The most frequently asked questions about Google Analytics certification gets answered.

Do I really need Google Analytics certification?

You do not need any sort of certification to create a Google Analytics account and start using it. All the basic features are quite easy to understand for most people; other features are explained here. Most people who use Google Analytics were never certified or officially trained.

Of course, studying to get certified is a good way to expand your knowledge about Google Analytics. The course material will teach you how Google Analytics collects, processes and displays the data. This is very useful if you want to go beyond the basics and use Google Analytics’ advanced features, such as custom or calculated metrics, filters, segments and so on.

If you plan to work as web analyst, you may be required to have Google Analytics certification in order for your employer to verify your qualification. You will need to retake the GA certification exam once a year, and every new exam will contain some updated questions because the functionality of Google Analytics is updated and expanded on a regular basis.

You have a maximum of 90 minutes to complete the exam, but if you have all the necessary knowledge, it will take much less—about half an hour in total—to get your certification. Once you receive your certification, it will be displayed on your profile in Google Partners.

Starting in January 2018, exams and certifications will be moved to Academy for Ads, Google’s online training program.

This is what the GA certification looks like:

How do I obtain a Google Analytics certification?

In order to get Google Analytics certification, you need to pass an exam (answer more than 80% of the questions correctly).

First, you need to sign up for Google Partners (https://www.google.com/partners/) and create a profile. After that, you will get access to learning material and the exam.

Note that this is undergoing some changes, and starting in January 2018, with exams and certifications moving to Academy for Ads, the structure and process will change.