Have no experience with SEO? This is an easy place to begin. The premise of Ahrefs beginner course is that you don’t need any background whatsoever. It begins with the concept of search engine working, covers keyword research, on page optimization, link building and technical optimization. There is no sign up required to watch all of the lessons, so there’s a lot less friction.

What You’ll Learn:

• SEO fundamentals
• Knowing the keywords and the purpose of their search as well as the competition.
• On-page SEO
• Building links and having good quality backlinks.
• Technical SEO basics

Who is it for? Beginners, bloggers, website owners, marketers and students. It might be the best that small business owners can hope for because it demonstrates the potential of organic traffic without advanced technical skills.

Why choose it? There are practical examples to accompany each idea so it never gets abstracted and the course covers all areas a newcomer would need. This is one of the easiest methods to get on top of SEO courses without drowning your new students on day one.

In SEO Essentials with Semrush, you will learn the core concepts of SEO and how to use Semrush’s tools to research keywords, optimize your technical website, optimize your content, and research backlinks. It is for the real beginners as well as those who know the basics but want to feel at home on the platform. The new edition introduces a brief overview of AI optimization and search visibility.

What You’ll Learn:

• SEO fundamentals
• This involves keyword research and technical optimization of the website.
• Keyword research and selecting relevant keywords for your website.
• AI optimization basics
• Semrush SEO tools and website visibility

Who is it for? A complete beginner in SEO, a content marketer, a website owner or a digital marketing student or professional interested in learning something along the way.

Why choose it? Many courses only go so far as the terminology. This one requires you to apply it and the certificate at the end serves as light SEO certification. If you already use Semrush, or you intend to use it, you will not have to go from the Semrush blog to the real toolkit to navigate and learn about a feature.

Short on time? HubSpot’s lesson is an explanation of how search engines find, crawl, index and rank web pages. It is in total 34 minutes of video and a quiz on website auditing and creating a simple SEO strategy. Consider this a mini-SEO course, not a complete course.

What You’ll Learn:

• The working of the search engines.
• Crawling, indexing and rankings
• When designing a website, it is important to always consider SEO strategy and website auditing.
• Basic optimization

Who is it for? The webmasters, content creators and marketers who are just getting started who need a quick overview first.

Why choose it? It is very easy to follow, and no experience is assumed. It can serve as a great warm-up exercise before keyword research, technical SEO and content optimization. Complete it first and all of the more detailed seo courses later will be more understandable as you will be familiar with the terms.

Yoast’s course focuses on answering the question that search engines ask themselves as they discover, comprehend and index what is on your website. You must start from scratch. There are approximately 2 hours of video in 20 bite-sized lessons on keywords, SEO copywriting, site structure, crawlability and rich results, quizzes and PDFs included.

What You’ll Learn:

• How search engines work
• Keywords and SEO copywriting
• How the site is structured and can be crawled by Google.
• Rich results
• This is an implementation and content that’s both basic and search friendly.

Who is it for? Newcomers, bloggers, website owners, WordPress users, writers and marketers, particularly anyone who desires to understand the concepts prior to getting to plugins.

Why choose it? Yoast tells you how things work, not what you should do. Lots of information for free, doesn’t require you to input payment information, and includes a certificate and a badge, making it one of the best free online courses for beginners. It’s the type of course you can half remember a month later and make use of, because the explanations are focused on concepts and not button clicks.

This is for WordPress users. It provides you with instructions for setting up and using the Yoast SEO plugin, and teaches you about what each of the settings does for SEO. Ever wonder what a canonical link is and it’s purpose? Yoast says it works with both the free and Premium versions of the plugin.

What You’ll Learn:

• Optimizing your keywords and configuring Yoast SEO.
• SEO and readability analysis
• Use XML sitemaps, canonical URLs and robots meta tags.
• Renders redirects & structured data
• Internal linking

Who is it for? WordPress developers, bloggers, website owners, writers and marketers who manage, run and optimize SEO straight from the WordPress dashboard.

Why choose it? There is a limit to theory. You will see some of the normal tasks performed within a live WordPress site, and then you can do the same on your own site. If you use it with the above beginner course you’ll know the theory and the plugin – a combination you will find in very few people.

Structured data can be used to communicate information about a page to search engines, enabling them to better understand its meaning and the relationships between its components. Yoast’s course is an introduction into the concept and how it allows you to communicate with search engines and AI systems. The video is under 40 minutes, but will last longer when including quizzes and supporting materials.

What You’ll Learn:

• Structured Data explained and why it’s important.
• The concepts and implementation of schemas.
• How search engines and AI systems utilize structured data.
• A set of features for structured data in Yoast.

Who is it for? Anyone who wants structured data without advanced coding skills, such as beginners in SEO, WordPress users, developers, website owners, and website marketers.

Why choose it? It’s a simple introduction to an integral part of technical SEO but ends with a certificate and a badge! Even if you don’t write any code, understanding what structured data is makes it less daunting to speak to developers and clients.

Google Search Central provides official documentation on how Google Search works and how to make websites easier for Google to crawl, index, and understand.

The source can be the best teacher. Official documentation of Google Search is published by Google Search Central on how Google Search works and how to make it easier for Google to crawl, index and understand a site. The SEO Starter Guide is the friendliest of them all, and pages surround it about Search Essentials, Google Search Console, search appearance, structured data, etc. This is the most plain and straightforward way to get into Google SEO.

What You’ll Learn:

• This course covers the key concepts of SEO and how to use Google Search.
• Crawling and indexing
• Search appearance
• Website optimization
• Google Search Console and website performance monitoring.

Who is it for? Web owners, bloggers, developers, and beginners, and marketers who prefer to learn from Google’s own documentation than from third-party tutorials.

Why choose it? The documentation will be updated on a regular basis, which Google has continued to do, including a new SEO Starter Guide. It’s also beneficial for assessing advice you’ve seen elsewhere, as you can cross check it with what Google states about Google SEO.

But in practice, countless factors exist that might impact the success or failure of your SEO. The use of the tools is another. The course helps new users with the basics of the Semrush platform and demonstrates its ability to deal with everyday tasks such as creating a project, monitoring keyword positions, auditing a site for technical issues, and generating reports. For the moment, it’s being listed as free with certification by Semrush, and that’s a tiny SEO certification victory, too.

What You’ll Learn:

• Creating an SEO project
• Keyword rank tracking
• Website auditing and technical SEO checks.
• SEO reporting
• Task management and SEO workflow in Semrush.

Who is it for? Website owners, website beginners, marketing professionals and agencies who want to understand how Semrush works into their workflow, students and everybody interested in digital marketing.

Why choose it? Practical SEO relies on keyword research tools, site audit tools and tools to track website performance. This will give you the initial bones of the main workflow, which is a valuable asset in any digital marketing job. It’s something that’s an excellent way to know if Semrush works for you or not without learning anything more.

This is a practical introduction to the key reports and tools within Ahrefs and it’s a long one! It is designed to cater for people who wish to have tools to help with keyword analysis, competitor analysis, technical SEO, backlink research, among other things. You don’t have to register to start, and, if you want to learn something about SEO, there’s an exam at the end, too, per Ahrefs.

What You’ll Learn:

• Competitor analysis
• Using Keywords Explorer to do keyword research.
• Site Explorer and Site Audit
• Backlink research and SEO reporting.
• AI visibility concepts

Who is it for? Website owners, marketers, professionals and learners who are already familiar with the basics and wish to get acquainted with the professional tools for conducting SEO research.

Why choose it? It demonstrates real-life examples of how data is read and applied, and goes beyond vocabulary into keyword research, competitor analysis and competitor audits. Watch for a few lessons to be paused and replayed. That’s part of training the tools, and it’s what makes the tools free.

In this free HubSpot Academy learning path, you will learn how to optimize for search engines and improve your website’s visibility.

Search is changing. The increasing use of AI-powered search and answer engines by more people makes this learning path attempt to make sense of that change. It covers Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and demonstrates the relationship between traditional SEO and optimization for platforms like Google, ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini. Also included is AI-assisted content workflows, video visibility and measurement, a factor that comes into play when you’re concerned with content SEO and long-term organic traffic.

What You’ll Learn:

• Today’s SEO and AI-driven search.
• Answer Engine Optimisation and AI visibility.
• Content optimization
• ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini
• Assisted measuring of SEO and AEO with AI.

Who is it for? For SEO professionals, content marketers, website owners, and creators, it’s essential to understand how search is changing.

Why choose it? The use of search behaviour continues to extend beyond the traditional blue links and it is a good modern addition to a wider search strategy. It’s also a great bookmark for the day a client will ask about ChatGPT and you want to have an answer prepared.

This course focuses specifically on local keyword research and how to use it to build a useful keyword list. It emphasizes local keyword research, how to identify the searches that local customers may be conducting and how to use them as a valuable keyword list. BrightLocal provides a template to follow along with and the lessons begin basic and progress to advanced.

What You’ll Learn:

• Local keywords and local search intent
• Keyword types
• Creating local keyword lists using free programs
• Competitor research
• Local SEO strategy

Who is it for? Local business owners, beginners, freelance and agencies and marketers creating targeted keyword lists.

Why choose it? Local search is the search of what people are looking for in particular areas. The course focuses on that singular skill, which is well suited to places such as restaurants, shops, service businesses and others that are based at a location. Just a small list of keywords created from this course can help dictate the pages, services and posts that a local business will create next.

Ahrefs collects some free how-to guides about how to get local businesses more visible in search engines and Google Maps. This is a set of classes from the Ahrefs library, not a single class, and includes lessons on local SEO fundamentals, local keyword research, local link building and local citations. This SEO tutorial series is for those who are looking for SEO techniques that can be applied to a specific region.

What You’ll Learn:

• Local SEO basics and showing up in Google Maps.
• Local keyword research
• Local link building
• Business citations
• Local traffic generation

Who is it for? For small business owners, freelancers, agencies and marketers involving location-based businesses.

Why choose it? Several practical tutorials are contained in a single path for you to follow, from keywords to citations to links and ending with a broader perspective on local search optimization. The lessons are independent of each other, so you can easily move to the lesson that matches your problem this week.

Google Search Console is among the most important tools for seeing how a website performs in Google Search. It is documented by Google’s own documentation, as well as indexing, search appearance, performance reports and troubleshooting. Utilize this to determine if Google can crawl and index your site, then explore SEO metrics such as queries and search performance. There are both beginner and advanced guides.

What You’ll Learn:

• Google Search Console basics.
• The performance of search and the search queries themselves.
• URL inspection, indexing, and crawling.
• Search appearance
• Troubleshooting and reporting on Technical SEO issues.

Who is it for? Webmasters, developers, bloggers and marketers who wish to know how websites are handled by Google Search.

Why choose it? It is updated regularly, and each visit is likely to result in several more, because there is an abundance of structured data and other information in the documentation too. Think of it not as a one-time reading but as a place to come back to wanting to read again, as your questions evolve and the data in the site changes over time.

Google Search Essentials clarifies Google’s essentials for being included in Search. It’s a must-know document for technical specifications, spam guidelines and practices that can impact your search rankings and eligibility. Please note that this course is not a video course. This is a piece of documentation you open when you’re developing a site, and Google shows to owners when they are trying to find out about performance and compliance.

What You’ll Learn:

• Technical requirements
• Spam policies and search guidelines.
• Accessibility of the web site for Google.
• We will be able to follow Google SEO best practices.
• Search eligibility

Who is it for? Every website owner, website developer, professional, blogger and marketer who want to know what Google expects before a page can appear.

Why choose it? This advice is from the horses’ mouths of Google, so you have a reliable source to refer to when you’re considering any practice. It complements the SEO Starter Guide and the pages of the Search Console. Read it through once for the general overview and then revisit whenever you notice something strange in your search rankings.

SEO Certification Course from eMarketing Institute introduces the basic concepts of search engine optimization and explains how websites can improve their visibility in organic search results. The course covers keyword research, on-page SEO, link building, search engine indexing, and SEO tools. It is useful for beginners who want to understand the main areas of SEO before moving into more specialized topics.

What You’ll Learn:

• SEO fundamentals
• How search engines crawl and index websites
• Keyword research
• On-page SEO and website optimization
• Link building and backlinks
• SEO tools and performance tracking

Who is it for? Anyone who is starting to learn SEO, bloggers, website owners, students, and digital marketing professionals who want to build a basic understanding of search engine optimization.

Why choose it? The course provides free learning material covering several important areas of SEO in one place. It can help beginners build a foundation before moving on to more specialized areas such as technical SEO, local SEO, or link building.

The technical aspect of SEO is how you can make search engines easier to crawl, understand and access your content. In this Ahrefs Course, we will be introducing those concepts in simple terms, with lessons on the basics and best practices to get the most out of the platform. It’s a subject that is just as important as keyword research, as well as on-page SEO and link building, and Ahrefs considers technical SEO to be a fundamental topic to know.

What You’ll Learn:

• Basic technical SEO and best practices
• The ability of the website to be crawled and indexed.
• Website structure
• SEO errors
• Search engine accessibility

Who is it for? For beginners, web developers and WordPress users and marketers who want to learn the technology, but don’t start with advanced concepts.

Why choose it? Even if your content is great, it can be inaccessible to search engines due to technical issues. This sets the groundwork on which your content and link building will be based. When your site doesn’t seem to be getting visibility despite great writing, this is likely among the first places to look.

Today, page experience is an important segment of website optimization. We have documented all the performance, security and user experience aspects related to search, including Core Web Vitals, mobile usability, and HTTPS. Google states its ranking algorithms take into account Core Web Vitals, but also cautions that having good scores doesn’t ensure high ranking on search results.

What You’ll Learn:

• Core Web Vitals and page experience
• The usefulness of HTTPS and mobile devices.HTTPS and mobile devices.
• The performance and set up of websites and Lighthouse.
• User experience
• Search performance

Who is it for? Developers, technical SEO experts, WordPress users and website owners who want to focus on performance and user experience.

Why choose it? It provides clear advice, but doesn’t make one metric a promise, which is a great reminder that speed is just one piece of a comprehensive SEO strategy. The goal is to improve page experience without treating any single metric as a guarantee of higher rankings.

This documentation was almost written for you if you have a course directory or educational resources to publish. It provides an understanding of how structured data assists Google in comprehending course information and course list pages. Individual course detail pages may be accompanied by a course summary page, which can be marked up with ItemList, and Google provides Course examples to study.

What You’ll Learn:

• Course structured data and Schema.org Course markup
• A list page that displays a list of courses, along with ItemList markup.
• Structured data implementation
• Monitoring structured data through Google Search Console.
• Rich-result considerations

Who is it for? Any developer, professional or educational website owner who publishes several courses and needs to comply with the Google structured data requirements.

Why choose it? Structured data is a very technical SEO subject, not a nice to have when it comes to a course directory. Google displays some examples of how details and lists can be displayed. It doesn’t matter whether you don’t have a directory yourself, it’s a nice illustration of how markup and strategy can play together.

The SEO Crash Course with Brian Dean is designed to introduce beginners to the main elements of search engine optimization. The course focuses on practical SEO areas such as keyword research, content creation, link building, and measuring SEO results. It provides a simple starting point for learners who want to understand how different SEO activities work together.

What You’ll Learn:

• SEO fundamentals
• Keyword research
• Creating SEO-friendly content
• Link building
• Measuring SEO results

Who is it for? Anyone who is new to SEO, bloggers, website owners, students, and digital marketers who want to learn the basic steps involved in developing an SEO strategy.

Why choose it? The course is short, practical, and easy to follow, making it suitable for beginners who do not want to start with a lengthy SEO program. It can also serve as a starting point before exploring more advanced SEO topics and Semrush tools.

Google SEO Fundamentals is part of the Search Engine Optimization Specialization from the University of California, Davis. The course goes beyond basic SEO concepts and covers keyword research, search behavior, on-page optimization, technical SEO, and website performance. It is suitable for learners who want to develop a more structured understanding of how SEO strategies are planned and applied.

What You’ll Learn:

• How search engines and search algorithms work
• Keyword research and search behavior
• On-page SEO analysis
• Technical SEO elements
• Website errors, sitemaps, and robots.txt
• Developing SEO strategies

Who is it for? Students, digital marketing professionals, website owners, and learners who already understand some SEO basics and want to develop a deeper understanding of search engine optimization.

Why choose it? The course provides a more structured learning experience than a short SEO tutorial and covers several important areas of SEO in detail. It can be useful for learners who want to move beyond SEO basics and understand how different optimization activities fit into a broader strategy.