The 19 Best Training Resources to Learn Salesforce

Salesforce is an incredibly powerful tool, but it’s only effective if your sales team knows how to use it. Cue Salesforce training. Although many resources are available, it’s a challenge to find the right training for your team.

In order to save you time (and frustration!), we’ve researched the best Salesforce training resources and organized them by type: in-person classes, online scheduled classes, online self-paced classes, and an assortment of supplemental resources. The required time and estimated costs (where available) are also noted. All the Salesforce training resources are listed from highest cost / most time required to free / minimal time required.

So whether you’re integrating Salesforce for the first time or looking for ongoing Salesforce training, this list will help you determine the best training option for your B2B sales team.

Formal in-person, instructor-led class ($$$$)

This category is generally the most intensive and definitely the most expensive Salesforce training option. The main benefit is customized training for your team, company, and even schedule (if you hire a consultant).

1. Salesforce University: A limited number of Salesforce classes are offered in-person in various cities. The time commitment ranges from a half day to five days and costs anywhere from $850 to $4,950 depending on the class.
2. Stony Point: A few onsite training courses from Stony Point are scheduled throughout the year, each lasting 3-5 days and costing $2,400 to $4,500.
3. Onsite workshop. Another option for formal in-person training is to hire a certified salesforce consultant to come on-site and conduct a workshop at your company. Stony Point, Beth Saunders Consulting (for nonprofits), Ashish Agaral, and SalesforceTraining all provide these consulting services, just to list a few. Pricing varies.

Online instructor-led, scheduled class ($$$ – $$$$)

With a wider array of course options, online classes can be slightly cheaper and also allow your team to participate regardless of location. These courses are still scheduled on specific days and/or specific times.

4. Salesforce University: You’ll find a course for nearly every role and cloud (e.g. sales, service, marketing, etc.) available online at Salesforce University. Once again, time commitment ranges from a half day to five days and pricing ranges from $299 to $4,950.
5. Stony Point: As a Salesforce Silver Consulting Partner, Stony Point offers great training courses that are comparable to SF University in content and pricing. Courses range from a half day to five days and cost anywhere from $300 to $4,000.

Online self-directed, self-paced class (Free – $$)

Want more flexibility and a cheaper price tag? These affordable online classes are all self-paced – some are even free!

6. Simplilearn: Simplilearn provides a fantastic alternative to Salesforce University at a significantly lower price ($299 – $1,299). The reviews from thousands of ‘learners’ speak for themselves.
7. Edureka: While only two Salesforce classes are offered, you get the best of both worlds with ‘batched’ online classes (you have flexibility in selecting which batch and can reschedule classes as necessary). The courses cost $389 to $479, but look for a flash sale to snag a 15-20% discount. Allocate 75 to 95 hours to complete these courses.
8. Udemy: Choose from a variety of highly rated Salesforce courses ranging from $39 to $300. Keep an eye out for a flash sale – you just might be able to catch a $300-course for only $24.
9. Salesforce Trailhead: This is probably one of the best resources available for kickstarting your Salesforce training and it’s FREE. This self-paced resource contains many different ‘trails’ (i.e. guided learning paths) based on job role and level of expertise. If you have a Salesforce account, you can easily complete the Trailhead challenges for each section and earn points. (If you don’t have a Salesforce account, simply sign up for a free Developer Edition account so you can complete Trailhead challenges.) An assortment of projects are also available for you to get hands-on practice with Salesforce.

Supplemental Training resources (Free)

Sometimes you need additional resources to better understand a particular aspect of Salesforce. Or maybe you need a quick reference for that shortcut or reporting technique you can’t remember. Below are several free Salesforce training resources that you’ll want to bookmark for easy reference.

10. Cheat Sheets: With over a dozen cheat sheets, you can easily reference the feature, function, or process you need. Each sheet provides step-by-step directions and screenshots so you’ll know exactly what to do.
11. Salesforce Reporting Basics: Once you’ve begun using Salesforce, don’t get stuck in reporting. Learn the basics of Salesforce reporting in this straightforward overview.
12. Developer Workbooks: Get all the details on the Salesforce1 platform through a series of tutorials combined into 13 different workbooks.
13. Force.com Platform Fundamentals: Whether you click through it online or download it as a PDF, this book/manual explains everything you need to know about Force.com.
14. Tip Sheets and User Guides: Want a thorough induction to all things Salesforce? These PDF resources will do the trick – just brace yourself for LOTS of reading. While the tip sheets are only a couple pages, many of the guides are over 5,000 pages.
15. Salesforce Youtube: If you’re sick of reading (or just prefer watching), hop over to the Salesforce Youtube channels and check out their plethora of videos. This is a good way to learn about new products and features, but probably less helpful in finding specific answers or training.
16. Twitter List of Salesforce Experts: Keep sharpening your Salesforce knowledge by following the experts on Twitter. You’ll be amazed at what you can learn.
17. Zero to Hero Blog Series: If you’re just starting out as a Salesforce Admin, this blog post series will take you from zero Salesforce experience to becoming a Salesforce Admin hero. What are you waiting for? Go ahead and jump right in!
18. Beginner’s Guide to Salesforce Certification: Thinking about becoming Salesforce Certified? Here’s what you need to know about Salesforce certifications and how to study for them.
19. Salesforce Specific Search Tool: If you’ve ever wished you could filter search results to only show Salesforce related content, then this tool is for you. It’s a simple custom search just for Salesforce. You can refine your search further by selecting a tab at the top: Docs, Boards, Blogs, Code, Apps, or Video. Genius, right?

Help educate your team with one or more of these resources – chances are you’ll want to use a combination of training tools. Remember that learning how to effectively use Salesforce is an ongoing process – even if you have intense training at the beginning.

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