Trade Schools
Purchasing accent arrangements and centerpieces can become incredibly pricey, but if you’re creatively inclined, you can learn how to create these beautiful masterpieces at home.
Becoming a floral designer can be an advantageous and creative career choice.
Regardless of your reason, taking an online floral designer program can be helpful to learn more about the art of flower arrangement.
Taught by expert floral designers, students learn how to improve the atmosphere of any space by utilizing flowers and the design concepts required for a professional-looking and balanced finish!
Most schools have various class levels, from beginning to expert, which are perfect for new and experienced floral artists.
Keep reading if you want to learn more about online floral designer training programs that can enhance your skills!
Best Online Floral Designer Training Programs
While this is an incredibly niche skill, there are plenty of online floral designer training programs, including the following:
American School of Flower Design
Established by legendary floral designer Michael Gaffney, the American School of Flower Design offers numerous classes with included materials that are shipped overnight.
While all courses can be taken online, major cities provide classes for those who prefer an in-person experience.
In addition to being the school’s founder, Michael Gaffney also teaches several classes.
Each session instructs students on how to master a single popular flower arrangement and includes the supplies.
Once a class is purchased, your flowers will be received within a single day, and the lesson will be available to view.
It is important to note that the school does not provide a certificate upon graduation.
Therefore, if you want a diploma, it’s better to try one of the other programs on this list.
Before choosing a lesson, you can preview the video to understand how Gaffney approaches the floral design aspect being taught.
If you enjoy his teaching style and a keen eye for design, he also has botanical books for purchase, which can improve your skills.
Furthermore, Gaffney has many in-person workshops around the U.S. to maximize your learning experience.
Ashworth College
Like Penn Foster, Ashworth College is an excellent choice for beginning a career as a floral designer.
Ashworth College is the best fit for students graduating with a diploma.
The coursework comprises an orientation to floral design, followed by five group lessons that include establishing your design business and basic design techniques.
The program is only four months, but you have one year to complete the requirements, so it can be self-paced for those who need ultimate flexibility.
Tuition costs $849 if you pay in full or $1049 if you agree to installments throughout the program.
Ashworth College is an accredited school and a great place to start or advance your career.
Create Academy
Although Create Academy doesn’t offer certifications or diplomas, its online floral design courses are an excellent option for enthusiasts.
Students can take free lessons comprising short videos or opt for the pay collection of a more extended curriculum, which ranges from $200 to $300, based on the topic.
Course collections include gardening and floristry, which can be combined into bundles or individually selected.
Each class is available forever, so you can revisit specific sections or instructions for your projects whenever necessary.
Several of the most popular classes are How to Create Forever Flowers, A Year of Cut Flowers, and the Complete Floristry Masterclass.
Since Create Academy is not part of a certification program, lessons are self-paced, so each class can be started, stopped, and paused as necessary.
This makes the school an excellent option for those seeking a flexible schedule.
Floral Design Institute
The most skilled floral designers continually add knowledge to their arsenal and earn more certifications, even after completing a floral design program from an accredited university.
One of the most popular floral programs is the Advanced Floral Design Certification from the Floral Design Institute.
This institute only recently began offering an online option, giving students more flexibility and an alternative opportunity for those who cannot travel to take this program.
To register, the school requires 500 hours of on-the-job training to complete the Basic Floral Design program.
This training aims to assist florists with enhancing their skills in floral marketing, tropical flowers, contemporary, European, Asian design, and wedding design.
The program costs $950, but you must purchase supplies and fresh flowers throughout the program to finish specific assignments.
If you currently work at a flower shop, ask the owner to help cover some or all of your advanced training costs.
Penn Foster
As one of the best online trade schools in the U.S., Penn Foster is also on all the top lists for its floral design program.
As a regionally and nationally accredited school, Penn Foster offers a user-friendly program that brings students from beginner level to certified florist in only around six months!
Tuition for the entire program costs $1089, which can be paid in monthly installments.
For those who pay in full, the tuition costs $849.
Several program benefits include graduates receiving floral design certification, the program is incredibly comprehensive, you can start with no prior knowledge, and it’s only a six-month time commitment.
Suppose you enroll in the Penn Foster Career School floral design program.
In that case, you will find that all courses are geared toward career florists, so the classwork is well-formatted and boasts a mobile-friendly progress and design tracking feature.
The program comprises nine courses ranging from utilizing space to design tools and basics.
Skillshare
Skillshare is an online database of thousands of tutorial-style classes, most meant for hobbyists, which means the floral design program doesn’t offer certification after graduation or a student with basic knowledge who wants to learn a few new techniques.
Therefore, if you’re on the fence about starting a career in floral design, Skillshare is an excellent option to try a class and see if you enjoy the material, then proceed to one of the other programs on this list.
Skillshare offers approximately 30 floral design classes, including designing a dried floral bouquet and designing a hand-tied bouquet, with over 4,000 students having taken bouquet making, the most popular class in the database.
While there is no tuition because the focus is on individual classes, the site’s annual membership is only $14 per month, which gives you access to all 30 floral design classes.
The site also offers a free trial so you can take one of the classes for free.
Team Flower
Team Flower is an inviting online learning platform for students focusing on floral.
One of the most popular aspects of the site is the supportive online community the school has developed for students.
Team Flower’s Instagram account has over 50,000 followers, and its website has 2,000 active members, which shows the organization’s popularity.
The online classes are comprised of growing, weddings, and all business types, so students have plenty of options to focus their knowledge improvement.
The site holds 15 classes, with new lessons being occasionally added.
If you’re interested in creating professional flower arrangements that could be on an influencer’s page, Team Flower is the right online floral design school for you.
Each course lists the knowledge you will gain from the curriculum and details the pricing.
For instance, the Bouquet and Personals class costs $500 with a full payment ($592 with the monthly option) and includes six hours of instruction.
Beginner classes can also be purchased at $199; if you’re unsure if any classes suit you, there’s a 14-day full refund guarantee.
To learn more about the organization’s floral aesthetics and teaching style, navigate to Team Flower’s YouTube channel, which is free.
Udemy
Udemy is like Skillshare in that it offers countless classes across various topics.
The site has course previews, user reviews, and instructor profiles that can be viewed before signing up for a class of interest.
The primary difference between Udemy and Skillshare is the payment method.
Udemy requires learners to purchase individual courses, which means the cost is higher if you take more than one class.
On the other hand, Udemy features many more floral design courses than Skillshare, and they are more thorough.
The most popular offerings include the Complete Guide to Flower Box Arrangement, Floral Design 101, and Floral Design – Not Just Flower Arranging.
Class lengths vary, and all classes focus on the latest floral design techniques, which is excellent for beginners and experienced designers.
The stylish arraignments presented in the course are popular with hobbyists but won’t replace foundational knowledge in several other programs on this list.
Class costs range from $20 to $200 and don’t include the required supplies or flowers.
What Courses Are in an Online Floral Design Program?
Online floral design classes offer countless topics, including the following:
- Basic foundations of using design tools
- Business management
- Container gardens
- Contemporary design
- Dried bouquets
- European and Asian design
- Floral marketing
- Live bouquets
- Using space
- Utilizing tropical flowers
- Wedding design
In addition to these foundational courses, plenty of online content exists in short video format to assist with specific aspects of a project.
For instance, if you need to know how to trim a rose properly, you can find the answer in one of the school’s video libraries.
The information may be free depending on the school, so you don’t need to take an entire program.
On the other hand, unlimited access to these videos is a vital benefit of an online course or program.
Can You Earn a Floral Designer Certification Completely Online?
Yes, students can earn a floral designer certification entirely online.
With so many online options available, from short videos to entire certificate programs, students have more flexibility than ever to complete a program.
Before signing up for a certificate program, it’s essential to understand if materials and tools are included. In the instance of the American School of Flower Design, all flowers and supplies are overnighted to the student, with the class being available the next day.
However, other schools require students to purchase flowers and related tools to complete the coursework.
This is one of the minor roadblocks when taking an online floral design class compared to in-person instruction.
How Long Does It Take to Earn a Floral Designer Certification Online?
Like with certification cost, the length of a course or program varies based on the school and lesson type.
Short how-to videos are provided by most schools (many of which are free) and focus on a single task, like how to trim a rose.
These can be completed in as fast as five minutes.
Completing a program can take up to one year for comprehensive certification instruction.
Some online schools offer self-paced instruction that can be concluded in a few months, but attendees have up to one year to finish the coursework.
How Much Does an Online Floral Designer Certification Cost?
The cost of floral design classes and programs varies greatly depending on your focus.
Plenty of online organizations offer free short videos but charge for longer, more comprehensive courses.
Beyond the free videos, some schools charge a monthly fee for access to all classes that cost between $15 and $20 per month, while complete floral design programs with certification upon graduation cost between $500 and $1,000.
Also, students can pay for individual lessons, like at Udemy.
Summary
Whether you wish to embark on floral design as a career or are simply a hobbyist who wants to perfect your craft, plenty of online schools and comprehensive programs and courses exist.
Penn Foster is considered the best online certification program for buddying floral designers, with Ashworth College still catching up in rankings.
A legendary flower designer teaches at the American School for Flower Design, and the Floral Design Institute is also considered an excellent option but doesn’t provide certificates upon graduation.
For hobbyists who want to learn or expand their skills, Skillshare and Udemy are great options since they don’t have a structured, time-commitment program, and Team Flower is focused on more trendy designs with individual classes.
Regardless of your focus on taking online floral design classes, plenty of options are available to hone your skills and reach your career or hobby goals!
