Life coaching is a fulfilling, rewarding career, but getting new leads can be difficult. Many of my own clients ask me: what are life coach certifications, and are they worth getting?
There are many life coach programs out there, but not all of them are valuable. I’ll recommend 10 for you to check out, as well as give you some hints on what to look for when you’re trying to decide.
What is a Life Coach?
A professional life coach is someone who helps a client set goals, make changes, and improve their lives in general. They’re good at listening, identifying problems, and coming up with solutions.
Sometimes, you just need an outside perspective to give you a little direction. That’s what a life coach does.
In my experience and that of my clients, the life coaching industry is a rewarding career. Just because you can run a coaching business remotely (I’m currently living between Australia, Sweden, and Malta, and my online business allows me to do that). But also because I find coaching to be incredibly rewarding.
What are Life Coach Certifications Online?
Online life coach certification is the process of undergoing training, proving that you understand how to be an effective life coach. Life coach certification isn’t required to start a high ticket coaching business, but many potential clients look for certification when they are choosing a life coach for themselves.
Because of this, many coaches seek certification from a reputable program. These are longer-programs, not one-off virtual events, that will offer training and invaluable skills.
Having said that, don’t pass up on the opportunity for one-off events too. I’ve attended, and been part of, online masterclasses with people who are further ahead of me, and they are invaluable. You can learn about anything from paid ads for your business, ideas on what to try, what to test, conversion rates, and so on. They’re really useful for the business side of running your coaching services.
10 Best Life Coach Certification Programs of 2026
The following life coach certified programs are worth looking at. I’ve picked a variety of price points, niches, and timeframes, so you should be able to find one that works for you. There are a lot of certification programs available today, but these are all accredited, and they’re a good place to go if you need a certification.
Here are the top life coach certifications:
- Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching [best for long-term change]
- Coach Training Alliance Certified Coach Training [best for business training]
- Health Coach Institute [best for holistic practice]
- Certified Life Coach Institute [best short program]
- The Institute for Life Coach Training [best for specialization]
- Transformation Academy [best on a budget]
- Life Coach Training Institute [best for shaping your coaching sessions]
- CreativeMind [best for an interest in psychology]
- Coach Training Edu [best for working towards ICF accreditation]
- iNLP Center [best for flexibility]
Let’s take a deeper look at each:
Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching [best for long-term change]
- Program cost: From $13,995
- Length: 7-9 months
- Focus: Life coaching
- Training Location: In-person and online
- End Qualifications: CPC, ELI-MP, COR.E Dynamics Specialist (with further training)
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Both
Now, the iPEC training is a big investment in terms of money. The most expensive one I’ve chosen for this list, you’ll need to pay just under $14,000. There are tuition loans available, but it’s worth noting this upfront. I wouldn’t recommend this if you can’t afford it, of course.
But there are many benefits to the iPEC training I want to talk about. This is a lengthy life coach school at 7-9 months, so it’s a real time investment. But the coach institute offers a comprehensive education, and you’ll get access to a mentor, live webinars, in-person training modules, and a library of materials to use in your career as a coach post-training to continue to improve your skills as a coach.
I think that the iPEC training is going to give you a thorough understanding of how to work with clients and good coaching techniques, which is useful for a new coach. Their ‘Core Energy Coaching’ is about creating long-term, sustainable change for your clients.
The structure of their materials is going to be useful for you in the long term, too, because you can use it as a framework for every client. It’s also accredited by the International Coaching Federation. So if you want to be a top life coach, this is a tempting option.
Pros
- Very thorough training, giving you a strong footing for your clients
- Live and in-person training
- Lots of materials to work with afterward
- Opportunity to study further to gain more specialist qualifications
- One of the most comprehensive ICF-accredited coach training programs
Cons
- Big money investment
- Takes longer to qualify at 7-9 months
Coach Training Alliance Certified Coach Training [best for business training]
- Program cost: From $4,339
- Length: 6 months
- Focus: Life coaching
- Training Location: Online and in-person
- End Qualifications: CTA Coach Certification
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Scheduled
I picked the Coach Training Alliance one because it packs a lot of information into a shorter time period, and the cost is a little more affordable for an aspiring life coach just starting on their coaching journey. It could be a good first step in becoming a professional life coach.
The downside of this one is the pacing. There are set times for classes, with 60-90 minutes of video sessions a week and group sessions too. They’ll give you around 2-5 hours of homework per week as well, So that’s a pretty big time investment.
But the Coach Training Alliance offers both how to be an effective coach and how to run your business properly. It can be easy to allow the business management side to slide. In my experience, this is just as important as learning how to coach, so I’m glad the program covers this.
I also like the focus on making the most of each coaching session: I try to pack as much quality and practical steps as I can into my coaching sessions, and this course can teach you how to do the same.
Pros
- Lower cost than some of the others on this list
- Group workshops keep you accountable
- Packs a lot of information into a relatively short period of time
- Accredited by the ICF
Cons
- Scheduled, so you’ll need to fit in with them
Health Coach Institute [best for holistic practice]
- Program cost: From $5,450
- Length: 6 months
- Focus: Health/life coaching
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: Health Coach Institute Certified
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Self-paced
The good thing about the Health Coach Institute life coach training program is that it can be done at your own pace. They’ll give you around six hours a week of homework, and you can complete the video training sessions whenever you feel like it.
I’d recommend this if you’re training to become a coach while also still working your regular job. Because it offers life coaching and health coaching, it may be a good choice if you’ve got experience in the healthcare industry.
Given that this is a life and health coaching certification, there are five areas the course focuses on: health, money, love & relationships, career, and ‘that which is greater’ (spirituality and a connection to the wider world). It’s based on a foundation of behavioral psychology and neuroscience, and it’s very holistic.
If you want to have a coaching practice that touches on every area of life, I think this is the one to go for. I also like that the Health Coach Institute offers some information on the business side of things: they teach basic marketing skills, for example.
Pros
- Based on behavioral psychology and neuroscience
- Focuses on physical, mental, and spiritual health
- Also provides business training
- Self-paced, so you can go with the flow
Cons
- It may not be relevant if you’re not going to touch on physical health
Certified Life Coach Institute [best short program]
- Program cost: From $1,295
- Length: 3 days
- Focus: Life coaching
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: Certified Life Coach Institute Certificate
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Scheduled
The Certified Life Coach Institute offers good training on a smaller budget and a super strict time frame. Three days is all it takes to get certified, so it’s an intensive, info-heavy course.
If you prefer to spread things out and take your time, this isn’t one for you. But I think there are benefits to getting a life coach certification quickly, especially if you’ve already got a full schedule.
They give you a ‘Life Coach Toolbox’ which is essentially a collection of tools you can use when you’re working with clients, business and marketing planning, and even access to networking opportunities.
I’d recommend, if you’re going to pick this one, prepare yourself for an intense three days and then go over the materials after you’ve finished the course – the problem with the speed is that there might be small tips and tricks you could miss.
Pros
- Super-fast program, you’ll be certified as a life coach in three days
- Good grounding in all the basics
- Networking opportunities available
- Budget-friendly
Cons
- A lot of information packed into three days
The Institute for Life Coach Training [best for specialization]
- Program cost: From $7,800
- Length: 130 hours
- Focus: Grief, wellness, career development, resilience, and Christian coaching
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: Certified Life Coach Institute Certificate
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Both
The Institute for Life Coach Training offers the chance to specialize your coaching career, including life coaching. They offer courses in niches like career development, grief, wellness, and Christian life coaching.
You’ll need to do 130 hours of coach training to become a certified professional coach – some mandatory, and some elective. The sessions are online, and you can take most of them at your own pace. You’ll also get a few hours of mentor coaching, which count towards ICF accreditation (if you want to go down that route).
It is, however, one of the more expensive options.
Pros
- Great for specialization
- Some mentor coaching included
- Can take some of it at your own pace
Cons
- One of the more expensive programs
Transformation Academy [best on a budget]
- Program cost: From $197
- Length: Depends on specialization
- Focus: Self-care, spirituality, relationships, mindset, mindfulness
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: Transformation Academy Certification
- Accreditation Body: Continuing Professional Development Standards Agency
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Both
The price of the Transformation Academy courses varies depending on your chosen niche. These are focused on particular specializations. So if you want to be a spirituality coach, this might work for you.
For example, the self-care coaching course takes ten hours to complete. But you can choose several courses in a bundle to save money and to get more than one coach certificate.
I will say that these coaching courses alone are not going to give you a thorough grounding in business practice. My clients often have questions about how to be an effective coach – how to manage their time, how to deal with marketing, and more. These courses won’t give you that information.
But if you do want to specialize, and essentially add another string to your bow when it comes to specific knowledge, this is a good place to start.
Pros
- Easy to choose which certified coach program suits you
- Low price
- Can take it at your own pace
Cons
- Won’t give you a thorough grounding in the business side of coaching – works more as an add-on
Coach Training Edu [best for working towards ICF accreditation]
- Program cost: $5,227 (paid monthly)
- Length: 6 months
- Focus: Coach-client matching and ethics
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: CTEDU Certification
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Both
I’d recommend Coach Training Edu because it’s such a comprehensive program. It’ll give you a grounding in skills I think are really important to become a professional certified coach, and have been for my own coaching practice: coaching skills, ethical principles, and a strong idea of how to run your business properly.
It’s on the higher end of the price scale, but I do think it’s worth it because they’ll be able to help you apply for ICF certification afterward, and they’ll explain how to do it. So if you’re after ICF certification, it’s a good choice.
Pros
- Good grounding in the basics – client work and business management
- Focus on ethical principles
- Useful if you want to gain ICF certification
Cons
- Fairly high price for the course
Life Coach Training Institute [best for shaping your coaching sessions]
- Program cost: $195
- Length: 30 hours
- Focus: Life coaching
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: Life Coach Training Institute Certification
- Accreditation Body: ICOES
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Both
The Life Coach Training Institute acts as an overview of how to deal with clients – it covers topics like active listening, how to ask powerful questions, and what a useful session with your clients should look like. While it does have a section on growing your business, I’d say the strength of this course is the grounding it gives you when dealing with clients.
It’s also another good budget option at $195, and most of the work is self-directed, with some live sessions you can tune into to learn more.
I like the further content that the Life Coach Training Institute offers. You can purchase bundles here, and you can pay in installments of $35 per month. If you’re completely new to life coaching and you’re on a tight budget, it’s worth checking out.
Pros
- Good grounding in essential skills like active listening
- Well presented
- Low price
Cons
- Doesn’t go into great detail about the practical side of running a business
CreativeMind [best for an interest in psychology]
- Program cost: $16,997
- Length: 1 year
- Focus: Jungian psychology
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: Certified Jungian life coach
- Accreditation Body: ICF
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Both
CreativeMind is a good choice if you’re interested in Eastern spirituality and Jungian psychology as your coaching niche. It is, however, a big time and money investment. You’ll be studying for a year, and the tuition cost is pretty high for this ICF-accredited coach training.
I like this because you’re given a thorough grounding in Jung’s work and how it relates to coaching: you’ll learn about Creative Mind coaching, persona and shadow, and persona types. It offers a good mix of video sessions, live sessions, and they’ll send you a 400-page workbook to work through.
You’ll also gain 105 hours toward becoming ICF certified if you want to, and you’ll get a private tutor as well as access to their community after you graduate the program.
Pros
- Very in-depth life Jungian life coach certification
- Focus on spirituality and neuroscience
- Gives you access to a private coach
- Variety of materials – video, live sessions, workbook
Cons
- Steep tuition cost
- Will take a year to complete
iNLP Center [best for flexibility]
- Program cost: $2,600
- Length: 160 hours
- Focus: NLP (neuro linguistic programming)
- Training Location: Online
- End Qualifications: iNLP Certified Life Coach
- Accreditation Body: ICF and INA
- Self-Paced or Scheduled: Self-paced
The iNLP Center focuses on neurolinguistic programming, which forms the backbone of their training for all coaches, including their life coaching program.
I’d say it’s about average for certification, and I like that it’s flexible – you can book their live sessions when it suits you, and their professional coach training program is designed to fit around real life.
You’ll need to do 160 hours of comprehensive coach training on building rapport, information gathering, and NLP-based strategies for change, along with how to create action plans and give your clients useful homework to complete between sessions.
It doesn’t cover topics like marketing or how to deal with the business side of becoming a life coach, however.
Pros
- Flexible – can pick and choose sessions to suit you
- Gives a good grounding in dealing with clients
- Focus on NLP theory and practice
Cons
- Doesn’t cover the business side of life coaching practice
How to Pick the Best Life Coach Training Certification
Your approach as a professional coach is going to be unique to you. Every coach is slightly different because every person is different: what I’d offer my clients may be different to what you’d offer to them.
For that reason, it’s actually difficult to answer the question of ‘what is the best life coach certification?’ when you look for programs, because it will depend on your circumstances – if you’re looking to master life coaching with a more comprehensive program, if you want to do dual life and health coaching, or if you just want a general life coaching course.
Here’s what I’d recommend looking at if you want to get certified as a life coach:
Life coach certification online cost
Budget will be a factor. Some of the more expensive programs have loans available, or payment plans. So you may not have to pay a lump sum upfront.
I’d say, don’t feel that the most expensive course is automatically the best one – look closely at the content and what you get for the money you’ll be paying. I always tell my clients to be wary when they look to become certified life coaches – make sure the cost is worth it.
Timing
Each certification will require a certain amount of studying. Some have strict deadlines, while others allow you to complete them at their own pace.
I would say keep hold of the study materials when you’re done if you choose a shorter course: you don’t always take in every detail if you’re on tight deadlines, and you may need to refer back to it later.
Content
There are different types of life coach certifications. Looking at the content of each certification is the most important thing. You should look for a course that teaches you how to build a good coaching practice, including how to listen to clients, how to ask questions, and how to make action plans for them. So look closely at the content offered by the life training program you’ve chosen.
You can also look for courses that offer knowledge in a specific niche: if you’re a wellness coach, a relationship coach, an executive coach, or a life and health coach, you’re going to be looking for different information.
Business Practice
You can also look for courses that include basic information on running a life coaching business: how to deal with the paperwork, how to market your business, how to find new clients, and so on.
This is really useful if you’re brand new to life coaching. You don’t necessarily need it, however. There are a lot of resources about this online (for example, our guide on How to Get Clients as a Life Coach is a good start).
Accreditation & Certification
It’s also a good idea to look into which accreditation body your life coach certification online program is affiliated with. Like the International Coaching Federation, International NLP Association, or ICOES (International Council for Online Educational Standards). Accreditation is important, because it shows that your chosen course is of a high standard.
Some certifications also provide hours toward becoming accredited with the ICF as a coach. This is a long process but it shows clients that your coaching practice is of a high enough quality to be accredited.
Do You Need Certification to Be a Life Coach?
No, you don’t actually need certification to be a life coach. You can start without accreditation, and you may find that you have enough success to get certified later if you want to.
I’d say it’s nice to have, especially from a client perspective. It’s reassuring to know that your coach has been trained. So I would say it’s worth it for that reason.
How Much Do Life Coaches Make?
Life coach certification salary: does it change after you’re certified? It depends on how experienced you are, how you set your pricing, and how many hours you work/how many clients you have.
However, according to the most recent ICF Global Coaching Study, the average yearly revenue from coaching in the US was $67,800.
Is Life Coach Certification Worth It?
I would say life coach certification (accredited) is worth it, because:
- Authority – programs for aspiring life coaches give you authority and new clients will find that appealing when they’re trying to find the best life coach
- Knowledge – the courses themselves are packed with knowledge that you will be able to apply to your practice
- Networking – you may gain access to a network of other coaches and professionals when you complete the certification
- Materials – you’ll have access to the materials afterward, using them in your coaching practice after completing the program
How to Get Your First Clients as a Certified Life Coach
One of the most common questions my own clients ask me is: how do I get my first clients?
It seems so daunting, but there are a few steps I’d suggest someone should take to start their own coaching business and get their first clients:
Social media marketing
Social media is a huge part of running any business, but if you’re a self-employed life coach, it’s going to be key to getting coaching clients.
I would say it’s better to pick two or three platforms and focus on them. Pick the platforms depending on where your potential clients would be online: TikTok for younger clients, for example, or LinkedIn if you want to be an executive coach or career coach.
In-person events
In-person events are a powerful way to make connections with people. Local events are great for advertising your services and meeting potential clients.
I’d also say that if you’re focused on a specific niche within life coaching, going to events and conferences on that topic is a good way to meet people in person. Just remember to take some business cards with you. (You can also show off your training and certification on your marketing materials.)
Virtual workshops and webinars
I personally have had success with virtual workshops and webinars. Having launched dozens of workshops, I’ve held over 1,000 appointments after workshops (and summits, but more on those in a minute) for people who wanted to become clients – it’s been a vital first step in a high ticket sales funnel for me.
Workshops and webinars show your expertise in your niche and help potential clients warm to you. For example, one of my clients, Philip Duncan, brought in $6.5k in revenue from his workshop and then drove people to book calls for his services, securing another $10k the following week.
So I mean it when I say there is power in webinars and workshops for any type of coach. You can read more in our guides to Running a Virtual Workshop for more ideas.
Virtual summits
Virtual summits are another thing I’m passionate about. Each of my virtual summits has gathered between 5,000 and 25,000 new leads. That’s a lot of potential clients to work with.
My clients have seen similar success too. Sara Artemisia, for example, worked with me and grew her email list by 5,000 people, generating $1,000s and pivoting to a new niche, and the best bit: ‘I’m still getting emails from people all over the world saying how much the summit has changed their life.’
Virtual summits are a fantastic way to showcase your expertise and allow potential clients to get to know you, while also building another income stream. You can read more in my Virtual Summit Guide.
How to Become Life Coach Certified
So, to become life coach certified, you need to follow these steps:
Pick a certification
First, you need to identify which certification you want. What do you want to tell potential clients? Is it that you’re qualified for life coaching, or is it that you’re an expert in one particular niche? Becoming a certified life coach is also about deciding what you want to learn more about.
Once you’ve chosen, you’ll need to pay a fee (either upfront or in installments) and start the work.
Complete the work
Training can consist of video sessions, quizzes, worksheets, group work, and even in-person sessions. It can take a long weekend or it can take a year – it depends on the certification you go for.
Some certifications will require you to take some kind of test or exam to pass – there are different life coach certification requirements depending on which one you pick.
Gain the certification
Once you’ve finished the work, you will normally be given access to images (like logos) you can use in your marketing materials and on your website, to show clients that you are officially certified.
Life coach certification – ICF
Many coaches want to become ICF accredited; this means they can be included in the ICF directory, the leading regulatory body in the coaching industry. It’s a stamp of approval that some clients look for when they want to choose a life coach. To become accredited with ICF, you’ll need to:
- Hold a current ICF Credential (this involves gathering evidence, including your education and experience)
- Complete at least 60 hours of coach-specific training
- Be enrolled in 60 hours of coach-specific training in a program that offers ACTP (Accredited Coach Training Program) or ACHSTH (Approved Coach-Specific Training Hours) distinction
It’s definitely something to consider working towards and may influence which program you choose, because it can make a difference when clients are choosing a coach.
My Final Thoughts
Certification programs are worth doing if you want to learn more about being a life coach. It may also help to attract high-paying clients to your services.
Before you go, don’t forget to check out our Blueprint for a Million-Dollar Coaching Business – it will tell you everything you need to know about creating your offers, attracting new leads, as well as starting and growing your online coaching business.
