The fastest way to get CPR and AED certified is through the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross, the two most widely recognized providers in the United States. Both offer in-person, online, and blended courses that result in a two-year certification accepted by most employers. Several other organizations also provide valid certification, and your best option depends on whether you need it for a workplace requirement, a healthcare career, or personal preparedness.
Major Certification Providers
The American Heart Association (AHA) is the publisher of the official Guidelines for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care, making it the most recognized name in resuscitation training. Its Heartsaver courses are designed for people with little or no medical training who need certification for a job, OSHA compliance, or personal knowledge. You can find classes through the AHA’s website at cpr.heart.org, which lists authorized training centers and instructors near you.
The American Red Cross is the other heavyweight. Red Cross CPR/AED courses satisfy OSHA-mandated job requirements and most workplace safety standards. The Red Cross website lets you search for classes by zip code, filter by format (in-person or blended), and register online. Both organizations issue digital certificates (eCards) after you complete a course, which employers can verify electronically.
Beyond these two, the National Safety Council, the Health and Safety Institute (HSI), and EMS Safety Services also offer nationally recognized certifications. Some community colleges, fire departments, and local hospitals run their own courses using AHA or Red Cross curricula. If your employer or school requires a specific provider, check with them before signing up.
Which Course Level You Need
CPR/AED certification comes in two broad tiers, and picking the wrong one wastes your time and money.
Standard CPR/AED (Heartsaver or equivalent): This is the right choice for parents, teachers, childcare providers, fitness trainers, coaches, office workers, and anyone who wants to know what to do during a cardiac emergency until paramedics arrive. It covers chest compressions, rescue breathing, and how to use an automated external defibrillator on adults, children, and infants. Many courses bundle first aid training with CPR/AED, which is useful if your workplace requires both.
BLS (Basic Life Support): This is the healthcare-level course, designed for nurses, physicians, EMTs, paramedics, and other clinical or public safety professionals. BLS covers everything in a standard CPR class but adds rapid assessment techniques, management of obstructed airways, response to opioid overdoses, team-based resuscitation skills, and legal considerations. Red Cross BLS certification is valid for two years and meets credentialing requirements for pre-hospital, hospital, and post-acute care settings. If you’re entering a healthcare field, nursing program, or EMS career, this is the one to take.
Course Formats and Time Commitment
You have three ways to complete your certification, each with trade-offs in flexibility and hands-on practice.
- Fully in-person: A traditional classroom course with an instructor. Expect roughly 4 to 5 hours depending on the provider and whether first aid is included. You practice on manikins, use a training AED, and complete a skills test on the same day. This is the most straightforward option if you learn better with live instruction.
- Blended learning: You complete the knowledge portion online at your own pace, then attend a shorter in-person skills session. The Red Cross blended CPR/AED course, for example, takes about 2 hours online followed by a hands-on classroom session. The online portion must be finished before you show up for the skills check. This format works well if you have a tight schedule and prefer to spread the training across two days.
- Fully online: Some providers offer 100% online courses, but these come with an important caveat. A fully online course that never tests your physical skills (chest compressions, AED pad placement) may not be accepted by employers, schools, or licensing boards that require hands-on competency verification. If you need certification for a job or professional requirement, confirm that an online-only credential will be accepted before you pay for it.
Where to Find Classes Near You
Both the AHA and the Red Cross maintain online search tools that let you find classes by location. On the AHA site, look for the “Find a Course” feature at cpr.heart.org. On the Red Cross site, go to redcross.org/take-a-class and enter your zip code. Both tools show upcoming dates, formats, and pricing.
Local options often fly under the radar. Community colleges frequently host CPR/AED courses at lower prices than national providers, sometimes as part of continuing education programs. Fire departments and community centers in many cities offer free or low-cost classes, especially during events tied to public health awareness campaigns. Your workplace may also bring in a certified instructor for group training, which can be cheaper per person and more convenient. If you need several coworkers certified at once, ask your employer about scheduling a group session.
What OSHA Actually Requires
OSHA’s general industry standard requires that if there’s no clinic, infirmary, or hospital close to your workplace, at least one person on site must be trained in first aid. The construction industry standard is more specific: it requires a person with a valid certificate from the American Red Cross “or equivalent training that can be verified by documentary evidence.” In practice, AHA, Red Cross, and other nationally recognized certifications all meet this bar.
Certain industries have stricter rules. Logging and electric power generation, for instance, mandate first aid training for employees regardless of how close the nearest hospital is. Employers who assign workers medical or first aid duties also must provide bloodborne pathogen training on top of CPR. OSHA recommends, but does not universally require, that every workplace have at least one CPR-certified employee. Your employer can tell you whether your specific role falls under a mandatory training requirement.
How Long Certification Lasts
Both AHA and Red Cross certifications are valid for two years from the date of completion. The AHA counts validity through the end of the month in which your card was issued, giving you a few extra weeks of buffer. After two years, you’ll need to renew.
Renewal courses are shorter than the initial certification because they assume you still have foundational knowledge. The Red Cross offers abbreviated renewal classes for people whose credentials are still valid but approaching expiration. If you let your certification lapse completely, you’ll typically need to retake the full course. Setting a calendar reminder around the 22-month mark gives you enough lead time to find a convenient renewal class before your card expires.
Choosing the Right Provider
For most people, the decision between the AHA and the Red Cross comes down to which one has a class near you at a time that works. Both follow international resuscitation science guidelines published by ILCOR (the global body that reviews CPR evidence), both are accepted by virtually all employers, and both issue two-year digital certificates. If your employer or school specifies one provider, go with that one. Otherwise, compare dates, locations, and prices, and pick whichever fits your schedule. A CPR certification you actually complete is more valuable than the “perfect” one you keep postponing.