All seven are genuinely free, and every certificate is included at no cost. None of these is the free-to-audit, pay-for-the-certificate trap. A few are worth explaining properly, because two of them never print the word "free" on the course page itself.
Open the course 路 9 lessons 路 29 minutes 路 free, certificate included
What it is. The shortest thing on the list and the reason Monday is easy. It is about using AI for the PR side of marketing: pitches, media lists and tracking where your brand gets mentioned. Taught by Mariah Magazine.
What it actually teaches. How to build a media list and a pitch with AI instead of by hand, and how to monitor brand mentions once the pitch lands. The nine lessons run between one and seven minutes each.
What you walk away with. A Semrush Academy certificate, downloaded and also emailed to you.
The honest bit. There is a short exam at the end, and a free Semrush account is needed. The course is built around Semrush's own AI PR toolkit, so following along properly means being inside Semrush rather than any AI tool.
Open the module 路 2 units 路 ~30 mins 路 free Trailhead badge, +200 points
What it is. The warm-up. Two units: "Get to Know AI" at about 15 minutes, then "Scale Your Marketing With AI" at about 15 minutes.
What it actually teaches. What AI is doing inside marketing work, then how that scales across campaigns rather than one-off tasks. It is deliberately foundational, which is why it belongs early rather than being skipped.
What you walk away with. A badge on your Trailhead profile worth 200 points, which you can add to LinkedIn.
The honest bit. Each unit ends in a challenge you have to pass, so it is earned rather than handed over, and a free Trailhead account is required. This is a badge, not a certificate. Salesforce is a name recruiters know, so it is still worth the half hour.
Open the course 路 5 modules 路 1 hour 路 free certificate of completion, no exam
What it is. Mindset, use cases and workflows, in Adobe's own framing. The one on this list with no exam at the end, which makes it the most relaxing evening of the week.
What it actually teaches. How to spot the high-value places AI belongs in a marketing workflow rather than sprinkling it everywhere, then building your first proper workflow around one of them.
What you walk away with. Module 5 of the course is literally titled "Certificate of completion". Finishing it shows a "Course completed" screen with a share button and a download button.
The honest bit. A free Adobe ID is almost certainly needed to save progress and personalise the certificate, though the course page does not spell that out. Make the account first either way.
Open the course 路 14 lessons 路 1 hr 31 min 路 free, certificate included
What it is. The strategy day, and the one with the most senior teacher on the list. Michael Olaye is described on the page as "Currently EVP, Managing Director at (Hero) and former EVP, Managing Director of Strategy and Innovation at R/GA".
What it actually teaches. AI across strategy, campaigns and content, rather than one tool. It is the course that helps you argue for an approach in a meeting, not just execute faster.
What you walk away with. A Semrush Academy certificate. Lesson 13 spells out the deal: "After you complete the exam you'll be the proud owner of your very own Semrush Academy certificate."
The honest bit. Semrush publishes this as 1 hour 31 minutes, so it is the second longest day of the week rather than the quick hour people expect. Some material is from the 2023 to 2024 era, so it is the least current thing here. Lesson 14 is a paid-community offer rather than part of the course, so skip it.
Open the certification 路 beginner 路 75 minutes allowed for the assessment 路 free Google certification
What it is. Your first proper Google certification of the week, and a gentler run at the format before day 7. It covers Merchant Center, product feeds and Performance Max for retail.
What it actually teaches. How Shopping ads work end to end, how to identify the requirements before you launch, and how Performance Max fits a retail strategy.
What you walk away with. A Google certification, viewable and downloadable from the My Activities page under the courses tab.
The honest bit. The pass mark is 80%, and if you do not pass you wait 24 hours before retrying. It expires after 12 months. If you do not work in retail or ecommerce this is the least relevant day, but it is also the cheapest way to learn the Skillshop assessment format before the big one.
Open the certification 路 7 lessons 路 19 videos 路 2 hr 20 min 路 free certification course
What it is. The most current thing on this list, and the one most likely to make people at work ask how you knew about it. AEO is answer engine optimisation: getting cited inside AI answers, not just ranked in search results.
What it actually teaches. The seven lessons are "Rethinking Visibility in the Age of Answer Engines" (24 min), "Establishing Your AEO Foundation" (16 min), "Planning Content for Search and AI Visibility" (17 min), "Optimizing for AI Citations" (42 min), "Measuring What Matters in AEO" (35 min), plus a welcome and a next-steps lesson. The citations lesson is the longest and the most useful.
What you walk away with. A HubSpot certification, which HubSpot's own page tells you to add straight to your LinkedIn profile.
The honest bit. This one is product-agnostic, so you do not need a HubSpot subscription. There is a sibling course called "Implementing AEO With HubSpot" which is also free but assumes their tooling. It is not this one.
Open the certification 路 intermediate 路 75 minutes allowed for the assessment 路 free Google certification
What it is. The big finish, and the most recognised credential on this list. It is the one hiring managers in performance marketing actually know by name.
What it actually teaches. Building and optimising Search campaigns, the Google Ads auction, responsive search ads, bid strategies, and a whole section called "Get Started with AI-Powered Search Campaigns" covering AI-powered search ads and how to create one.
What you walk away with. A Google Ads Search certification on your Skillshop profile.
The honest bit. 80% to pass, 24 hours before a retry, and it expires after 12 months like day 5. Put a calendar reminder at 11 months, because a lapsed certification on a profile is worse than no certification.