ServiceNow certifications are a great way to learn new skills and validate your current knowledge of the platform.
Whether you’re new to ServiceNow or a seasoned professional, ServiceNow likely offers a certification that can help you expand your skill set.
There are certifications for many different career paths including administrator, developer, and implementer, so no matter what you’re interested in there are relevant certifications to help you achieve your goal.
It’s a good idea for every ServiceNow professional to have a few certifications under their belt. This article serves as a complete guide for how to get certified in ServiceNow.
If you're looking for help with the actual exams, check out our ServiceNow Exam Study Guides! We create them from our personal study notes and quizlets that we used ourselves when studying for the exam. Each of our study guides contains the exact content that you need to ace your exam.
ServiceNow certifications are a way to acquire new skills and prove to others that you have specific knowledge in ServiceNow.
For most certifications, there are required courses followed by an exam. Once the exam is passed, you are awarded a certification.
Some of the courses can cost money, so it's important to talk with your employer about their training program. Most companies will pay for your training and certifications, and even have discounted rates if they are a ServiceNow partner!
Certifications are typically targeted to a specific job role or functionality of the platform. For example, ServiceNow offers certifications for those who wish to become system administrators or developers. They also have certifications for specific platform applications such as IT Service Management (ITSM) or Project Portfolio Management (PPM).
Certifications are extremely valuable since they can open doors to better opportunities as a ServiceNow professional.
ServiceNow certifications can provide you with many benefits including better job performance, increased salary, and promotions.
They are a great way to make you more marketable, and it’s safe to assume that the more certifications you have, the more in-demand you will be.
ServiceNow certifications can be added to your LinkedIn profile so that when employers are searching LinkedIn to fill a ServiceNow role, your name pops up, which could potentially lead to a new opportunity. Many jobs require certain certifications to even be considered for the role.
Basically, there is no downside to getting a ServiceNow certification. They will only help you grow!
There are several types of ServiceNow certifications, with each one having a slightly different process to obtain. We'll discuss a few of the common ones below.
W've also provided screenshots showing how each certification type appears on your Now Learning profile.
A mainline certification is a certification which requires you to pass a proctored exam.
These are more involved certifications which have one or more mandatory courses as prerequisites. The courses can be instructor-led or on-demand.
Mainline certifications carry the most weight as far as validating your skills in ServiceNow. These certifications have a cost associated with them, both for the courses and the exam.
Some examples of mainline certifications are:
Micro-certifications are less time-intensive certifications which target a specific functionality of the platform.
These certifications do not have a cost and usually require prerequisite on-demand courses. The exams are generally short and non-proctored.
Micro-certifications are a great way to demonstrate knowledge of a particular module within ServiceNow. ServiceNow offers micro-certifications in many areas including Virtual Agent and Flow Designer.
Deltas are maintenance exams that are required regularly for you to maintain your mainline certification. This is a non-proctored exam and typically has only 10 questions. An updated certification will be awarded upon completion of a delta exam.
The purpose of deltas is to ensure that the certification holder stays up to date on platform functionality for new releases of ServiceNow.
Delta exams have a cost which is basically a fee to maintain the “current” status of a mainline certification. Usually your employer will cover the cost of the delta fee.
ServiceNow recently dropped the delta exam frequency from bi-annually to annually (Woo-hoo!), so these exams will be less frequent moving forward.
Delta exams begin roughly around a year after the initial mainline certification has been awarded.
The first step to obtaining any certification is to sign up for a Now Learning account.
Now Learning is ServiceNow’s official training site and provides content and course to help you prepare for a certification exam.
They even offer “Paths” which are guides of suggested courses to take for each certification exam.
Mainline certifications have prerequisites that must be completed before you are allowed to sit for the exam. Once you decide which certification you would like to obtain, you can check out the path for the certification which will map out the prerequisite courses and material you need to complete. Some prerequisites are required, and some are optional.
It’s worth mentioning that there is a cost associated with most prerequisite courses for mainline certifications as well as for the exam voucher. As previously mentioned, ServiceNow offers both instructor-led and on-demand courses for the mainline certifications.
Instructor-led courses are offered as a virtual class led by a live instructor, which takes place over the course of a few days. On-demand courses are self-paced where the user can dictate the speed at which they work through the material.
On-demand courses are also significantly cheaper (sometimes even free) than instructor-led. Having both of these options offers flexibility so that each person can choose the learning method that works best for them.
Once all the required courses for a mainline certification are completed, you will receive a voucher for the exam. ServiceNow will notify you via email when you receive a voucher. The voucher will also be visible on your Now Learning profile as shown below.
When you receive the voucher, you must claim it to register for the exam. After claiming the voucher, you will be prompted to pay any applicable fees. Vouchers will expire if not claimed within one year.
For all the mainline certifications, the exam is not conducted via Now Learning. Instead, they use a third-party service called Webassessor.
You will need to create a Webassessor account, which is different from your Now Learning account.
Once logged in to Webassessor, you can click “Register for an Exam” at the top and search for the desired exam.
Webassessor offers two different ways to take the exam, online proctored and onsite proctored. If choosing online, make sure you read the requirements which include things like an external webcam and the ability to take the exam in a private place (unfortunately, no Starbucks!). Also, for online proctored exams, make sure you log in as soon as you’re allowed (10 to 15 mins before the testing window) as the initial setup with the proctor usually takes some time. Myself and several friends have gotten burned by not logging in early enough to set everything up!
After you choose a date and time for the exam, you will be prompted to checkout. The voucher code from Now Learning can be entered on the checkout page. Having the voucher ensures you do not have to pay again on Webassessor. Once you checkout, your exam is scheduled and it’s time to cram.
One other note regarding Now Learning and Webassessor is that you must link the two accounts in your Now Learning profile. This can be done in your Now Learning Profile by navigating to My Preferences -> Webassessor Email Address.
On this screen (shown below), you can enter the email for your Webassessor account which will establish a link between the two accounts. This link is necessary for certifications to be visible on your Now Learning profile after you pass exams on Webassessor.
The process for micro-certifications and delta exams is different (and easier!) than mainline certifications.
For micro-certifications, you can simply search Now Learning for the topic you wish to learn and complete the course and exam for free. The courses for micro-certifications are all on-demand.
Delta exams are only made available once your specific mainline certification is due for maintenance. You will be notified via email as well as on your Now Learning profile when it is time for a delta exam.
Reminder, there is a cost associated with the delta exam that can be looked at as a yearly maintenance fee for your mainline certification. Delta exams have a window in which they need to be completed. If this window is missed, your mainline certification will expire, meaning you will have to re-take the proctored exam and pay any associated fees.
Make sure you stay on top of your deltas to avoid unnecessary costs and headaches! If you're working at a company, usually this will be sent out in emails to the ServiceNow teams as well as a hot topic in the Teams/Slack chats - making it hard to miss!
We hope this guide has given you a good idea of how to get certified in ServiceNow. It's never a bad idea to get as many ServiceNow certifications as you possibly can.
If applicable, be sure to check with your current employer to see if they offer reimbursement for training. A lot of companies will cover the certification fees as it not only helps you grow but is beneficial for them to have certified professionals working at their company. With a combination of training and certifications, you will be well on your way as a ServiceNow professional. Good luck!
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