinkedIn. 

In all honesty, I don’t use Linkedin too often but it helps create B2B partners. Learning the platform can help you build a massive network of professionals. You know what they say, your net worth is your network! 

Sign up for free.

From my research, the LinkedIn learning platform really tries to focus more on communication skills. It only makes sense since it's more of a professional network than Instagram or TikTok.

10. Wealthy Affiliate Free Training

For those that have never heard of Wealthy Affiliate, they are a HUGE affiliate marketing education program branching from brand new marketers to seasoned affiliates

They teach you how to start affiliate marketing with little to no money online.

I recommend signing up for the FREE Plan as they recently updated their entire platform and training! When you log in for the first time you will notice how powerful the community is and how engaging the members are with you. 

I learned that entrepreneurship can be very lonely so it felt like a nice fresh of air to be in a place where others understood your journey. 

Now the FREE Wealthy Affiliate plan comes with a lot of free tools and training so you can start to understand what you need to do. Here is what you get.

Starter Package:

  • 1 Website
  • 7 Days of limited Support
  • Level 1 Core Training
  • Keyword Research tool
  • (limited Searches)
  • Affiliate Bootcamp level 1 training

11. Surfer SEO's Writing Masterclass

SEO Surfer Masterclass

Are you looking to take your online business and blog to the next level? 

Then you need to check out Surfer SEO's free SEO writing masterclass. In this online course, you'll learn how to optimize your content for search engines and make more money online. 

You'll also learn how to write persuasive copy that will help you rank higher in the search results. Best of all, the course is free. 

Sign up today and start improving your online business strategy. So what are you waiting for?

Best On-page SEO Tool
Surfer SEO
4.5
$59 Per Month

With Surfer, you can have your articles ranked on the first page of Google by using machine learning and other ranking factors.

Start Your Free Trial Our Review
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Best Free Digital Marketing Tools to Use

Not everything has to be paid for! Such companies that provide free tools are a godsend and I use these for my business almost everyday.

Free digital marketing tools

Here are the best free marketing tools to use.

1. UberSuggest

UberSuggest

I'm honestly thinking UberSuggest is the king of free research tools in 2020. There i said it….

UberSuggest has been a complete game changer in my SEO strategy for this blog! Even though I have SEMRush and Have used Ahrefs, Ubersuggest is such a user friendly platform. Niel Patel is the founder and has definitely put his whole heart into this project. 

What's Included with UberSuggest?

  1. 1
    Domain Overview
  2. 2
    Top SEO Pages
  3. 3
    Keyword Suggestions
  4. 4
    Content Ideas
  5. 5
    Backlink data

Use Ubersuggest today!

2. SimilarWeb

SimiliarWeb

SimilarWeb allows you to spy on your competitor's website for free without jumping hoops to get the information!

Here's what is included with the FREE Plan:

  • Package Features
  •  5 Results Per Metric
  •  1 Month of Mobile App Data
  •  3 Months of Web Traffic Data

3. Tailwind

Best Free Automation Tool For Instagram and Pinterest

So tailwind claims to be the #1 Pinterest & Instagram scheduler tool…. Well, I can stand behind that! I'm truly thankful for being introduced to this tool because I can literally automate my entire Pinterest and Instagram profiles up to 30 days… Now, this is with only the FREE option so imagine what you get with the paid plan if you upgrade! Another great reason to use Tailwind is that it is a Certified Instagram partner now so you can feel completely safe using this software!

Sign up here!

4. Tubebuddy

Ever wondered how content creators rank on youtube so easily? Well, let me introduce you to Tubebuddy! The ultimate youtube keyword tool to use when you're starting out. And ladies and Gentlemen…. It's Completely FREE.

Tubebuddy comes included with a browser extension & mobile app that integrates directly into YouTube to help you run your channel with ease.

Get your free plan now! 

5. Canva

Canva is an amazing tool to build beautiful designs either for your website, your brand, or any social media pages you have.

 If you aren't a graphic designer, then Canva will be your best friend for all your graphic design needs! I build all my images, covers, thumbnails with Canva and you should too! I have no prior knowledge or skills, but i learned how to design easy images just like this one here.

Canva Design

 They do have a Paid option running at $10 a month but you can start off with the FREE plan.

Sign up here!

6. CoSchedule Headline Analyzer

Do you suck at writing catchy headlines? Well, now you can get help with the Coschedule headline analyzer for free. Just type in your headline with your keyword and this software will let you know if it's a pass or flop! 

7. BigSpy Facebook Ad Spy

BigSpy’s free plan allows you to see Facebook Ad competition but none of the other platforms. It's still a great way to gather some ideas if you're running in the same niche so I would recommend you try this one out!

What's included in the free plan?

  • Networks: Only Facebook
  • Queries: 5 Daily
  • Limited Search Features

8. Hunter.io

Hunter.io

Hunter.io is a great tool for finding emails from websites to use in your outreach campaigns.

If you're looking forward to getting started with email marketing, this service will help make it easier than ever before by allowing people who own domains (and not just those hosting them) to they can be reached out to without having any trouble whatsoever.

This is type of digital marketing tool is ideal for anyone running:

  • A Marketing Agency
  • SEO Agencies
  • SaaS Companies
  • Bloggers
  • Affiliate Marketing
  • Brands
  • Influencer Outreach
  • Cold Email Outreach

The free plan will allow you to search and verify emails and also includes a chrome extension.

Get your FREE trial.

9. Calendly

Calendly

Calendly is a free automated scheduling software with now over 5,000,000 users in 2020.

You're able to integrate or embed your calendar inside of your website within 10 minutes or less and I use it for my business as well.

Our Top Pick
Calendly

Calendly is an online appointment scheduling software with many features, including the ability to share your schedule on social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter.

Start Your Free Trial
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Which Digital Marketing Is Best For Beginners?

There are many different types of digital marketing, and it can be overwhelming for beginners to know where to start. 

However, internet marketing is an excellent place to start because it covers all aspects of online marketing, from social media to email Marketing. Additionally, internet marketing is relatively easy to learn, and many free online marketing courses are available.

Once you have a good understanding of internet marketing, you can start to develop a more specific digital marketing strategy.

For example, you may want to focus on email marketing if you sell products online. Or, you may want to focus on social media marketing if you are trying to build brand awareness. No matter which digital marketing you choose, the important thing is to get started and keep learning.

Are Free Online Courses Legit?

Yes, depending on the company or person, a free course can benefit you as it provides many free resources for you to learn from. Now Why do some people provide free courses or tools? 

The reason depends on two things: 

They either are trying to get more traffic to their product so you can use it or trying to upsell you on a higher course or coaching call so be careful on those "upsells" if any.

If you are on a budget then you can also learn a lot of blogs such as mine or on youtube as well.

Conclusion

Hope you enjoyed this post and I know this will help you become a better marketer! Learning all the social media platforms takes time but it will all be worth it in the end. Please comment below if you have any other marketing courses or tools that you love! Let's share some ideas. 


About the author, Eddy Ballesteros

Eddy is an AI, SEO, and personal finance blogger who uses and tests products to help others improve their lives through AI and financial literacy. With years of experience in online business, he deeply understands the latest AI and SEO trends. Eddy is also well-knowledged in personal finance and committed to sharing his knowledge and expertise with his readers.

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