What Is the Easiest SQL Certification?
By Owen Middleton · Updated November 2026 · We ran the examples on PostgreSQL 17
In our view, the easiest SQL certification with a test is HackerRank SQL (Basic). For SQL (Basic), you take a 30-minute assessment and solve 2 questions. HackerRank certifications are free, timed assessments.
With some free course certificates, for example Oracle Dev Gym, you take no final exam. But you show only that you finished a course. In our view, with an easy certification such as HackerRank SQL (Basic) or a course certificate with no final exam, you prove less.
We make SQLMaxx Learn, a SQL course with its own certificate. On the five measures below, our SQLMaxx Certificate of Completion is equal to the Oracle Dev Gym certificate: free, with no final exam and no proctor. To earn ours, you master all 66 lessons. We make it, so we do not pick it. Go to the picks.
What makes a SQL certification easy?
An easy SQL certification is one where the issuer asks little of you. We use five measures. For each one, we look for a fact on the issuer's pages:
- No fee.
- A short test.
- Few questions.
- A low pass mark.
- No proctor and no ID check.
We give no points for these measures. We show the facts, and you decide which measures are important to you.
We show the date on which we read the facts. We took none of these tests. We say on each pick how we know it.
The easiest SQL certification of each kind
We show the picks in four kinds:
- A free test.
- A paid test with no proctor.
- A proctored exam. For this kind, we show two picks: one for a beginner, and one on SQL alone.
- A course certificate with no final exam.
We name the picks and give no scores.
A free SQL test: HackerRank SQL (Basic)
Why we call it easy: We found no statement about a proctor, a webcam or an ID check in the HackerRank certification FAQ. We also found none in its guide on how to earn a certification. With a free account, we opened the SQL (Basic) test up to its start button. Before the test, you tick two boxes: a declaration that you will not get help, and HackerRank's Terms of Service and Privacy policy. Up to that button, HackerRank asked for no webcam and no ID.
Strength: You earn the certificate in a timed test. You do not finish lessons for it, and the SQL tests are free at all three levels.
Limit: You get only 2 questions in the SQL (Basic) test.
We used a free account and paid for nothing. See the HackerRank SQL (Basic) page.
A paid SQL test with no proctor and a low pass mark: W3Schools SQL Certificate
Why we call it easy: You take an online exam with multiple-choice questions, with no proctor. You pass with a minimum of 40%.
Strength: Employers can check your certificate with its link or QR code, and W3Schools says that the certificate never expires.
Limit: You answer multiple-choice questions, not SQL that runs, and you pass at 40%.
We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview. See the W3Schools SQL Certificate page.
A proctored exam, for a beginner: Microsoft Azure Data Fundamentals (DP-900)
Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Fundamentals, with Exam DP-900.
Why we call it easy: You have 45 minutes. On the DP-900 page, Microsoft offers a Practice Assessment and an Exam Sandbox.
Strength: Microsoft made the exam for candidates "beginning to work with data in the cloud", and you can take a free Practice Assessment before the exam.
Limit: None of the four skill areas is SQL by name. SQL statements are one objective in the relational data area. The other areas are on data concepts, non-relational data and analytics on Azure.
We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview. See the Azure Data Fundamentals page on Microsoft Learn.
A proctored exam, on SQL alone: Oracle 1Z0-171
Oracle AI Database SQL Certified Associate. You earn it when you pass Exam 1Z0-171, Oracle AI Database SQL Associate.
Why we picked it: Exam 1Z0-171 has 3 fewer questions. Exam 1Z0-071 has a pass mark that is 2 percentage points lower. We pick 1Z0-171 because it is the newer exam. You answer 60 multiple-choice questions in 120 minutes. You need 65% to pass. When you pass Exam 1Z0-071, Oracle Database SQL, you earn Oracle Database SQL Certified Associate. Exam 1Z0-071 is a proctored online exam with 63 multiple-choice questions in 120 minutes and a pass mark of 63%. In a database certification guide (a PDF file from December 2018), Oracle names "Oracle Database SQL 1Z0-071" as the first exam for the Oracle Database 12c DBA OCA. Exam 1Z0-171 is not in that guide.
Strength: You pass a proctored exam on SQL alone.
Limit: You pay US$245 for one exam attempt. You are tested on Oracle SQL only. We found no validity period for the certification.
We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview. See the Oracle exam page.
A course certificate with no final exam: Oracle Dev Gym: Databases for Developers: Foundations
Oracle says: "Complete the course to get your free certificate."
Why we call it easy: You complete all the exercises. Oracle then sends you a certificate.
Strength: The class and the certificate are free, you need no database of your own, and you get lifetime access after you register.
Limit: You learn Oracle SQL only, you need an Oracle Account, and we found no statement on how anyone checks the certificate.
We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview. See the Oracle Dev Gym class page.
What you do for each SQL certification pick
We read these facts from October 12, 2026 to November 1, 2026. "Not stated" means that we found no figure on the issuer pages that we read.
| Pick | Fee | Test | Pass mark | Proctor and ID check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HackerRank SQL (Basic) | Free. HackerRank calls its certifications "free, timed assessments". | For SQL (Basic), you take a 30-minute assessment and solve 2 questions. | Not stated | We found no statement about a proctor, a webcam or an ID check in the HackerRank certification FAQ. We also found none in its guide on how to earn a certification. With a free account, we opened the SQL (Basic) test up to its start button. Before the test, you tick two boxes: a declaration that you will not get help, and HackerRank's Terms of Service and Privacy policy. Up to that button, HackerRank asked for no webcam and no ID. |
| W3Schools SQL Certificate | The tutorial is free. W3Schools charges $95 for the SQL certificate exam. | You get 3 attempts, and you have a time limit on each attempt. W3Schools gives the Intermediate level at 40%, Advanced at 75% and Professional at 90%. | You take an online exam with multiple-choice questions, with no proctor. You pass with a minimum of 40%. | |
| Microsoft DP-900 | Microsoft sets the price by the country or region where you take the exam. We found no US price on the DP-900 page or in the Microsoft certification FAQ. | You have 45 minutes. | You need a score of 700 or more to pass. | You pass a proctored exam, Exam DP-900. You schedule it through Pearson VUE, or through Certiport if you are a student or an educator. |
| Oracle 1Z0-171 | You buy an Oracle Technology Exam Subscription for US$245. With it, you get one exam attempt, and the term is 6 months. | You answer 60 multiple-choice questions in 120 minutes. You need 65% to pass. | You pass a proctored online exam. You must show government-issued identification to Oracle. | |
| Oracle Dev Gym course | Oracle calls Databases for Developers: Foundations "A free SQL course". You pay nothing for the class. | We found no final exam. The last module is a set of review quizzes on insert, update, delete and truncate. | ||
| SQLMaxx Certificate of Completion (ours, not a pick) | No fee. | No exam. You master all 66 lessons and solve at least one problem in each lesson. | No exam, so no pass mark. | No proctor. We do not check identity documents. |
We compare many more certifications on a different page: every SQL certification, ranked by how you earn it.
Which SQL certification should a beginner take first?
Pick a SQL certification for beginners by your goal.
- You want to check your SQL now, for free: HackerRank SQL (Basic).
- You want a proctored exam on SQL alone: Oracle 1Z0-171, on SQL for Oracle Database. Oracle names SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE and MERGE statements, some Data Definition Language and Data Control Language statements, and tables, indexes, views and sequences.
- Your team uses Azure: Microsoft DP-900. On the certification page, Microsoft gives the level as "Beginner". Microsoft says that the certification is for "a candidate beginning to work with data in the cloud".
These two are not for a first certification:
- SnowPro Core, for Snowflake. Snowflake describes the SnowPro Core candidate as having "6 or more months of experience using Snowflake". Strength: You pass a proctored exam at a test center or online, and you get a digital badge and verifiable certification through Accredible. We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview. See the SnowPro Core page.
- Microsoft SQL AI Developer Associate (Exam DP-800). At least a quarter of the exam is on AI features. Microsoft gives 25–30% to the skill area "Implement AI capabilities in database solutions". In the first skill area, Microsoft also lists objectives on AI-assisted tools, such as GitHub Copilot. Microsoft expects experience with T-SQL before you take the exam. Microsoft also expects familiarity with CI/CD in GitHub and with AI concepts. Strength: You pass a proctored exam on T-SQL, with CTEs, window functions and correlated queries, and you renew the certification free online each year. We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview. See the DP-800 certification page.
What does the easiest SQL certification prove?
In our view, the less work you do for a SQL certification, the less you prove with it.
- With a short test of a few questions, you show a small sample of your SQL.
- With a course certificate with no final exam, you show that you finished a course.
- With a proctored exam and an ID check, you also show that you did the work yourself.
To learn if employers value a SQL certification, read what a SQL certification is worth.
Check your SQL before a beginner test
Here is one topic list, from W3Schools: W3Schools lists what the exam tests: what SQL is, databases and tables, INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE, SELECT with WHERE and ORDER BY, and JOIN. W3Schools also lists functions such as SUM, AVG, COUNT, MIN and MAX to group data, and foreign keys, subqueries and indexes. W3Schools also lists user permissions and data security. W3Schools gives no weight for each topic.
Try two tasks from SQLMaxx Learn. Both are from lessons in the Foundations tier, the first tier
of the course. In both tasks, you query the customers table of an online store. Each row is one customer,
with a two-letter country code.
Schema · ecommerce1 table? = nullable
Two SQLMaxx Learn tasks: WHERE and DISTINCT
Task 1 is about the WHERE clause. For help, read WHERE explained. Task 2 is about DISTINCT. If DISTINCT is new to you, learn DISTINCT on its lesson page.
Start SQLMaxx Learn lesson 1
SQLMaxx Learn is the SQL course on this site. Start at lesson 1, in your browser, with no account.
More questions about easy SQL certifications
Is there an easy SQL certification for PostgreSQL?
We found no official one. In 2023, Magnus Hagander wrote on the pgsql-general mailing list that there is no official PostgreSQL certification. (Source: Magnus Hagander, pgsql-general mailing list, March 23, 2023.) In some SQL certifications, you write SQL for PostgreSQL. For example, for freeCodeCamp Relational Databases: You finish five PostgreSQL projects and pass a 50-question closed-book exam, and the certification is free. We judged it from the public syllabus and free preview.
Is there a SQL certification with no exam?
Yes. With some course certificates, you finish a course and take no exam. The Oracle Dev Gym class and our SQLMaxx Certificate of Completion are two examples. For the Oracle Dev Gym class: The class is a series of videos, interactive SQL tutorials, and quizzes. Three of the 12 modules are review quizzes.
Is DP-900 a SQL certification?
Only in part. Microsoft gives four skill areas. Two are "Describe core data concepts" (25–30%) and "Identify considerations for relational data on Azure" (20–25%). The other two are "Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure" (15–20%) and "Describe an analytics workload on Azure" (25–30%). In the relational data area, one objective is "Identify common structured query language (SQL) statements".