As one of the leading providers of marketing tools to digital marketing specialists, SEMrush also provides SEO training through SEMrush Academy. Besides programs that teach users how to maximize the platform’s extensive features, several free online digital marketing courses are also offered. This should give both new and long-time SEMrush users plenty of opportunity for upskilling and staying updated about the ever-changing SEO landscape.
Here, we give you a brief overview of SEMrush Academy, as well as the best courses professionals can enroll in the academy.
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What is SEMrush Academy?
SEMrush Academy is the training and resource center of SEMrush.

SEMrush Academy is essentially the training and online resource center of SEMrush. It offers some of the best free digital marketing courses—including certification exams—in five key areas: SEO, PPC, SMM, content marketing, and competitive research.
The courses come in easy-to-digest modules and usually take between 1-5 hours to complete. Apart from the curated reading materials, easy-to-follow video lessons from leading and renowned SEO experts are also provided. Users who complete a course have the option of taking an exam and earning official certificates that can be added in their CVs or LinkedIn profiles. What’s more, all the courses and certification exams in Academy are free for registered SEMrush users.
Take a look at some of the best SEMrush courses below.
SEO Fundamentals Course with Greg Gifford
For beginners, the SEO Fundamentals Course is an essential 4-hour program to get the basics down pat.

What is SEO? What is the history of searching engines? These fundamental questions are all addressed by Greg Gifford in this entry-level course on search engine optimization. Gifford, who serves as vice president of search marketing in SearchLabs, has over 17 years of experience and is a top international speaker on Local SEO.
In the SEO Fundamentals Course, students are introduced to search engine basics, including the principles behind crawling, SERP, on-page optimization, and SEO for mobile. Gifford himself hosts 31 exclusive video lessons in the course. And while the program primarily caters to beginners, those who want to brush up on some SEO basics will also benefit from the lessons.
- No. of modules: 8
- No. of hours to complete: 4
- Certification Exam: Yes
SEMrush SEO Toolkit Course
Boost your SEO using SEMrush tools.

Once you get SEO basics down pat, consider enrolling in the SEmrush SEO Toolkit Course. Prepared by SEMrush professionals, the course features three strategic modules: learn, build, and measure. Under Learn, students are introduced into some of the key features of the toolkit. The focus is largely on organic research, keyword and backlink analysis, as well as traffic analytics.
To build your online presence, the second module focuses on how you can leverage the Keyword Magic Tool, optimize copies using the SEO Content Template, and configure the On Page SEO checker. Of course, critical to any SEO strategy is turning insight into action, so the module on Measure gives a comprehensive overview of SEMrush’s monitoring tools.
- No. of modules: 3
- No. of hours to complete: 3
- Certification Exam: Yes
SEMrush Content Marketing Toolkit Course
If content marketing is crucial to your strategy, these modules could be a game-changer.

Earning backlinks largely depend on the quality of the content you’re producing. So it’s no surprise that SEMrush comes with a curated list of tools aimed at content marketers—Content Audit, SEO Writing Assistant, SEO Content Template, and a Post Tracking Tool, just to name a few.
Through this content marketing toolkit course, students get a better idea of how to analyze and optimize content using the aforementioned tools. Designed by a team of SEMrush experts, the course offers 9 lessons that cover content auditing, research, ideation, and management. If content marketing is crucial to your strategy, then this program is essential.
- No. of modules: 4
- No. of hours to complete: 3
- Certification Exam: Yes
Content Marketing Fundamentals Course with Ashley Segura
Digital marketing expert and speaker Ashley Segura hosts this entry-level course on content marketing.

If you’re exploring the content marketing arena, this introductory 13-lesson course by Ashley Segura should suit you. Whereas most strategists would focus solely on either the creative aspect of content marketing or the more technical, data-driven side, Segura strikes a balance between the two. Throughout the single-module course, emphasis is given to research, strategy, and creativity to produce highly-engaging content that establishes credibility and leads to greater conversions.
Organizations keen on including content marketing in their strategy are highly-advised to take this course. Segura, who hosts the video lessons, has over 7 years of extensive experience helping clients grow their businesses online.
- No. of modules: 1
- No. of hours to complete: 2
- Certification Exam: Yes
PPC Fundamentals Course with Joel Bondorowsky
Businesses who want to run their own PPC campaigns will learn a lot from this five-hour program.

For people in digital advertising, PPC is a crucial metric. But for those who are new to the industry, this form of advertising maybe intimidating. Joel Bondorowsky, founder of a boutique PPC agency, keeps things simple in this fundamental course on pay per clicks. Having been behind some of the largest PPC campaigns in the industry, Bondorowsky gives an in-depth overview of PPC before delving into strategy, search advertising, and shopping campaigns.
There are 36 video lessons in this course, tackling PPC platforms and channels, display advertising, and branded search campaigns among many others. If launching or managing PPC campaigns is something you’re looking forward to, this course is for you.
- No. of modules: 8
- No. of hours to complete: 5
- Certification Exam: Yes
Advanced Competitive Research Practices with SEMrush
Go beyond the basics and leverage the SEMrush tools on competitive intelligence.

With almost everyone going online, competition can be stiff. To help you boost profitability in the digital space, SEMrush tapped Navah Hopkins for the Advanced Competitive Research Practices course using SEMrush tools. Banking on her years of experience with SEMrush to help thousands of clients, Hopkins emphasizes the role of competitive intelligence in your business.
Whether it’s identifying channels by auditing your competitors or finding the right affiliate for your brand, this SEMrush course tackles industry practices that should help shape your organization’s strategy. Upon completion of the program, expect to have a better grasp of SEMrush’s Traffic Analytics and Marketing Explorer features.
- No. of modules: 1
- No. of hours to complete: 1
- Certification Exam: Yes
Final Thoughts
SEMrush Academy offers high-quality training courses and certification exams that should give SEMrush users a head start on the platform.
The great thing about SEMrush Academy is that all the courses are 100% free. While most of the lessons are designed for beginners, experienced SEMrush users will still benefit brushing up on some basics from time-to-time. This is especially true in a fast-paced and constantly evolving SEO and digital landscape.
The content marketing course, in particular, offers great breadth and depth that should make you rethink your approach to content development. In addition, the modules on social media marketing and technical SEO are also highly engaging, and useful for those looking to branch out beyond content marketing.
If you’re just starting out on SEMrush, consider the above mentioned courses essential to enroll in. Don’t forget to take the certification exams after completing the course, as they’ll definitely boost your professional portfolio.