10 Best IT Certifications For Beginners
A career in IT offers a wide range of advantages and opportunities for those hoping to put their existing skills into practice. From fledgling start-ups to massive multinational organizations, technology plays such an essential role in every aspect of our lives that the assistance of IT professionals is required across several industries, such as banks, businesses, government organizations, and the media. Their salaries are generally very rewarding, and there are satisfying career routes for those with and without a degree.
In this cause, IT certifications are a great way to showcase your specific abilities and specialisms. By giving your resume more credibility, they can make you more marketable to recruiters and hiring managers. And at the entry-level, they’re an effective way to stand out from other candidates and boost your pay.
As you grow in your career, you must consider more advanced certifications to continue your professional development. However, at the entry-level, it’s better to stick with more generalized certifications to help get started.
Don’t chase multiple certifications at once. Pick one (CompTIA A+ or Google IT Support), pass it, get a job, then pursue the next cert while working. Real experience plus one certification beats three certifications and no experience.
For beginners wanting to carve out a new career in IT, I have listed some of the best IT certifications for beginners that pay really well
Best IT certifications for beginners
Without further ado, let’s go through my picks for the ten best IT certifications available today for beginners.
Google IT Support Professional (Coursera)
Google IT Support Professional (Coursera)
- 6-month program by Google on Coursera
- Covers cloud computing, DNS, Linux, and troubleshooting
- No college degree or prior IT experience required
- Prepares for IT specialist, technician, and support roles
Google courses are some of the best pathways to a successful IT career. This six-month course from Coursera helps you develop in-demand skills, including binary code, cloud computing, domain name system (DNS), network protocols, troubleshooting, Linux, and customer service.
If you feel like you’re automatically disqualified from a job role because you don’t possess a college degree or an IT job, Google IT Support Professional Certificate is the right course for you. You will struggle with finding a good-paying job without credentials. Therefore, this certificate from Google prepares you for entry-level IT jobs even if you haven’t finished a four-year course or worked at a tech company.
I recommend you to begin with this course if you want to know how to launch a career in tech with no experience. Later, you can apply for jobs such as IT specialist, IT technician, IT support specialist, computer user specialist, and IT assistant.
Coding for Beginners Courses on Skillshare
Coding for Beginners Courses on Skillshare
- Multiple courses on Skillshare
- Covers foundational programming theory and terminology
- Includes hands-on exercises and app-building projects
- No prior coding experience needed
You can go for IT and tech jobs that don’t require programming or coding, such as IT project manager. However, if you wish to expand your IT career choices, learning to code is one of the most effective ways of going about it. To learn how to code from scratch, you should check out Skillshare’s Coding for Beginners courses.
Apart from introducing you to standard terms in programming, these courses also give you hands-on exercises. You will learn foundational theory and apply it to a simple project. By the end of the lessons, you will be able to build your first app!
Technical Support Fundamentals by Google (Coursera)
Technical Support Fundamentals by Google (Coursera)
- Part of Google IT Support Professional Certificate on Coursera
- Covers binary code, Linux, customer support, and troubleshooting
- Available in multiple languages with financial aid options
- Official Google certificate upon completion
Technical Support Fundamentals course by Google is designed to train you as an entry-level IT support specialist. Since it is a part of the Google IT Support Professional Certificate program, you will receive an official certificate upon completion. You can enroll in the course free of cost as part of Coursera Plus, which costs $399 per year and includes additional courses or pay $39 per month for the individual course.
The course covers various topics such as binary code, customer support, Linux, and troubleshooting and offers subtitles in several languages. Some students may receive financial aid as well. Although the course is a good introduction for learners who wish to apply for a customer-facing IT support role, it could be too basic for other learners.
Learn more about this course →
Project Management Courses on Skillshare
Project Management Courses on Skillshare
- Multiple courses on Skillshare
- Covers business requirements, vision, and scope documentation
- Accessible on desktop and Skillshare mobile app
- Focuses on the business side of IT project development
These courses are designed to narrow in on one particular area of focus – defining the vision and scope of IT project management.
Here you will learn how to develop business requirements documentation, limitations and exclusions, and so on to completely manage and complete projects. Also, hands-on projects enable you to come up with the vision and scope needed.
You can easily access it on your computer or the Skillshare mobile app and study at home or on the go. These are excellent choice for people who want to learn about IT project development’s business side, rather than the technical side.
From Data to Insights With Google Cloud Specialization (Coursera)
From Data to Insights With Google Cloud (Coursera)
- By Google Cloud on Coursera
- 4 course modules, about 2 months at 6 hours/week
- Covers BigQuery, data visualization, and cloud analytics
- Hands-on labs using Google Qwiklabs platform
Offered by Google Cloud through Coursera, this accelerated certificate teaches you how to extract insights from data at scale with Google’s cloud data warehouse, BigQuery. Across four course modules, you will explore, visualize, and derive insights from Google BigQuery datasets. The certificate is ideal for business analysts and data analysts.
You will exercise new skills via an applied learning project as part of your coursework. The certificate also uses Google’s Qwiklabs platform to incorporate hands-on labs, giving ample opportunities for students to gain hands-on experience with the concepts they learn in video lectures. The course takes approximately two months to complete at a rate of 6 hours per week.
Learn more about this course →
Introduction to SQL (DataCamp)
Introduction to SQL (DataCamp)
- Free 4-hour course on DataCamp
- 1 million+ students enrolled
- Covers relational databases, filtering, aggregation, and grouping
- Works with PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, and SQL Server
Introduction to SQL is an excellent four-hour free course from DataCamp for students interested in becoming data scientists. SQL is a language used to work with databases, and it can pull the data you require to perform your analysis. First, the course will teach you to work with relational databases and start your analysis using simple SQL commands. After that, you will learn how to filter your data according to your requirements, use the aggregator functions, and sort and group your data.
Some popular SQL databases today include PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, and SQL Server. By joining this course, you can work with any of these databases because their query formation processes are similar. Also, it is one of the most popular free courses on the internet currently; more than a million students have already joined it on DataCamp.
Data Scientist Nanodegree (Udacity)
Data Scientist Nanodegree (Udacity)
- Nanodegree program on Udacity
- Covers data pipelines, recommendation systems, and cloud deployment
- Includes building classes and creating unit tests
- Helps build a portfolio for data science careers
Udacity’s Data Scientist nanodegree helps you gain real-world data science experience with projects designed by industry experts. You can use it to build your portfolio and advance your data science career. You will learn to understand the data science process in the course, including building compelling data visualizations and communicating with various stakeholders. It will also help you develop software engineering skills crucial for data scientists, such as building classes and creating unit tests.
By joining the course, you will master the skills necessary to become a successful data scientist. Also, you will learn to design experiments, run data pipelines, build recommendation systems, and deploy solutions to the cloud.
Learn more about this course →
Programming for Everybody (Coursera)
Programming for Everybody (Coursera)
- By University of Michigan on Coursera
- Part of the Python for Everybody Specialization
- Covers Python basics with no prerequisites
- Most popular Python course on Coursera
Programming for Everybody is the most popular Python 3 course on Coursera. It is a great option for beginners and experienced programmers who want to learn Python. It is part of the Python for Everybody Specialization and is offered by the University of Michigan. It aims to teach students the basics of programming computers using Python.
The course covers the basics of constructing a program from a series of simple instructions in Python. It has no prerequisites and avoids all but the most straightforward concepts of mathematics. Anyone with moderate experience in using computers should be able to master the materials in this course. After completing the course, you will be ready to take more advanced programming courses.
AI for Everyone (Coursera)
- Created by Andrew Ng on Coursera
- Covers AI terminology, ML, deep learning, and neural networks
- Teaches how to build AI strategy for organizations
- No technical background required
AI for Everyone is an excellent course to learn AI for beginners. Created by Andrew Ng, one of the leading instructors and Coursera founders, it will give you a solid overview of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how it can help us bring positive changes.
Here are the main things you will learn in this course:
- The meaning behind common AI terminology, including machine learning, deep learning, neural networks, and data science
- What we realistically can and cannot expect from AI
- How to identify opportunities to apply AI to problems in your own organization
- What it feels like to build data science and machine learning projects
- How to work with an AI team and develop an AI strategy in your company
- How to navigate ethical and societal discussions revolving around AI
Also, you will learn about technicalities such as machine learning and deep neural networks and how they work.
IBM Data Science (Coursera)
- 9-course professional certificate by IBM on Coursera
- Covers Python, SQL, open-source tools, and statistical analysis
- Includes hands-on IBM Cloud training with real datasets
- Complete portfolio to share with employers upon completion
IBM’s data science course focuses on providing aspiring digital experts with the background methodology and hands-on skills needed to excel in data science. In addition, you will discover various tools and languages used by professional data scientists and learn how to apply different techniques and skills to a project to publish a report.
With the demand for data science experts greater than ever, this nine-course professional certificate will equip you with a range of job-ready tools and skills, including tips on using open-source databases, tools, SQL, and statistical analysis. Also, you will get hands-on training within the IBM cloud using real-world data science tools and sets. After completing the course, you will have a complete portfolio to share with employers.
Conclusion
Certifications can validate your IT skills and experience to convince potential employers that you have the expertise to do the job. They are a great way of strengthening your resume and setting yourself apart from competitors in a job search. You can get certified in skills you already possess or skills you’d like to use in your career. I hope this article helps you get certified and get your dream job in the coming days.
What is the best IT certification for beginners with no experience?
CompTIA A+ is the standard entry point. It covers hardware, software, networking basics, and troubleshooting. Most help desk and IT support roles list it as preferred or required. Study time is typically 2-3 months.
How much do entry-level IT certifications cost?
CompTIA A+ costs $358 per exam (two exams total). CompTIA Network+ is $358. Google IT Support Certificate on Coursera runs about $49/month. Budget $300-$700 for your first certification including study materials.
Which IT certifications pay the most for beginners?
AWS Cloud Practitioner and CompTIA Security+ lead to the highest starting salaries among beginner IT certifications. Cloud and security roles start $10,000-$15,000 higher than general IT support positions on average.
Can I get an IT job with just certifications and no degree?
Yes. Many IT support, help desk, and junior admin roles hire based on certifications and demonstrated skills. CompTIA A+ plus hands-on experience (even home lab projects) is enough for most entry-level positions.
How long does it take to get your first IT certification?
Most beginners pass CompTIA A+ in 2-3 months of focused study. Google’s IT Support Certificate takes about 6 months at 10 hours per week. Fast learners with some tech background can finish in half the time.
Should I get CompTIA A+ or Google IT Support Certificate first?
Get Google IT Support first if you’re completely new to IT. It’s cheaper and builds foundational knowledge. Then get CompTIA A+ for the industry-recognized credential. Together, they make a strong entry-level resume.
Are IT certifications worth it in 2026?
Yes. The IT job market still values certifications, especially for career changers and people without CS degrees. CompTIA, AWS, and Google certifications consistently appear in job listings. They prove you have baseline skills employers need.
What order should I get IT certifications in?
Start with CompTIA A+ or Google IT Support. Then CompTIA Network+ for networking knowledge. Then choose a specialization: CompTIA Security+ for cybersecurity, AWS Cloud Practitioner for cloud, or CCNA for networking. Build on each layer.
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