2024 PMP Certification Cost Calculator (Multi-Currency)

Last Updated on June 14, 2024 by andrewshih

If you’re considering a career in project management or looking to advance in your current role, earning a PMP (Project Management Professional) certification can help you achieve your goals.

Getting PMP certification will require time and resource commitment. In this article, we will cover all the various costs that you should consider for pursuing PMP certification.

Best of all, we also have a PMP Certification cost calculator with muti-currency support to help you estimate the cost based on personal preferences.

Disclaimer: PMAspirantis is an affiliate of PMP training and resource providers.  If you choose to make a purchase via the link, I may earn a commission.  This commission comes at no additional cost to you.  Please refer to Affiliate Disclaimer.

PMP Certification Cost Calculator

The cost of your PMP certification will depend on a few personal preferences, such as membership, training, and study preferences. By answering the following questions, the calculator will provide an estimate with cost breakdowns annually.

The calculator currently supports the following countries/currencies.

We have visitors around the world, and let me know in the comments if there is another currency that will be beneficial to add to the list. However, please be mindful that providing additional coverage for currency takes research and maintenance effort, so I can only do this based on popular demand.

In any case, I hope this calculator is helpful.

PMP Certification Cost Breakdown

There are several cost components for the PMP certification:

• Membership Fee – Optional but highly recommended.
• Cost of PMP examination – Required.
• PMP Training (and earn 35 contact hours) – Options available
• Study guide – Optional
• Certification renewal fee – Required.
• Other miscellaneous cost

As you can see, there are several options, and it quite heavily depends on personal preference.

In the section below, we are going to take a closer look at each of the cost components.

PMI Membership Cost

While it is optional to join PMI membership to become PMP certified, PMI encourages you to join the membership. 

You will find out your membership fee is well worth the cost as it helps you offset the cost of the PMP examination and entitles you to other benefits.

The table below itemizes the cost for PMP Certification that you should expect depending on whether you are a PMI member.

New Member Registration Fee

If you are joining PMI membership for the first time, or if you stopped being a member and want to re-join again, you will need to pay a small new membership fee.

Annual PMI Membership Fee

If you decide to become a PMI member, you must pay the annual PMI membership fee.

As a PMI member, you are also entitled to other perks, such as:

• A free digital copy of the PMBOK guide and Agile Practice Guide.
• Access to premium Profession Development Unit (PDU) content on ProjectManagement.com

Is There a PMP Application Fee?

One advantage of PMP certification is that PMI will review your PMP application for free.

Completing the PMP application can be a cumbersome process, as you have to write a description for each of the projects that you claim as your project management experience. We have a step-by-step guide to help you walk through the process.

PMP Exam Cost

PMP Exam Fee

Once your application is approved, you have one year to pass the PMP Exam before you have to restart the process again.

The cost of the exam varies depending on whether you are a PMI member, and this is where PMI membership pays off.

Here is the PMP exam fee as a PMI member and non-member:

PMP Exam Retake Fee

If you do not pass the exam on the first attempt, you can have up to three attempts within a year. The cost of taking the second and third exams is cheaper than the first, and you can get a discount if you are a PMI member.

The PMP aspirant will need to wait for one year from the date of the third exam before applying for the PMP exam again.

PMP Training Cost

In addition to meeting the work experience requirement, the PMP candidate must complete 35 contact hours of project management training.

Most PMP aspirants take PMP Training to satisfy the 35 contact requirement and prepare for the PMP exam.

There are several options for acquiring 35 contact hours and training for the PMP exam. The cost of training can vary widely depending on the preferred training style.

Option #1: Free – Prior Project Management training or CAPM holder

The cheapest option is to leverage your prior project management training or if you are a certified Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM). In this case, there is no training cost.

Related Article: CAPM vs PMP: Which Certification Is Right For You?

If your employer has offered formal project management training or you have attended project management-related courses, the training may count toward the 35 contact hour requirement.

To be considered formal, the course must provide an end-of-course assessment and certificate of completion (or similar documentation verifying that you have successfully completed the course).

The main disadvantage of this approach is that the prior training will most likely not prepare you for the current PMP exam. Leveraging free online resources may not be adequate to prepare you for the exam.

You should consider one of the training options below.

Option #2: Budget – Online project management courses

If you have a tight budget and want to spend the minimum for the PMP training, the cheapest option will likely be taking a course from Udemy and supplement your practice with an exam simulator.

Budget Udemy PMP Training Course

There are on-demand courses that are available and qualify for the 35 contact hours. 

The two most popular courses amongst PMP aspirants and the cheapest courses available on Udemy are:

• PMP Certification Exam Prep by Andrew Ramdayal
• Joseph Phillips’s PMP exam prep

The cost of the training course can be as low as $20 if Udemy happens to offer the course at a steep discount. Otherwise, the regular price of these courses is around $130 to $150.

Some PMP aspirants who already had the project management training through employment also choose to take the Udemy course as a backup plan in case PMI doesn’t approve the project management training through employment.

Budget PMP Exam Simulator

It is highly recommended that you use a good-quality mock exam simulation to help you prepare for the PMP exam.

PMP exam questions are not straightforward, and there are many scenario questions.  Memorization of the knowledge is not enough; you must know how to apply the knowledge you learn and be able to apply it to the scenario to pass this difficult exam. The best way to prepare is to take plenty of practice questions to get comfortable with answering these questions.

A good mock exam simulator should have the following qualities:

• Questions that are similar to the difficulties of the actual exam questions.
• Answers with detailed explanations for the mock exam questions.
• Easy-to-use interface that is similar to the actual exam
• Ability to track your process
• Ability to randomly generate questions based on your filtering criteria

One of the best PMP exam simulators is offered by PM-Prepcast. The provider offers 3 pricing options ranging $100 to $150 and may sometimes offers a monthly coupon. You can pick the most suitable option that fits your needs. If you want to explore other providers, you can learn more about the top PMP Exam simulators available in the marketplace.

Overall, the total cost estimate of purchasing a Udemy course plus a PMP exam simulator:

Option #3: On-Demand – Take the On-Demand Package Course

Another popular training option for busy professionals or students who prefer to learn at their own pace is taking the on-demand training.

It is similar to the budget training, but in this case, you purchase both the training course and the exam simulator bundle from the same provider. The benefit of getting the package is that you get a discount when you purchase the course and exam simulator together.

There are plenty of on-demand training providers. One of the top training providers is PM-Prepcast, which has excellent reviews. PM-Prepcast offers 3 training packages, ranging from $279 to $389. Occasionally, the provider may offer a coupon code with a 10% to 20% monthly discount on top of bundle savings.

Option #4: Live Instructor – PMP boot camp training

If you prefer having a live instructor while taking the class from home or your office, online boot camp training is your best option. The key benefits are:

• Have an experienced instructor to help and answer all your questions
• Network and have a supportive class environment.
• Post-class email support is available for a period of time.
• Many boot camp providers offer a money-back guarantee if you don’t pass the test, or you can continue to enroll in class until you pass the test.

The cost of a live virtual class is more expensive and can range widely, typically between $1000 to $2500. Velociteach and Project Management Academy (PMA) both offer guaranteed-to-run classes, and PMA offers weekend and night class training options. PMTraining is another reputable PMP boot camp training provider that is more affordable.  This comparison chart shows the top PMP boot camp programs side by side.

PMP Book and Study Guide Cost

PMBOK and Agile Guide

PMBOK 7

If you are a PMI member, you can download a digital copy of the PMBOK guide for free

you can pay just $49.50 for a printed copy from PMI.org.  

While most of the candidates rely on the PMP exam prep course and do not read the PMBOK guide from cover to cover, it can still be a useful reference guide. In case you want to purchase a book, here is the price you can expect from Amazon:

Agile Practice Guide

You can download a digital copy of the Agile Practice Guide if you are a PMI member.

Or you can purchase a copy from Amazon:

PMP Study Guide

It is optional to get a PMP study guide, but some PMP aspirants use study guides to help them prepare for the PMP exam. 

A few popular study guides include:

• PMP Exam Prep Simplified by Andrew Ramdayal
• The 50 PMP Exam Prep Questions Everyone Gets Wrong: Master The Hard Questions – Ace Your PMP Exam by Cornelius Fichtner
• Andy Crowe’s The PMP Exam How to Pass on Your First Try

If you are interested in learning more details about the pros and cons of these books, please refer to the PMP Study Guide.

PMP Certification Renewal Cost

Pay PMP Renewal Fee Every 3 Year

While you do not have to pay the annual membership fee, you will need to pay a PMP renewal fee.  The amount of the PMP certification renewal fee will depend on whether you are a PMI member or not.

This Continuing Certification Renewal (CCR) fee was initiated in 2004 to cover administrative fees such as tracking PDUs, certification material renewals, maintaining the online PDU registry, PDU reporting system, and the administrative cost associated with inquiries, reviewing and processing PDU claims.

Other Miscellaneous PMP Certification Cost

Complete 60 PDU every 3 years

In order to maintain PMP certification, you must complete 60 PDU every 3 years.

You can find a list of ways to earn PDU on PMI.  In a nutshell, here are my favorite ways of earning PDU for free:

• Watching the live or on-demand webinar on projectmanagement.com.  This is the easiest way to earn PDU for free.  If you pay the PMI membership fee, there are plenty of premium webinars that you can watch and more than enough to satisfy the PDU requirement. Even without PMI membership, there are enough free webinars for the renewal.
• Volunteer and give back to the project management community.  You can do presentations in professional settings, create content for PMI, serve as a volunteer for PMI or at your local chapter, and many other ways to contribute.  However, PDUs in this category are limited to 25 PDUs.

There are many providers that offer project management courses that will satisfy the PDU requirement, but they come with an additional cost. For Example, PM-Prepcast offers 60 PDU podcasts that cost $199.

If you take steps to earn PDU throughout the 3 years, you should have no problem meeting the requirement, and you do not need to spend extra money to earn the PDUs.

PMI Local Chapter Fee 

While it is optional, you may want to join and support a local PMI chapter.

Attending PMI local chapter is a great way to grow your network while earning PDU.  If you are paying the local chapter membership fee, you may be able to join the meeting for free or at a discount price. It is another way to earn PDU when you attend educational meetings.

You must be a PMI member to join a local chapter, and you can join more than one local chapter. The chapter renewal will be on the same date as your PMI membership renewal. This means if your PMI membership will renew in 5 months, your local chapter fee is only good for 5 months as well, not for the whole year.

The local chapter fee can vary, but here is the estimate:

Conclusion

I hope this calculator, tips, and information in this article help you get an overview of all the costs of obtaining PMP certification.

PMP certification cost should only be one factor in determining if PMP certification is right for you.  There are several potential benefits to becoming PMP certified, and it may be the best investment you can make by improving yourself and your career prospects.

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