Contact hours are the education you complete before the PMP® exam — 35 hours of project management training required for eligibility. PDUs (Professional Development Units) are what you earn after certification to keep it — 60 every three years. One gets you into the certification; the other keeps you in it. They are not interchangeable, and mixing them up causes real application and renewal mistakes.
If you’ve seen the two terms used loosely — sometimes even on training sites — you’re not imagining it. They’re both measured in hours of learning, both usually earned through courses, and both administered by PMI, which is exactly why they get conflated. But they live on opposite sides of your certification date. This guide draws the line cleanly, once and for all.
What are contact hours?
Contact hours are PMI’s pre-exam education requirement: 35 hours of formal project management instruction, aligned with the exam content outline, that you must complete and document before your PMP application is approved. They answer PMI’s question “have you been trained?” — the companion to the experience requirement’s “have you done the work?”
You earn them through structured training — for example, a self-paced 35-hour PMP course — and report them on your application with the provider, course, and hours. PMI has not set an expiration on completed contact hours: you document them whenever you apply. One nuance worth knowing: active CAPM® holders receive a 23-hour training credit under the 2026 requirements, leaving only 12 hours to document. And to be precise about a common mix-up in the other direction: contact hours are for certification eligibility — they are not “spent” or converted into anything after you pass.
What are PDUs?
PDUs are the maintenance currency of an active certification. Once you hold the PMP, PMI’s Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) program asks for 60 PDUs every three-year cycle, reported through PMI’s CCR system, to renew. One PDU corresponds to one hour of qualifying professional development.
The 60 aren’t freeform. PMI structures them around the Talent Triangle — Ways of Working, Power Skills, and Business Acumen — with the majority required from Education activities (courses, e-learning, events) and a capped portion allowed from Giving Back activities (volunteering, creating content, working as a practitioner). The practical translation: most of your renewal comes from structured learning, which is why efficient PDU course bundles exist, and the renewal process itself is a straightforward report-and-confirm cycle once the units are earned.
The side-by-side
| Contact hours | PDUs | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Qualify for the PMP exam | Renew the PMP after you’re certified |
| When | Before your application | Continuously, after certification |
| How many | 35 (23-hour credit for active CAPM holders) | 60 per three-year cycle |
| Where reported | PMP application | PMI’s CCR system |
| Structure | Training aligned to the exam content outline | Talent Triangle categories; Education majority, Giving Back capped |
| Expiration | No expiration set on completed hours | Each 60 belongs to its three-year cycle |
Why do people confuse them?
Three honest reasons. Both are counted in hours of learning. Both are typically earned through courses — sometimes from the same providers. And the same hour of training plays different roles depending on where you stand: before certification, a qualifying training hour is a contact hour toward eligibility; after certification, equivalent education time earns PDUs toward renewal. Same activity shape, different ledger.
The test that never fails: ask what the hours are for. Getting in? Contact hours. Staying in? PDUs. If a course page or an article uses one term where the other belongs, now you’ll catch it.
Which do you need right now?
Not yet certified? Your number is 35 — contact hours, before you apply.
| The PMP® Certification Online Training Bundle delivers the full 35 contact hours plus up-to-date lectures for the new exam, 2,400+ practice questions, and 9 full sample exams — so eligibility and exam readiness come from the same work. Our students hold a 99.6% first-attempt pass rate, audited through the Better Business Bureau®. |
Already certified? Your number is 60 — PDUs, inside your three-year cycle, reported through CCR. Start with our guide to earning 60 PDUs efficiently. And everything about the current exam — if you’re helping a colleague get started — is in our complete guide to the new PMP exam.
Frequently asked questions
Are PDUs and contact hours the same thing?
No. Contact hours are pre-exam education (35 required for PMP eligibility); PDUs are post-certification professional development (60 per three-year cycle to renew). They sit on opposite sides of your certification date.
Can contact hours count as PDUs?
Not directly — contact hours belong to your exam application. But the same kind of training activity earns PDUs once you’re certified: a qualifying hour of education before certification is a contact hour, and equivalent education after certification earns PDUs.
Do contact hours expire?
PMI has not set an expiration on completed contact hours — you document them on your application whenever you apply. Verify current application rules on pmi.org when you submit.
How many PDUs do I need to renew my PMP?
60 PDUs per three-year cycle, reported through PMI’s CCR system, with the majority from Education activities across the Talent Triangle and a capped portion from Giving Back activities.
Do PDUs count toward PMP eligibility?
No. Eligibility requires contact hours (plus the experience requirement). PDUs only exist once you hold a certification to maintain.
How do I earn the 35 contact hours?
Through formal project management training aligned with the exam content outline — for example, a structured 35-hour PMP prep course — documented with the provider, course name, and hours on your application.
P.S. — Renewal season? The Data & BI Power 60 PDU Bundle and our other 60 PDU bundles cover the full cycle in one place — online, self-paced, with PDU submission guidance.