15+ Best Assertiveness Courses & Certifications Online in 2026

Last updated: October 2026. Written by Josh Hutcheson. Every course was re-checked on its own page on 14 October 2026; learner experiences come from Reddit threads in r/emotionalintelligence, r/AskWomen, r/womenintech and r/AskMen, paraphrased. See our review methodology.

Assertiveness is a communication skill, and it can be learned. The best assertiveness course for most people is Assertive Communication Skills Masterclass on Udemy: about 3.5 hours, rated 4.6 from 18,787 ratings and updated in April 2026. For assertiveness at work, the University of Michigan’s Influencing People course on Coursera (4.8 from 4,289 reviews) teaches the research behind persuasion and standing your ground. And if you want the version therapists use, the free “Assert Yourself!” workbook from the Centre for Clinical Interventions in Western Australia costs nothing.

No course will make you assertive by itself. What changes behavior is practice: saying a clear “no” once a week, asking for what you need in one meeting, and noticing what happens. Use the courses below to learn the techniques, then practice them on low-stakes situations first.

See the Assertive Communication Skills Masterclass →

1. How to Be Both Assertive and Likable Online Class | LinkedIn Learning

This short LinkedIn Learning class (27 minutes, current version released in 2021) comes from Kwame Christian and the American Negotiation Institute, and it is adapted from their Negotiate Anything podcast, in which Christian talks with executive-education professor Hamilton Chan. It tackles the tension most people feel: you want to be liked, and you also need to hold your position. It covers how to build rapport first, how to stand firm without turning cold, and why knowing your options before a hard conversation makes it easier to say what you need.

Best for: people who avoid conflict because they worry about seeming difficult. Access: LinkedIn Learning subscription. View the class on LinkedIn Learning

2. Developing Assertive Leadership Online Class | LinkedIn Learning

Audrey Daniels, a workforce and people-operations consultant, teaches what assertiveness looks like when you are the one in charge. The class runs about an hour (released in 2022) and covers balancing assertiveness with emotional intelligence, giving clear and concise messages, and keeping your authority without becoming overbearing. It is a good fit for new managers who were promoted for their technical work and now have to give direction.

View the class on LinkedIn Learning

3. Assertiveness Basics: The 50-minute Communication Guide | Udemy

The most-enrolled assertiveness course we found: more than 75,000 students and a 4.4 rating from 21,681 ratings. Taught by the Naraine family (Dr. Roy Naraine, Adam Naraine and Jimmy Naraine), it opens with a short core lesson on what assertiveness is and is not, then adds real-life examples, for about 1.5 hours in total. Its main point is one the Reddit threads we read keep returning to: assertiveness is not just saying no, it is stating what you think and need clearly while respecting the other person. It was last updated in March 2023.

View the course on Udemy

4. Assertive Communication Skills Masterclass | Udemy

Kara Ronin’s masterclass is our top pick: 4.6 from 18,787 ratings, more than 59,000 students, about 3.5 hours, updated April 2026. It starts by helping you identify your natural communication style, then works on the fears and limiting beliefs that keep people passive, and on saying no and setting boundaries without feeling guilty. A 2026 update added five lessons on being assertive on the spot, in situations you did not see coming.

Enroll in the Assertive Communication Skills Masterclass →

5. Becoming Assertive: Advocate for Your Interests Online Class | LinkedIn Learning

TJ Guttormsen, a public speaker and trainer, argues that real assertiveness is more than speaking forcefully. He covers the fundamentals of communication, including speech, eye contact, body language and being succinct, and gives practical strategies for starting conversations that get the result you want. The class is 52 minutes (released 2021) and is rated 4.8 by LinkedIn learners. View the class on LinkedIn Learning

More assertiveness courses worth considering

These round out the list to 15, grouped by what they do best. Udemy ratings and update dates were read on 14 October 2026.

6. Influencing People (University of Michigan, Coursera)

Not titled as an assertiveness course, but the best evidence-based course we found on getting your way at work without steamrolling people. Professor Maxim Sytch covers power, persuasion and how to say no to a request while keeping the relationship. It takes about a week at 10 hours, and it is rated 4.8 from 4,289 reviews. View Influencing People

7. Asserting Yourself, an Empowered Choice (LinkedIn Learning)

Career expert Emilie Aries’s 30-minute class (released 2020, rated 4.7) is for people who find it hard to say no, disagree with colleagues or give tough feedback, at work or in their personal life. View the class

8. Assertiveness Training for Improved Assertive Communication (Udemy)

Alex Genadinik’s 3.5-hour course is the most recently updated on this list (October 2026), rated 4.5 from 1,209 ratings. It covers assertiveness in your career and in professional and personal relationships, with the aim of getting your ideas heard and respected. View the course

9. Assertiveness: Assertive Communication and Social Skills (Udemy)

Social-skills coach Alain W.’s course, about 4.5 hours, rated 4.5 from 1,569 ratings and updated February 2026, covers dealing with conflict, assertive body language and speaking up, and added a confidence section in 2022. View the course

10. Assertiveness 101: Become More Assertive in Just 90 Minutes (Udemy)

Jimmy Naraine’s quick course, about 3 hours of material in total, rated 4.5 from 2,334 ratings and updated December 2023. View the course

11. Assertiveness at Work: Accelerate Your Career (Udemy)

A 1.5-hour course presented by Dr. Roy Naraine, a medical doctor, covering body language, handling conflict and controlling your emotions at work. It is rated 4.4 from 1,679 ratings and was last updated in March 2023. View the course

12. Assertive Communication: Build the Independent You (Udemy)

Taught by Lucia Grosaru (M.A. Psy.), this 4-hour course teaches five communication styles, your assertive rights, and ten common cognitive distortions that get in the way, plus how to say no to unreasonable requests. It is rated 4.5 from 144 ratings and was updated in September 2026. View the course

13. Assertiveness Skills (Packt, Coursera)

A two-hour, single-module course on Coursera, rated 4.7 from a small base of 34 reviews. Useful if you already pay for Coursera Plus. View the course

14. Self Confidence and Assertiveness Training (Udemy)

Libby Seery’s 2.5-hour course pairs confidence-building with assertiveness, rated 4.3 from 928 ratings. It was last updated in September 2017, so expect dated examples. View the course

15. Assertiveness Mastery (Udemy), and where to go next

If your real goal is leading a team, assertiveness is one part of a larger skill set. Our guides to MasterClass leadership classes and persuasion courses cover the rest. One more Naraine course, Assertiveness Mastery, is available but has only 69 ratings and was last updated in 2020, so we would start elsewhere.

Removed from the old list: three Skillshare classes. We could not verify them on 14 October 2026, and we no longer link to Skillshare.

What is assertiveness training?

Assertiveness training teaches you to express your thoughts, feelings and needs directly and honestly while respecting other people. The Centre for Clinical Interventions, a clinical service run by Western Australia’s Department of Health, defines assertiveness as expressing your point of view in a way that is clear and direct while still respecting others, and notes that some people struggle with it because they are anxious about how others will react.

In psychology and therapy, assertiveness training is a set of behavioral techniques usually taught within cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): noticing the thoughts that stop you speaking up, learning specific phrasing, and practicing it through role-play before using it in real life. Online courses teach the same techniques without a therapist. If anxiety is what stops you being assertive, a therapist is a better first step than a course, and several people in the r/AskWomen thread we read said therapy is where they learned it.

Is assertiveness good or bad?

Assertiveness is the healthy middle of three communication styles. The difference is easiest to see side by side:

The trap people describe on Reddit is overshooting: someone who has been passive for years tries to be assertive and comes across as aggressive. One r/emotionalintelligence commenter put it well: stay “boring” about it. Say it once, calmly, and let it sit. You do not need a long justification.

Free assertiveness training, PDFs and worksheets

• CCI “Assert Yourself!” workbook: a free self-help workbook from the Centre for Clinical Interventions (Government of Western Australia), plus information sheets on the same page. Get the workbook
• Coursera: you can preview Influencing People before paying, and Coursera offers financial aid on its paid courses.
• Udemy previews: each Udemy course page has free preview lessons, which is a good way to see whether an instructor’s style suits you.

A worksheet works best when you use it on a real situation. Write down one request you have been avoiding, script what you will say, and do it within a week.

Assertiveness training for women

Several women in the Reddit threads we read made the same point: the same behavior gets labeled “confident” in one person and “difficult” in another, and gender is a big part of that. One r/AskWomen commenter described needing to be tough twice, once to hold her ground and once to absorb the backlash, and said she now aims for “firm” rather than “tough”.

Courses do not fix that double standard, but they help with the part you control: clear, calm phrasing that is hard to dismiss. The Assertive Communication Skills Masterclass and the LinkedIn class on being assertive and likable are both built around that balance. A quiet, steady “no” without a long explanation was the technique quieter people in the r/infj thread said works best for them.

Assertiveness at work

In an r/womenintech thread, a developer a few years into her career said she was direct with peers but hesitated with senior colleagues, second-guessing her ideas before saying them. The most useful replies were practical: ask your question even if it seems small, frame disagreement as trying to understand, and remember that senior people are also still figuring things out. Others suggested talking to your manager about speaking up as a development goal, or finding a mentor.

For workplace assertiveness specifically, take Influencing People (Coursera) and Assertiveness at Work (Udemy), and if you lead a team, Developing Assertive Leadership (LinkedIn Learning). If you need a course for an employee, the UK small-business owner on Reddit who asked about this found options from £14 to £500 with no obvious difference; start with a well-reviewed online course before paying for in-person training.

How to practice assertiveness between lessons

• Use “I” statements: “I need the draft by Thursday to review it properly” rather than “You always send things late.”
• Say no once: give one short reason or none, and do not reopen it when pushed.
• Repeat calmly: if someone keeps pushing, restate the same point in the same calm words.
• Ask for time: “Let me think about that and get back to you this afternoon” is an assertive answer.
• Start small: send back a wrong order or ask a colleague to stop interrupting before you take on the hardest conversation in your life.

How to choose an assertiveness course

• You avoid conflict at all costs: start with the CCI workbook or the Masterclass.
• You are assertive with friends but not at work: Influencing People and Assertiveness at Work.
• You manage people: Developing Assertive Leadership.
• You have 30 minutes: How to Be Both Assertive and Likable, or Asserting Yourself, an Empowered Choice.
• You also freeze when presenting: pair an assertiveness course with one of the public speaking courses we recommend.
• You need to hold your ground on money or terms: add a negotiation course; see our best negotiation courses and leadership courses.
• You want a certificate: Coursera and Udemy both issue completion certificates; there is no industry-standard assertiveness certification, so treat any “assertiveness coach certification” with caution.

Frequently asked questions

Can assertiveness be learned?

Yes. Assertiveness is a set of communication skills, not a personality trait, and it is routinely taught in therapy and in courses. Most people improve by learning a few techniques, such as I statements and saying no once, and practicing them in low-stakes situations first.

What is the best assertiveness course online?

Assertive Communication Skills Masterclass on Udemy is the best overall pick in October 2026: about 3.5 hours, rated 4.6 from more than 18,000 ratings and updated in April 2026. For workplace assertiveness, Influencing People from the University of Michigan on Coursera is rated 4.8.

What is assertiveness training in psychology?

In psychology, assertiveness training is a behavioral approach, usually taught within cognitive behavioral therapy, that teaches people to express needs and opinions directly and respectfully. It typically combines identifying unhelpful thoughts, learning specific phrasing, and role-play practice.

Is there free assertiveness training?

Yes. The Centre for Clinical Interventions in Western Australia publishes a free Assert Yourself workbook and information sheets. Udemy and Coursera courses also have free preview lessons, and Coursera offers financial aid.

Is assertiveness good or bad?

Assertiveness is generally healthy: it sits between being passive and being aggressive. The risk is overshooting into aggression when you first start, so aim to state your point once, calmly, and without attacking the other person.

Is there an assertiveness certification?

There is no recognized industry certification for assertiveness. Online platforms such as Coursera and Udemy give certificates of completion, which show you finished a course but are not professional credentials.