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Scuba Diving Certification
Interested in learning to scuba dive? You’ve come to the right place.
Millions of underwater explorers started right here.
Diving offers an escape from the pressures of daily life, access to an amazing world beneath the waves and the ability to affect positive ocean change. Join us! #LiveUnfiltered
The Way the World Learns to Dive®
PADI (the Professional Association of Diving Instructors) is the most recognized dive training organization worldwide with 29 million certifications and counting. PADI Dive Instructors undergo rigorous training to ensure your scuba certification class is fun and safe.
Getting Started
Discover Scuba Diving: If you want to try scuba diving, but you’re not quite ready to take the plunge into a scuba certification course, most PADI® Dive Shops offer a half-day experience called Discover Scuba Diving in a pool or pool-like environment, with an optional open water dive. It’s a quick and easy way to find out if you like scuba diving. Start your Discover Scuba Diving Course >
Open Water Diver: A scuba diving certification or ‘Open Water Diver certification’ allows you to dive anywhere in the world. Similar to driving a car, scuba diving requires specific knowledge, skills and training. A PADI Open Water Diver certification is your passport to underwater adventure.
3 Certification Options
1
Learn to Dive Close to Home
Complete all three parts of your scuba certification near home: knowledge development, pool practice and open water training dives.
Benefits: Take as much time as you need, connect with your local dive community, explore regional dive sites and you will be fully certified for your next vacation.
2
Start at Home, Finish on Vacation
If you want to get a head start on your scuba certification but prefer to complete your open water training dives on vacation where you will be doing most of your diving, you can complete your knowledge development and pool practice at home first.
Benefits: Use PADI eLearning to finish independent study online and complete pool practice with a dive shop before travel. You’ll minimize classroom time on vacation and gain more time to explore the underwater world.
3
Learn on Vacation
Complete all three parts of the course on vacation: knowledge development, pool practice and open water dives. If you want to save time and get a head start, use PADI eLearning to complete your independent study online before or during travel to minimize classroom time, then connect with your chosen Dive Shop to finish your certification.
Benefits: Learn to scuba dive abroad where you want to start your underwater adventure and meet divers from other parts of the globe.
Diving Gives Back to the Ocean
When you become a PADI diver, you join the largest community in the world for ocean change. With a network of 6,600 dive centers and resorts,128,000 professional members and over 29 million certified divers to date, we have a tremendous opportunity to mobilize millions of PADI Torchbearers to save the ocean.
In our mission to safeguard our blue planet, the PADI community with PADI AWARE Foundation is turning the tide on ocean change, but this is just the beginning.
28 million divers can't be wrong...
There's nothing better than the thrill of learning a skill that opens your eyes to a whole new world of adventure. But don't just take our word for it, here's what PADI Divers are saying:
Dive Travel
If you want to seek adventure and save the ocean, PADI Travel® can connect you with more than 500 resorts worldwide. By combining a resort stay with a PADI Open Water Diver course, you will also get a great deal.
Scuba Lessons for Kids
If your child is at least 8 years old, a fun and exciting way for them to experience scuba diving is to enroll them in a Bubblemaker or Seal Team program first.
The Bubblemaker program is an experience program in a pool or confined water that is as fun as it sounds–a chance for kids to blow bubbles underwater while scuba diving!
The Seal Team program is a multi-session pool program that covers basic scuba diving skills and action-packed AquaMissions.
Kids 10 years or older can take the Open Water Diver course and earn a Junior Open Water Diver certification.
Learn More About How to Become a Scuba Diver
Here are some popular articles written by PADI Divers.
Scuba Diving Certification FAQs
Your questions answered.
There are three parts to becoming a certified diver: knowledge development, confined water in a pool or pool-like environment, and open water dives.
Independent study using PADI Open Water Diver digital learning program (eLearning) takes about eight hours. In-water work, including pool training and open water dives, can be completed in just a few days.
The PADI Open Water Diver course is flexible and performance-based, which means you progress at your own pace. Once you and your instructor feel confident that you've mastered a skill, you’ll move on to the next one. If you want to try the new skill a few more times, that’s okay too. The goal is for you to learn how to be a safe, confident diver and feel comfortable in the water.
The minimum age is 10 years old (in most areas). Student divers who are younger than 15 earn the PADI Junior Open Water Diver certification.
The Junior Open Water certification comes with restrictions.
- Divers 10-11 years old must dive with a PADI Professional or a certified parent or guardian, and dives cannot exceed 12 meters/40 feet.
- Divers 12-14 years old must dive with a certified adult and dives cannot exceed 18 meters / 60 feet
- Children under the age of 13 require parent or guardian permission to register for PADI eLearning.
- Jr. Open Water Divers may upgrade to PADI Open Water Diver certification at age 15 by requesting a new certification card (no additional training is required).
- Learn more here: https://blog.padi.com/2014/09/16/scuba-diving-lessons-for-kids/
A scuba diving certification costs about the same as a full day of surfing lessons, three hours of private golf lessons, or one amazing night out! Learning to scuba dive is a great value because you earn a certification that allows you to dive anywhere in the world.
When comparing prices for scuba lessons, be sure to ask what’s included. A very low price may be for in-water training only. A higher price may include rental gear, a boat trip and/or online training.
Yes. People with missing limbs, reduced mobility, or other physical challenges commonly earn the PADI Open Water Diver certification. Even individuals with more significant physical or mental challenges can still take part in scuba experiences. Talk to your PADI Instructor at your local PADI Dive Center or Resort for more information.
All student divers complete a brief scuba medical questionnaire that asks about medical conditions that could be a problem while diving and will determine if you need to be evaluated by a physician before being able to scuba dive. If the doctor approves, or none of the conditions applied to you, you're ready to start!
You need basic swimming skills and the ability to comfortably maintain yourself in the water. Your PADI Instructor will ask you to:
- Swim 200 metres/yards (or 300 metres/yards wearing mask, fins and snorkel) without stopping. There is no time limit, and you may use any swimming strokes you want.
- Float and tread water for 10 minutes, using any method(s) you want.
Your PADI certification does not expire. If you haven’t been diving in a while and wish to refresh your scuba safety knowledge and skills, ask your dive shop about the PADI ReActivate™ course.
When you’re lucky, you get to see a shark. Although incidents with sharks occur, they are very rare and, with respect to diving, primarily involve spear fishing or feeding sharks, both of which trigger feeding behavior. Most of the time, if you see a shark it’s just passing through and a rare sight to enjoy.
Aside from pregnancy, no. Because physiologists know little about the effects of diving on the fetus, the recommendation is that women avoid diving while pregnant or trying to become pregnant. Menstruation is not normally a concern.
With the necessary training and experience, the limit for recreational scuba diving is 40 metres/130 feet. Beginning scuba divers stay shallower than about 18 metres/60 feet. Although these are the limits, some of the most popular diving is shallower than 12 metres/40 feet, where the water’s warmer and the colors are brighter.
People find the “weightlessness” of scuba diving to be quite freeing. Modern scuba masks are available in translucent models, which you may prefer. During your scuba diving training, your instructor will give you plenty of time and assistance to ensure you are comfortable.
Once you have completed your certification, you will receive a PADI certification card! The card has details of your certification level and date, along with you and your instructor's name and number.
For questions regarding plastic or eCard (electronic version), please see our Certification Card FAQ.
If you have an eCard, you can access through the free PADI App.