Google AI Certifications: 12 Credentials, Prices and Exams

Which Google AI certifications exist in 2026?

Twelve, counted the way the table below does: the two Gemini student exams share a row, and Google Skills' AI badges count as one family. Here is each one with its US price, our time count and how you earn it.

12

Google AI credentials in this catalog

4

free Gemini certification exams for schools

$99

for Generative AI Leader, the cheapest Google Cloud AI exam

3 years

that Generative AI Leader and the Gemini certifications stay valid

From Google Cloud and Google for Education, checked October 27, 2026.

Certificate, certification or badge: what Google gives you

Google draws the line itself. On its UK AI skills page, a certificate is a program that builds practical skills, while a certification is a more rigorous process that often means passing an exam:

01Course certificate

Finish the courses and their graded work. The four Google programs on Coursera and the educators' course work this way.

02Certification exam

A timed multiple-choice exam. Google Cloud's are proctored online or at a test center; the Gemini exams for schools are free.

03Badge

Proof of one course or path on Google Skills. Skill badges add a challenge lab that tests a specific product.

AI Essentials and Prompting Essentials belong to Google Career Essentials, short programs that add one skill. Coursera's FAQ sets them apart from Google Career Certificates such as Data Analytics, which take about three to six months and prepare you for an entry-level job.

Google AI certification courses on Coursera

Four Google programs on Coursera end with a certificate from Google. All four are self-paced, need no experience and are taught in English with other languages available. Their time figures disagree with each other, so we added them up:

Coursera's module labels are rounded, which is why the course cards and the item totals differ. In Prompting Essentials, the second course's only module says 1 hour, and its items add up to 90 minutes:

Google AI Essentials

The beginner program: five courses from Introduction to AI to Stay Ahead of the AI Curve, $49 a month in the US and Canada after a 7-day free trial, with 17 languages available and 2,049,896 learners enrolled on the day we checked (Coursera listing). Its FAQ says you cannot take it for free; financial aid is the way in. Our Google AI Essentials review goes through it course by course.

Google Prompting Essentials

Four courses on prompting alone, from Start Writing Prompts like a Pro to Use AI as a Creative or Expert Partner, at the same price and trial, in 12 languages and with no prerequisites (Coursera listing). We opened all four course pages and added up every item: 7 hours 6 minutes, of which 102 minutes are video and 185 minutes are 11 assignments. If prompting is the skill you need to prove, our prompt engineering course guide compares it with options outside Google.

Google AI Professional Certificate

Google's deeper program: eight courses with 20+ hands-on activities, ending with two app courses in Google AI Studio. It costs $49 a month in the US and Canada, was updated in August 2026, lists 13 languages and carries an ACE recommendation for college credit at participating US colleges (Coursera listing). It is the program Google's free offer for US small businesses is built around. Our Google AI Professional Certificate review covers the trial terms and what the app courses build.

Accelerate Your Job Search with AI

Four short courses that use Gemini and Gemini Notebook for a job search: your transferable skills, a search plan, an application tracker in Google Sheets and interview practice with Gemini Live (Coursera listing). It had 33,904 learners enrolled. Logged out, the page shows no price, only that it is included with Coursera Plus, and it offers financial aid. Career Dreamer, one of its tools, works only in the US, though its FAQ says that does not stop you finishing.

Google Cloud's AI certification exams

These are the proctored Google AI certifications: you register, pay and sit a timed multiple-choice exam, online with a remote proctor or at a testing center. Each has a learning path on Google Skills.

Generative AI Leader

Google Cloud says this one is for anyone in any job role, with or without hands-on technical experience (certification page). It costs $99 plus tax and is a 90-minute exam of 50 to 60 questions, in English, Japanese, Spanish or Portuguese, valid for 3 years, with no prerequisites. It covers generative AI fundamentals, Google Cloud's AI offerings, ways to improve a model's output and business strategy. To renew, you complete designated courses or skill badges on Google Skills in the certification's last year.

There are two prep routes. The Generative AI Leader learning path on Google Skills is marked "no charge" on Google's UK AI skills page. Coursera also has a five-course Generative AI Leader Professional Certificate from Google Cloud, whose summary box says 8 hours while its course cards add up to 20:

coursera.org/professional-certificates/generative-ai-for-leaders

Scrolling Coursera's Generative AI Leader Professional Certificate page from Google Cloud: the summary says 8 hours to complete, then the five course cards show 3, 4, 4, 4 and 5 hours, which add up to 20 hours

Professional Machine Learning Engineer

This one is for people who build, deploy and monitor machine learning systems on Google Cloud (certification page). It costs $200 plus tax for a 2-hour exam of 50 to 60 questions, in English or Japanese, valid for 2 years. There are no formal prerequisites, but Google recommends 3+ years of industry experience, including at least 1 year designing and managing solutions on Google Cloud. The exam doesn't test coding directly, and the page says it was updated for the move from Vertex AI to Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform. Google Cloud's two-course prep program on Coursera adds up to 19 hours on its course cards.

Professional Agentic Architect

A new Google Cloud AI certification: the banner on its page says the GA (general availability) exam launches in mid-November 2026 (certification page). The beta came in two parts, a proctored exam and then hands-on labs on Google Skills that check your coding. Google recommends 3+ years building cloud solutions, including 1+ year building agentic solutions on Google Cloud. The final exam's details may differ from the beta, so check the page when registration opens.

• Gemini Certified EducatorFree
• Generative AI Leader$99
• Professional Machine Learning Engineer$200
• Professional Agentic Architect, retail$200

From Google for Education and Google Cloud, checked October 27, 2026.

Is there a free Google AI certification?

Yes. You can get a Google AI certification free of charge from Google for Education, which runs four Gemini exams, and you can collect free course certificates and badges from Google for Education and Google Skills.

Gemini certifications for teachers and students

Gemini Certified Educator is for K-12 teachers, Gemini Certified Faculty for university faculty, and Gemini Certified Student comes in a version for students 13 and over and one for university students 18 and over (Google for Education). All four are free and valid for 3 years. For the educator, faculty and university exams, Google's FAQ says they are multiple choice, give you 2 hours once you start, and must be launched within 14 days of registering.

Google suggests its Get Started with Google AI in K12 Education and Generative AI for Educators courses for the educator exam, and Get Started with Google AI in Higher Education for faculty.

Generative AI for Educators with Gemini

A free, self-paced two-hour course from Google for Education on using Gemini and Gemini Notebook to plan lessons and save time (Grow with Google). An optional final assessment earns a certificate of completion, which teachers can present for professional development credit, depending on district and state rules. It is in English only for now.

AI badges on Google Skills

Google Skills replaced Google Cloud Skills Boost: the old cloudskillsboost.google address now redirects to skills.google. Its free Starter plan gives 35 credits every month, limited labs and skill badges; Pro costs $29 a month, with a 7-day trial for new subscribers (plans page). Google's UK page marks these AI picks as no charge:

• Introduction to Generative AI: 45 minutes on Google Skills (Google's UK page says 30), with a badge.
• AI Boost Bites: 43 short activities built around 10-minute videos on Gemini, Gemini Notebook and AI Studio.
• Introduction to Agents and Google's Agent Ecosystem: 5 activities, ending with a skill badge for building a first Gemini Enterprise app.
• Develop AI-Powered Prototypes in Google AI Studio: a 45-minute skill badge course.
• Agentic AI on Google Cloud: 8 activities on multi-agent systems with the Agent Development Kit.

How to get a paid Google AI certificate free or for less

The four Google programs on Coursera have no free audit: each FAQ says you cannot take it for free. These routes cost less:

1. Financial aid. You apply from the course page, once per course in a Specialization, with an application of at least 150 words. The review takes up to 16 days, and you then have 180 days to finish that course (Coursera help center).
2. Google's small business offer. US businesses with 500 or fewer employees and a valid EIN can get a Google AI certificate free for their team by enrolling by December 15, 2026 at 11:59 PM PT (Google's page). Coursera's application page says the scholarship also covers Google's other AI training and certificates.
3. One paid month. At our counts, each Coursera program here takes 6 to 13 hours, so for the three priced at $49, one payment covers you if you finish within the first month.
4. Coursera Plus, if you stack programs. It costs $59 a month or $399 a year, against $49 to $79 a month for single programs. Two Google programs in the same month cost $98 on separate subscriptions and $59 on Plus.

1. 01

   Apply

   From the course page, 150 words minimum

2. 02

   Wait

   Up to 16 days; starting a free trial cancels the application

3. 03

   Learn

   180 days to finish that course

4. 04

   Repeat

   Apply again for the next course in the program

For Generative AI Leader, the cheap route is the no-charge learning path and Google's untimed sample questions, then the $99 fee itself.

Which Google AI certification should you get? Pick by goal

If your company runs on Microsoft 365 or AWS rather than Google, their exams fit better; our guide to the best AI certifications compares them with Google's. If you want a free start outside Coursera, see our Google AI Essentials alternatives.

How we checked, and our interest

Every price, length and rule above comes from Google's, Google Cloud's, Google for Education's, Google Skills' and Coursera's own pages, read logged out on October 27, 2026. The time totals are our own sums of Coursera's course cards and item times. We did not enroll, sit an exam or read reviews, and this page has no affiliate links.

We sell four AI courses for people who don't code, all in early access (pre-order), and their bundle, our AI course for beginners. They are not in this catalog and give no accredited certificate. Google's credentials are free or cheap, and for some readers one of them is the better first step: a teacher can earn a Gemini certification for nothing, and a manager at a company on Google Cloud may get more from the $99 Generative AI Leader exam than from a course.

?Quick check0 of 2 correct

Which of these Google AI credentials is a proctored exam?

AGoogle AI EssentialsBGenerative AI LeaderCGoogle Prompting Essentials

You teach high school and want a Google AI certification at no cost. Which fits?

AProfessional Machine Learning EngineerBGoogle AI Professional CertificateCGemini Certified Educator

What to do next

Pick the row in the goal table that matches what you need in the next three months, not the most impressive name. For a Coursera program, check the price for your country and block enough evenings to finish inside one paid month. For a Google Cloud exam, work through the free learning path and the sample questions before you book. And if what you want is a working result in your business rather than a credential, a project course built around one launch fits better than any certificate.