Free PLC training · ₹0 · no card · no trial
Free PLC training online, with a certificate at the end
Most "free PLC training" is a sample of something paid. This page lists what is actually free, what each option gives you, and the six steps that turn 80 free EDWartens courses into a program you wrote and can defend in an interview.
What free PLC training really includes
Four things make PLC training work: a planned order, written notes you can revise from, practice you actually do in a simulator, and an assessment that tells you whether it landed. The table says which options have which. Where another option is the better tool for a job, it says so.
| Option | What you get | Planned syllabus | Written notes | Quizzes and final | Certificate | Hardware | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EDWartens free courses | 80 complete courses across Siemens, Rockwell, Mitsubishi, Omron, Schneider, Delta, ABB, CODESYS, SCADA, HMI, drives, PID, robots, DCS and CAD, built from credited creator videos plus written notes, practice and assessments. | Optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, ₹700 incl. GST, verifiable by code | None; vendor trial software and simulators | A structured route from zero to a working program, with something to show at the end | |||
| Siemens SCE learning documents | Siemens Cooperates with Education publishes free TIA Portal learning and training documents and digital learning modules for institutions and self-learners. | None | TIA Portal trial; some modules assume a training kit | Depth on Siemens specifically, read alongside a course | |||
| Vendor and independent YouTube channels | Thousands of free lessons from RealPars, Hegamurl, PLCskilltree, Instrumentation Tools, Tim Wilborne and vendor channels, of very variable order and level. | None | Varies | Looking up one topic; not a route on its own | |||
| Free tiers of paid course sites (PLC Academy, SolisPLC and similar) | Free articles and introductory videos that lead to paid courses; the free part is a sample of the paid product. | Paid course required | Varies | Deciding whether to buy their paid course | |||
| Coursera and edX audit mode | A few university and vendor automation courses can be audited free; graded work and the certificate need payment, and PLC-specific content is thin. | Paid | Usually none | Control theory background rather than hands-on PLC | |||
| Vendor simulators and trials | TIA Portal trial with PLCSIM, RSLogix Micro Starter Lite, Connected Components Workbench, CODESYS, GX Works trial, Factory I/O trial: free software to practise in. | None | None | The practice half of any of the above |
Other providers' features as published on their own sites in September 2026; check them before you rely on them. EDWartens courses use video lessons by independent creators, credited on every course page, and EDWartens wrote the syllabus, notes, practice and assessments.
Six steps from zero to a program you wrote
- STEP 1
Pick one platform and stay on it for six weeks
Siemens TIA Portal if you have no preference: it is the most requested PLC skill on Indian job posts and the trial runs everything in simulation.
Siemens TIA Portal course - STEP 2
Install the free software before module four, not before module one
The TIA Portal trial is 21 days. The first three modules of the foundation course need no software, so start them first and install when the clock matters.
Installing and simulating TIA Portal - STEP 3
Do the practice task in every module, in the simulator
Reading a rung is not writing one. Every module has a practice task sized for PLCSIM; the module quiz is five plain questions on what you just watched.
S7-1200 instruction series - STEP 4
Build something that moves
Factory I/O's trial gives you conveyors, sorters and a warehouse to program. A machine you programmed is the interview story a fresher never has.
Factory I/O projects course - STEP 5
Add the HMI, then structure
Operators judge a system by its screens, and employers judge a program by whether a colleague can read it. Both are free courses here.
Siemens engineer path - STEP 6
Pass the final, put it on your CV, apply
The free account includes a CV builder that adds each finished course, cover letters, and a job board of automation openings refreshed twice a day.
Create the free account
Free PLC courses to start with
Siemens TIA Portal
From zero electrical knowledge to a working, simulated S7-1200 program, for nothing.
Allen-Bradley Studio 5000
CompactLogix and ControlLogix from the wiring up: tags, instructions, timers, data, drives, messaging and Modbus, in Rockwell's Studio 5000.
Siemens S7-1200 with TIA Portal: The Tutorial Series
Every S7-1200 instruction, one short video at a time: bits, edges, timers, counters, comparators, maths, MOVE, conversion, analog scaling, jumps and shift registers.
Mitsubishi FX with GX Works2
The Mitsubishi FX family instruction by instruction: devices, contacts, timers, counters, data, analog and high-speed counting in GX Works2, with a look ahead to GX Works3.
Siemens TIA Portal with Factory I/O: Virtual Commissioning Projects
Nine machines you can see moving: connect Factory I/O to TIA Portal, then program conveyors, sorting and separating stations, a filling tank, a queue, an assembler, pick and place, a converge station, an elevator, a warehouse and an analog tank, all with your own ladder.
Allen-Bradley RSLogix 500 and MicroLogix
The MicroLogix and SLC 500 on real hardware: file-based addressing, every instruction group, analog scaling, faults and forces, in RSLogix 500.
All PLC brands
Learning paths
- Siemens engineer path
- Rockwell engineer path
- PLC foundations
- SCADA specialist
- Process control
- Industrial robotics
- Machine-builder PLCs
- IEC 61131 and software PLCs
- Electrical and mechanical fundamentals
- Electrical design engineer
- Power systems and electrical design
- Building services engineer
- Mechanical and product CAD
- IIoT and OT security
- Control theory to the loop
- Japanese PLC platforms
Questions people ask about free PLC training
- Is there really free PLC training online, or is it always a trial?
- There is. On EDWartens every course is complete and free: all lessons, notes, practice tasks, module quizzes and the final. There is no trial period and no card. The only paid item is the optional certificate. Siemens SCE documents and vendor simulators are also genuinely free; most other 'free' PLC training is a sample of a paid course.
- Can I learn PLC programming free without buying a PLC?
- Yes. Every EDWartens course runs in the vendor's free or trial software with a simulator: S7-PLCSIM for Siemens, RSLogix Emulate and the Micro800 simulator for Rockwell, GX Simulator, CX-Simulator, CODESYS, and Factory I/O for 3D machines. Real hardware helps later, but it is not where you start.
- Which free PLC course should a beginner in India start with?
- Siemens TIA Portal, because it assumes nothing, runs fully in simulation and is the single most requested PLC skill on Indian automation job posts. Allen-Bradley Studio 5000 is the next most requested; take it second if you are heading for automotive, pharma or FMCG plants run by multinationals.
- Do free PLC courses give a certificate?
- The EDWartens Certificate of Completion is optional and costs ₹700 including GST; it is issued only after you pass the final assessment and carries a verification code anyone can check. It is an EDWartens certificate, not a Siemens or Rockwell credential. Most other free options give no certificate at all.
- How long does it take to learn PLC programming free?
- The Siemens foundation course is 22 modules, about 13 hours of video plus practice, which a working engineer finishes in four to six weeks of evenings. A second platform or the HMI course takes two to three weeks more. Structure and commissioning courses come after you can write logic.
- Are the assessments hard?
- No, and that is deliberate. Module quizzes are five plain questions drawn from that module, the final is twenty questions from the whole course, the pass mark is 50 percent, and you can retake with a fresh paper as often as you like. The assessment checks that you followed the lessons; the practice tasks are where the learning happens.
- Will a free PLC course get me a job?
- On its own, no course will. What it gives you is a program you wrote and can talk through in an interview, a certificate you can verify, and, with the free account, a CV that lists the course, cover letters and a job board. Employers hire people who can show work; the free courses give you the work.
- Who made the videos in the EDWartens free courses?
- Independent creators on YouTube, named and linked in the Credits block of every course page; EDWartens did not make the videos and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
Written by Brijin Chacko, Sr Automation and Control Systems Engineer, EDWartens India. Updated 7 September 2026.