Free AI Agents Courses, Including MCP
7 free courses and videos, grouped by the level each provider gives, with the prerequisites and certificates their pages state.
What is an AI agent?
An AI agent is an AI system that works through a task on its own: it plans steps, uses tools such as search, code or other apps, checks the results and continues until the task is done - rather than answering one message at a time.
The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is the open standard many agents use to connect to those tools and data sources. These courses cover agent design, tool use, multi-agent systems and building MCP servers.
Who these courses are for
Developers and technical learners. The courses list their expected programming and AI background.
Beginner courses (2)
AI Agents for Beginners
Microsoft
18 lessons: agent design patterns, tool use, agentic RAG, multi-agent systems, MCP and A2A, memory, security and deployment.
Building Effective Human-Agent Teams
Anthropic Academy
Moving from single-player to multiplayer AI, and how to prepare a team for the shift. 5 lessons and a quiz; in beta.
Intermediate courses (5)
AI Agents Course
Hugging Face
AI agents in theory and practice, using smolagents, LlamaIndex and LangGraph, with challenges that compare your agents with other students'.
- Certificate:
- Certificate of completion
Model Context Protocol (MCP) Course
Hugging Face
Understanding, using and building MCP applications, built in partnership with Anthropic.
- Needs:
- Basic AI and LLM concepts, and familiarity with software development
- Certificate:
- Certificate of completion
Introduction to Model Context Protocol
Anthropic Academy
Build MCP servers and clients from scratch with the Python SDK, covering tools, resources and prompts. 10 lessons and a quiz.
- Needs:
- Basic Python, async/await, and familiarity with APIs
Introduction to Agent Skills
Anthropic Academy
Build, configure and share skills in Claude Code - reusable markdown instructions Claude applies to matching tasks. 6 lessons.
Introduction to Subagents
Anthropic Academy
Splitting complex tasks across parallel Claude subagents and orchestrating them. 4 lessons.
View and sign-up counts are the providers’ own figures, read 18 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is an AI agent?+
An AI agent is an AI system that carries out a multi-step task on its own, planning, using tools, checking results and continuing, instead of only replying to a single message.
Are there free AI agent courses with a certificate?+
Yes. Hugging Face's AI Agents Course and its Model Context Protocol course both state that you can earn a certificate of completion by completing assignments, and both are free.
How do I learn MCP?+
Free options include Hugging Face's MCP Course, built in partnership with Anthropic, and Anthropic Academy's Introduction to Model Context Protocol, which builds MCP servers and clients with the Python SDK. Our guide explains what MCP is before you start.