Top 11 Benefits Of Paying PMI Membership Fee In 2023

You might be looking to become a PMI member but you are not sure if PMI membership has any benefits or not. You might be thinking that fee for the membership is just an additional cost.

The annual PMI membership fee is $129 for individuals. There is an additional joining fee of $10 to become the member. So, the membership will cost you $139 in the first year and it is valid for one year. The fee for renewing individual memberships is $129.

If you want to pursue a PMI certification then you can save you a lot of money by becoming a PMI member. e.g. if you are looking to become a PMP then you can save $150 on the exam cost by joining PMI. The cost of PMP exam with and without membership is $555 and $405 respectively. In addition, by becoming a member, you can download PMBOK Guide free of cost.

Furthermore, after becoming a member of PMI, your learning can leapfrog to another level because members can access a lot of learning materials either free of cost or at a discounted price. There are free 1000+ tools and templates in PMI’s resource library.

Along with the membership, you can join your local PMI Chapter, which will allow you to expand your network. Chapter meetings and events allow you to come with like-minded individuals for sharing knowledge and resources. There are 650,000 members in 300+ chapters in 213 countries around the world.

Let us about PMI membership in more detail. We will talk about the advantages of becoming a member for both certified and non-certified professionals.

PMI Membership Fee

PMI membership fee if applicable for one year. There are three types of membership that are offered by PMI.

1. Individual Membership

This membership is available for everyone. Any professional can join PMI by paying the applicable fee. The initial joining fee is $139 and then for yearly renewal, you have to pay $129.

2. Student Membership

If you are a student then you can join the PMI. This membership is for students. The initial joining fee is 42 USD. You have to pay 32 USD every year for membership renewal.

3. Retiree Membership

If you are a PMI member for 5 consecutive years and have since retired, then still you can be a member by paying 65 USD renewal fee.

Membership Type	First Year Membership Fee	Yearly Renewal Fee
Individual	$139	$129
Student	$42	$32
Retiree	$65	$65

PMI Membership Renewal

If you want you can renew your membership annually by paying the annual fee but it is not mandatory. Many certification holders pay membership fee once in 3 years just to renew their certification(s).

Benefits and Advantages of PMI Membership

1. Get Discount on PMI Certifications Exam Fee

This is the first and foremost benefit that helps you to save money. PMI provides discount to its members for applying to various certification exams.

For example, regular PMP certification fee is $555 but for PMI members the fee reduces to $405. Although this looks like a direct saving of $150 but it is not. You will have to shell out $139 for taking individual membership but still you will be able to save $11.

Your savings can multiply if you attempt more than one certification exam within a year because you will get discount on all your exam applications. The discount is also applicable on re-examinations in an unfortunate event of failing in the first attempt.

2. Download Free Copy of Various PMI Standards

After becoming a member, you will get free access to all the PMI’s standards including the the PMBOK Guide. You can download electronic copy of these books from PMI Global Standards Library. You can use these for your study and reference.

For example, PMP aspirants and certified PMPs can download a digital copy of the PMBOK Guide and Agile Practice Guide without paying anything. A paper copy of these books costs around $60 on Amazon. You can click on the following links to check prices on Amazon.

• PMBOK Guide 6th Ed.
• Agile Practice Guide
• PMBOK Guide 7th Ed.

Note: Find out which version of the PMBOK Guide is being used for the PMP exam.

Of course, a hard-copy has its own benefits while studying but a digital copy is extremely useful for referencing and keyword searches.

The standards published by PMI include Foundational Standards, Practice Standards and Frameworks, and Practice Guides. In total, there are 20+ books that you can download for free.

You can click here to see a complete list of all the standards.

3. Get a Free Subscription to PMI Magazines

PMI publishes many monthly magazines and other periodicals. You are entitled to a free subscription of these magazines free of cost. These include PM Network and Project Management Journal.

These magazines will keep you up to date with the latest happenings in the world of project management and what is happening inside PMI. You can find in-depth articles, interviews and many case studies which will increase your knowledge.

4. Free PDUs for Continuing Certification

All PMI credentials are valid for three years. During these three years credential holders are required to earn Professional Development Units (PDUs) to renew their certificate for another three years. Different credentials have different PDU requirement; e.g. PMP holders need to 60 PDUs for renewal.

As a PMI member, you can attend free webinars on projectmanagement.com to accrue PDUs.

5. Avail Discounts on PMI Store

PMI Store is a marketplace of PMI products. You can search, browse, and invest in various paid online courses, online tools, books, and micro-credentials on PMI Store. Most of these products have a member’s only discounted price. You can click here to look at the price of published books.

6. Get Access to Various PMI Research Papers

As an honored member of PMI, you will get free or discounted access to various research papers that are published by PMI. These can help you to enhance and update your knowledge about portfolio, program and project management.

7. Find a Job on Career Center

What is the endgame after upgrading your knowledge and becoming certified?

The endgame is to land up a better job and there is no better way to search for only project management job then to browse through umpteen unrelated jobs.

PMI Career Center comes as a solution for this. It is a job portal but unlike any other job portal it is focused only on project management and related jobs.

8. Attend Local PMI Chapter Meetings

If you have joined PMI membership then you can join local PMI chapters at a nominal cost. You will get an invitation for every local chapter at discounted rates or sometimes free after you join your local chapters.

9. Network with Like-minded Professionals

Can you grow in your profession without Networking?

I am sure your answer would be No. By being a PMI member, you can connect with other project management professionals through PMI organized seminars and events. You can also share your thoughts in various discussion forums. global conferences, virtual conferences,

10. Download and Use Templates and Checklists

There is an old adage that says “don’t re-invent the wheel”. By using templates and checklists from PMI’s website you can use the existing knowledge-base and save a lot of time for yourself. Furthermore, by doing so, you can be sure of conforming to the global standards.

11. Volunteer

You can do volunteer work for PMI. This way you can acquire free PDUs and also contribute some value to the society.

The only drawback is that in your membership dashboard the latest year is shown in which you applied for membership. And that to be not the drawback even from my point of view.

Conclusion

To realize the benefits of PMI you have to join the membership. There are many benefits of a PMI membership. Participate in the local meetings, you will be benefited as you will get a chance to interact with many PMPs. Networking with good professionals and experienced persons always help. You will get good growth and good knowledge of your career. So this will help you in your career.

PMP Exam Prep at Reasonable Price

Our PMP training program contains a lot of study material that will help you to pass the exam in your first attempt. You can our training program at a very reasonable cost.

Our PMP program is priced as low as USD 149 in USA. Our training is unmatched in the industry. It will enable you to pass the PMP exam in your first attempt and, in case you are unsuccessful, we will refund 100% training fee.

Over To You

Are you contemplating on taking the PMI membership? What, in your opinion, is the most important benefit of being a member?

If you have any other question about the membership, you can contact us directly. You can ask any question related to PMI membership or PMP certification exam. We will promptly answer your question.

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