Beginner 170 hours English Professional CertificateFREE
Our recommendation
IBM's beginner data-analyst certificate, covering Excel, SQL, Python and a visualisation tool such as Power BI across several courses. It is hands-on and job-focused, a common alternative to Google's Data Analytics certificate — with more of a Python and BI-tools leaning. Best paired with your own projects.
Good for: Beginners who want a hands-on route into data analysis with a recognised certificate.
Less suitable if: You already know SQL and Excel, or you want advanced data science.
Realistic time: About 130 hours; four to six months part-time.
About this course
The IBM Data Analyst Professional Certificate is the most tool-comprehensive beginner data program on Coursera. Where the Google Data Analytics certificate focuses on depth in SQL, R, and Tableau, IBM's version covers more ground: Python, SQL, Excel, IBM Cognos, Power BI, and data visualisation across 11 courses. The tradeoff is breadth over depth — you get exposure to a wider toolkit but spend less time on any individual tool than a specialist course would.
What you'll learn
Import, clean, and analyse datasets using Python (pandas, NumPy, matplotlib)
Write SQL queries and work with relational databases including IBM Db2
Build dashboards in IBM Cognos Analytics and Microsoft Power BI
Perform data wrangling and feature engineering in Jupyter notebooks
Create a capstone data analysis project for your portfolio
Apply Excel for data manipulation, pivot tables, and chart creation
This course includes
170h
On-demand video
Yes
Certificate
Yes
Mobile access
English
Language
What it costs
Free to audit on Coursera; the certificate needs a subscription (about $49 a month), with financial aid available.
Comparison · LBS
Compare alternatives for IBM Data Analyst Professional Certificate
Same topic, different options. We surface the trade-offs others hide so you can pick the course that actually fits your time, budget, and goals.
Issued through Coursera with IBM — a recognised entry-level credential; employers look hardest at your projects.
Instructor
IS
IBM Skills Network
Coursera instructor
530K+ learners11 courses4.6 instructor rating
Delivered by IBM's Skills Network team — a group of IBM data professionals and instructional designers who build curriculum aligned with IBM's enterprise data and analytics practices.