Bubble, I love you but the yearly certification is pain.

After trying it last year, I don’t think renewing Bubble certification is worth the time and effort for freelancers. Here is why:

What I knew last year, I still know today

I took the test and proved that I know Bubble inside and out, interface, data, workflows, APIs and all and I have 4+ years experience and several products to prove it.

OK, we now have a new workflow editor and Flusk security was introduced, but the only major update that requires learning is native mobile and that is still in Beta. I don’t have anything to prove by taking the test in 2025.

Do doctors take board exams every year? no. Do people take a driving test every year? again no. Did I forget everything I knew last year? no.

Unless you’re an agency or plan on joining one, it won’t make a difference in lead generation.

Some agencies use certification to easily find good developers from the throngs of applicants fighting over every opportunity. So if you are planning on joining an agency I suggest you take the test if you haven’t already. It will improve your chances, but if you have passed once, it’s enough.

But if you think that getting the certification will give you more exposure as a freelance developer, you are wrong. Bubble makes you pay for an agency plan to list you as an expert. And even then be prepared to battle with the gold and silver tier agencies over every new gig. Not worth it. Blue Ocean girl. I find word of mouth and helping people on the forum much more effective in lead generation.

Waste of resources

Investing 3 hours of my day every time to retake a test I already passed the previous year seems like a waste of time. And a $49 exam fee is not expensive but utterly unnecessary for retakes if they continue to be yearly.

In the end, the test is worth taking once, maybe renew after enough new features are introduced, but definitely not yearly. Totally not worth it.

Thank God they don’t force us to renew the certificate to use the platform…yet 🙄.