In a 60-PDU PMP renewal cycle, all 60 can come from free activities, because PMI does not cap PDUs by cost. The only caps are structural: Giving Back is capped at 25 PDUs, and at least 35 of the 60 must be Education, with a minimum of 8 in each of the three Talent Triangle areas.
30
PMI-ACP and PMI-RMP need 30 PDUs every three years, of which at least 18 must be Education.
15
CAPM needs 15 PDUs every three years, of which at least 9 must be Education.
3
A continuing certification cycle runs three years from the date the certification was earned or last renewed.
No. PMI’s renewal rules track category, not cost. In a 60-PDU cycle, Education has no ceiling, which means all 60 PDUs may be Education. Giving Back is capped at 25 PDUs and is optional. Neither cap says anything about what you paid, so if you can document 60 PDUs of Education activity that happened to cost you nothing, that satisfies the full requirement on its own.
“Free” describes your wallet, not the PDU. A PDU earned from a paid course and a PDU earned from a free session sit in the same category if the activity itself is Education. PMI’s system asks what you learned and where it fits in the Talent Triangle, not what you were charged for it.
The requirement depends on the credential, and it is the same whether the PDUs are free or paid.
See how many PDUs your renewal needs before you plan your mix of free and paid activity: https://kavitasharma.net/product/renew-pgmp/ for PgMP, and https://kavitasharma.net/product/renew-capm/ for CAPM.
For PMP, PgMP, PfMP or PMI-PBA renewal, three numbers matter regardless of cost. At least 35 of the 60 PDUs must be Education. Giving Back is optional and capped at 25 PDUs. Inside the 35 Education PDUs, a minimum of 8 must sit in each of Ways of Working, Power Skills and Business Acumen, which fixes 24 of the 35 and leaves 11 Education PDUs free to place in whichever area you like.
None of these three caps mention price. You could hit all of them with free webinars, free study material, or a mix of free and paid courses, as long as the category and area minimums are met. For the full breakdown of the 8-PDU minimum in each area, see https://kavitasharma.net/pmi-talent-triangle-pdu-minimums/.
A continuing certification cycle runs three years from the date you earned the certification or last renewed it. Whatever mix of free and paid PDUs you choose, every PDU has to be earned and reported inside that three-year window. Claiming a free PDU outside the window does not extend your cycle, and it does not reduce the 60, 30 or 15 PDUs the cycle requires.
If you have not claimed a PDU before and want to see the process, PMI’s step of recording an activity and PMI’s confirmation of it, before you commit to filling the full 60, 30 or 15, it helps to try it once on something small and free. That single claim shows you exactly what the record looks like once it is in your CCR account.
Yes. PMI’s caps for a 60-PDU cycle are Giving Back at 25 PDUs and Education at a minimum of 35, and neither cap is tied to cost.
No. Giving Back is capped at 25 PDUs and is optional, but the cap is about category, not about whether the activity was free.
Yes. PMI-ACP and PMI-RMP need 30 PDUs every three years, at least 18 of which must be Education, and cost is not part of that rule.
CAPM needs 15 PDUs every three years, of which at least 9 must be Education, again with no cost requirement attached.
Last reviewed: September 2026