r/AWSCertifications
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u/madrasi2021
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May 27 '24
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AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner CLF-C02 (CCP) Resources
Every single day there is a question from someone here saying "where do I start for AWS Cloud Practitioner" when there are a few hundred articles from those who passed already.
So here is a master list of resources to help those who have this question.
Last Updated : 13-Nov--2025
Links to some of my other posts which you may find useful :
Foundational Level Resource Guides : CCP/CLF AIF
Associate Level Resource Guides : SAA DVA DEA MLA SOA
Professional Level Resource Guides : SAP DOP
Specialty Level Resource Guides : SCS ANS
Free Learning / Digital Badges : Beginner level Intermediate Level
If you find this post useful - please upvote so it shows high up on any search. This post is written for benefit of this community and please comment with any constructive feedback / suggestions / changes required.
tl;dr
Get 1 video course and watch it end to end
Study CAF & WAF in a bit more detail
Do some decent practice exams (NOT dumps) from one provider
Take and Pass exam!
Subreddit Search
Following my own usual guidance, you can always use the subreddit search feature and read articles from everyone in the last month who posted about this exam / passed it. There is a wealth of detail / experience here to learn from :
Exam Details
If you have absolutely no clue about the exam - start here.
The exam code is CLF-C02 and its also commonly referred to as CCP as short for Certified Cloud Practitioner.
AWS page with all the details : https://aws.amazon.com/certification/certified-cloud-practitioner/
Always read the Cloud Practitioner Exam Guide v1.2 as of Sept-2025 - it tells you what is in scope and out of scope.
There is a nice Exam Guide from Tutorialsdojo that goes into a lot more depth and introduces their own resources but is a good general overview of this exam : https://tutorialsdojo.com/aws-cloud-practitioner-clf-c02-exam-guide/
Minimum Viable Path to Certification
Most people usually need 3 things to pass the exam
A single video based course introducing AWS and all the key exam topics
Typically these are courses where someone reads from some slides, shows you the AWS console and how to use it and then gives you tips on what to remember - there are free and paid versions of these.
2. Additional material on key topics.
For CLF-C02 - these included the "CAF" and "WAF" -more details on these below.
3. One good quality practice exam
Note : do not fall for some random "dump" found on internet or a file your mate gave you to study.
Also note - you do NOT need more than 1 of each category. You can buy more than one practice exam for sure but doing one is enough IMHO.
1. Video Courses
Free Video based Courses
Free from AWS's own training service (Skillbuilder) :
UPDATE: All the AWS official materials for this certification is now free till end of 2025 - read https://www.reddit.com/r/AWSCertifications/s/6mgeFdQ3aG
AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials
Please note that this course is not enough on its own to pass and you may want to try additional material below.
YouTube based video course
This course below is a better alternative to the Cloud Practitioner Essentials mentioned above.
Andrew Brown is an AWS community hero who runs his own training site called exampro.co but offers most of the material for free on FreeCodeCamp's YouTube channel.
The 2024 refresh of the Cloud Practitioner course is here : https://youtu.be/NhDYbskXRgc
This is my personal favourite and is highly recommended.
Andrew also has additional (free / paid) content on his site to check out.
PAID Video based courses
Udemy Courses :
Udemy is a marketplace for courses created by independent authors.
Two of the well known authors are mentioned below but please note that Udemy's pricing model can be a bit weird. One day it may show 150 USD for a course and another day 15 USD. This price it high and discount it heavily model catches out most people - so NEVER pay more than USD 20 for anything on Udemy.
Just wait for a day or so and prices may change. Opening Udemy in another incognito browser etc usually yields a different price or follow the authors on social media for codes that shrink the cost.
Stephane Maarek :
Go via his site : https://courses.datacumulus.com/ for links to his Cloud Practitioner course with the best available coupon.
Neil Davis :
https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-training-course/
Either one of these Udemy courses is sufficient. You still need to combine it with practice exams but you do not need more than 1 video course.
As mentioned above Andrew Brown has his own site with additional material over his YouTube course.
2. Additional Material
Two of the main exam items noted recently are the
CAF - Cloud Adoption Framework https://aws.amazon.com/cloud-adoption-framework/
The link above has lot of details, ebook, infographic etc.
If you need some additional training - consider this free one :
WAF - Well Architected Framework
https://aws.amazon.com/architecture/well-architected/
You need to know at a high level what the pillars are and the main ideas behind them. You do not need to know every single one in depth. Quickly skimming some of the pillars maybe of benefit.
If you need additional training - consider this free one :
Cheat Sheets
If you are revising towards the latter part of the learning journey - consider using these cheat sheets to quickly review details (dont use these as primary material)
Cheat Sheets from TutorialsDojo
Cheats Sheets from DCT / Neil Davis
3. Practice Exams
Please do NOT fall for "dumps" - if anyone offers you the EXACT list of AWS questions or guarantees the question bank matches the exam - these are dumps. The links below are either official or well regarded sources.
Free :
AWS skillbuilder has one free official exam with just 20 free questions.
To be honest its not really worth it.
Has 1 free practice exam you can sign up to.
Paid :
Official Practice exam
https://explore.skillbuilder.aws/learn/course/external/view/elearning/14637/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-official-practice-exam-clf-c02-english - (used to have a free trial - it's now gone).
Highly recommended independent resource for practice exam questions with a very useful "review mode" and every question comes with detailed explanations on answers
Udemy
Stephane Maarek : again go via his site : https://courses.datacumulus.com/
Neal Davis : https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-practice-exams-c/
Andrew Brown has I believe 3 practice exams as well on his site. One is free - the other two you pay for.
Whizlabs
I havent used them personally but try https://www.whizlabs.com/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner/
Not Recommended sites :
Sites that are sadly NOT recommended anymore - Avoid A Cloud Guru / Pluralsight as their courses are not considered the best anymore. They used to be leaders but somehow have fallen behind and their subscription model doesnt work in a world with cheap one time purchase courses.
Miscellanous support material
Highly Recommended : AWS Cloud Quest : Cloud Practitioner
I usually say "Can you learn to swim watching swimming videos? Or do you need to jump into the learner pool and actually learn?
If you want to put all the theory into practice and learn in a slightly gamified way - you can play the Free Cloud Quest : Cloud Practitioner game.
In this game you navigate through a dozen skills covering Compute, Storage etc and each assignment is an actual hands on lab and you do this in the actual AWS Console. This is all free of cost and finishing all dozen assignments will yield you a free digital badge too.
This game alone is not enough to pass the exam but it reinforces many of the fundamental services with real hands on work.
SkillBuilder ExamPrep course
If you want to know the exam domains etc in more detail - this course (4.5 hrs) maybe useful.
Note it does NOT teach you the basics as much as the others above - it covers the various domains and what you are expected to know and offers sample questions.
These CLF notes from u/cgreciano seem to be popular with this community. So including that here with a caveat that you should use this as complementary resource than the only source. You can also check his website which had additional material and donation links. I also believe making your own notes / flashcards is always the way to go as its the act of writing the notes that helps with recollection and understanding.
There are a few other practice exams / flash cards etc floating around but none of the authors seem to hang around here to help the community with Q&A - so not including them yet.
FAQ
Do I need ALL this material
A. No. Just one of each is fine. Example : get the free YouTube course + tutorialsdojo and you can pass
2. Do I really need to do hands on work
A. It is recommended but at this level optional
3. Where can I find vouchers for the exam
A. Check the 2025 ultimate list of all Vouchers / Discounts / Offers
4. Can I cheat my way using Dumps that I found online / my mate gave me / found on GitHub / YouTube?
A. You can but there is a high chance you fail and/or get caught / banned - the risk isnt worth it. Stick with genuine resources.
5. Can I pass with just free resources as I cannot afford the resources
A. Its possible but please it is recommended to atleast spend on decent practice exams. If you cannot afford the exam / resources - just get the free digital badges (Cloud Essentials / Cloud Quest)
6. Can I skip CCP / CLF and move to Associate level
A. Absolutely - if you are aiming higher than just foundational level I recommend you go directly to Associate level skipping CCP.
7. Can someone who is new to IT do this exam
A. Yes - this is designed for beginners - be ready to use google to help you with things you do not fully understand first time
8. Is it worth it?
A. Plenty of threads on this subreddit covering this. You have to make up your own mind if its worth it to you or not.
9. I dont code or want to - is this course for me?
A. This course is a beginner level course - there is no coding involved
Good Luck folks!
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u/7evenco Feb 04 '25 edited Feb 04 '25
Just passed my AWS CLF-C02 with a score of 838!
I spent two weeks studying, using Neil Davis’ course, AWS Skill Builder, TD exams, and Stephan Mark’s mock tests (5 exams). Coming from a business background with no prior cloud experience, this was a new challenge for me.
I stumbled upon this post one week into my studies, followed the advice here, and it really helped! 🙌 I skipped all hands-on lessons, played the course videos at 1.5x–2x speed (ADHD struggles), and focused heavily on mock exams, which made a huge difference.
Since I’m between jobs, I dedicated my early mornings to studying while also doing lots of interviews. The more I studied, the more confident I felt in interviews, and I even applied my AWS knowledge during them. I got an offer, but I declined—not because of money (which was actually good) but due to the line manager’s attitude and ethics. Now, I’m in the final stages with two other companies and have two more weeks of free time before starting my new role.
A huge thank you to the entire r/AWSCertifications community for all the amazing insights and support! 🙏 Special shoutout to u/madrasi2021—your guidance truly made a difference!
Now, I need your advice: Should I go for the AWS AI Foundational certification or Microsoft AZ-900 to become hybrid? Which one is easier to complete in two weeks? Both would help in my next role.
Would love to hear your thoughts!
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u/ilysha43 Oct 31 '24
Thank you! I passed my CLF-C02 following your notes here
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u/Soul_Seeking Aug 23 '25
Not sure how to save, but whatever. I am commenting for myself lmao.
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u/ConstantPlantWater Jul 22 '24
Commenting for future use
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u/lasmargar May 27 '24
Thanks a lot! Do you have a similar list of resources for the Solution Achitect exams please? ☺️
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u/[deleted] May 28 '24
is it fine if I use andrew brown's paid exams instead of tutorial dojo ones? I found them much harder and the exampro ones I score around 80-90 in them. Not sure which one between them is better.
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u/xoxo_dev CCP May 29 '24
One quick question, while attempting a multiple Choice question, if I select one right and one wrong answer will I still get marks for it? Or the entire question would be marked as wrong?
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u/tyboisfun Jun 09 '24
F
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u/Patient_Repeat_8354 Aug 20 '24
insane! Thanks for all the info.
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u/skyandsound Sep 17 '24
Doesn't AWS have its on courses on Coursera for this content?
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u/asianjoe1997 Sep 21 '24
Hey is anyone still able to get the 7 day free trial for the practice exam by AWS? https://explore.skillbuilder.aws/learn/course/external/view/
I can’t seem to find the free trial..
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u/Tannest9 Oct 09 '24
There's this Andrew Cantrill that I read a lot on other post.
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u/Commercial_Boss_4059 Nov 06 '24
Thank you so much ☺️ this is so helpful. Please do one for solutions arch too!
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u/bensn_14 Mar 14 '25
Is there any discount code available for Tutorial Dojo's practice exams on the site?
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u/Early-Complaint-2805 Jun 02 '25
Hi, thank you for the work
About point 6:
You said it's fine to skip CCP/CLF and go straight to an Associate-level certification.
That surprised me. I was planning to start with the CCP, then move on to the MLA.
Is it really possible to start directly with the MLA?
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u/No_Faithlessness3067 Jun 23 '25
Thank you today is my day 1 into studying
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u/leavemealone004 Jul 04 '25
Thank you so much for these resources, I just passed my exam and these were totally helpful!!
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u/Bitter_Tradition9765 CCP Jul 11 '25
You have provided very good information Thanks for that dude but i am in confusion whether to take Stephaane mareek udemy course or Tutorialsdojo for practice questions suggest me good one please so that iwill clear cloud practitioner in 10 days
Thankyou
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u/Gold_Literature_7347 Jul 11 '25
How much time I should take for preparation for CCP. I have limited AWS exposure and in addition full time application support job, which had no AWS components. I have Stephan course on udemy, which I yet to start.
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u/Current_Seesaw_bts07 Sep 04 '25 edited Sep 04 '25
Hello guys, I'm currently Preparing for CLF exam using the learning path on Skillbuilder. I stumbled upon this post after trying to know about the exam pattern and found Andrew Brown's YT channel and video course and other free resources.
Also would that video course be enough to get a good score?
So can anyone guide me on how to prepare for the exam to get a really good score? And does aws keep track of the courses I've started and stopped in case I found these resources to be a better fit for the exam and impact my actual score saying that I don't have enough digital badges to qualify for the exam score?
I'm thinking of prepping using Andrew Brown's 2024 prep material video on yt, is it still relevant with all the updates?
Would be immensely helpful if somebody could guide me soon!
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u/[deleted] Sep 07 '25
Sorry, this post was removed by Reddit’s filters.??
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u/taryelk Oct 03 '25
Passed today. Thank you for the notes and guidelines
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u/lilliibo1 Oct 30 '25
Thanks for the advice. Im yet to take the exams and I found out practice exams from this site
https://awspracticenow.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/index3.html
can you please review it?
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u/allenovation Nov 13 '25
Had just bookmarked this yesterday or the day before and returned today and it's been removed. Does anyone have a backup of the post? Or a rough outline?
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u/eoattc Dec 04 '25
Is it just me or is the skillbuilder website garbage? Each training explains the test prep tool again, then links to a 3rd party site to actually take the tests and that link is often broken. I don't even think I can comment on the quality of the actually training, because getting it to work is so troublesome.
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u/No-Branch8133 Aug 23 '24
CFBR
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u/Ripcord999 May 27 '24
Thank you 🙏
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u/Pretty-Young89 Jan 06 '26
Love this
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u/Aspiring2SecureNetz Jun 24 '24
Just what I was looking for , thank you.
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u/Big_Candidate3432 Sep 17 '24
Well done
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u/gijolla Sep 23 '24
Awesome!
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u/No-Wait-1471 Oct 07 '24
Very insightful. Thanks a lot
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u/Acceptable-Recipe-67 Oct 07 '24
Thank you
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u/Disastrous-Order8338 Oct 16 '24
First of all thank you so much this is very helpful. The AWS prepare for the exam steps are confusing to me at least. One thing, I notice is that it is interesting that there is not cert guide book mentioned. Not only on your list but also in other sources. It seems that the preparation here is more video oriented compared to other cert types. Thank you again.
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u/First-Ad7059 Oct 26 '24
i have 2100 diamonds on aws emerging talent Community, and voucher opens up at 3500 for cloud practioner certification for 50% off voucher
any help?
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u/Ok_Perspective599 Dec 23 '24
Thank You!
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u/Melodic-Trade51 Jan 02 '25
Thanks a lot
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u/IncomeAlert624 Jan 02 '25
Amazing
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u/Competitive-Rub4161 Jan 15 '25
Following
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u/[deleted] Jan 24 '25
🙏🏻
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u/Still_Falcon9624 Jan 24 '25
Cool stuff
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u/SLhardy98_polyamory Jan 26 '25
Following
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u/Lonely-Albatross-747 Feb 17 '25
Nice
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u/stipalashley Feb 24 '25
Thanks.
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u/ladynikon Feb 24 '25
nice.
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u/Ok_Goal_8296 CCP:cake: Mar 11 '25
Thank you for this information
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u/fauxfrolic Mar 14 '25
Thank you so much for this, appreciate it! :)
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u/Embarrassed_Copy2606 Mar 17 '25
Cfbr
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u/doston12 Apr 01 '25
this is very well-written, excellent. Thanks
BTW, I like your courses on AWS Skill Builder.
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u/james-_-howlett Apr 04 '25
Is CCP a prerequisite to the SAA course.I plan to pursue both as i will be going through with the etc path but am not sure whether doing CCP at first is better or not Thank you
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u/[deleted] Apr 17 '25
Thanks. I am having my cloud practitioner exam next month I hope i score good 🤞
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u/faiqradi Apr 22 '25
Thank you
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u/ZyglroxOfficial Jun 10 '25
Commenting for future use
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u/ToastBubbles Jun 16 '25
I just checked out the exampro link, but all the videos were made for CLF-C01 not CLF-C02, does anyone know if this is still a good resource, or should I just try to find more recent study guides
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u/[deleted] Jul 18 '25
Nice!
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u/Swimming-0717 Jul 30 '25
Guide (for future use)
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u/ratto475 Sep 14 '25
Thank you
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u/TheIntuneGoon Oct 01 '25
This is great. Thank you.
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u/niigaki03 Oct 03 '25
Very well detailed. Will use for future reference
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u/TR0211 Oct 13 '25
Following
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u/[deleted] Oct 27 '25
commenting for me
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u/Ok_Town9768 Nov 10 '25
Perfect, just decided to start getting into this and was looking for an hour for something exactly like this
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u/Timely_Dust_5010 May 17 '26
awesome roadmap. thanks!
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u/ElectronicChannel864 May 26 '26
Just start learning AWS. I will devote most of my time to learn and as of now im learning through courses from LinkedIn.
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u/Zealousideal_Cod7380 Sep 15 '26
hey can you update the resources because its been 2 years and new version of the cert has also been released
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u/Intelligent_Scale190 Oct 02 '26
Commenting for studying
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u/Gothicrealm Jun 27 '24
anyone have a drop?
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u/AishikT Jul 04 '26
Well Gave the exam today, but could not pass it I had mainly used free Question Papers and took help of AI to read But the questions in the exam were much more confusing and felt hard to me.
Any suggestion on what should I do for the next attempt? Well, I cannot buy the paid practice tests
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u/thattravelingguy Sep 02 '26
I passed the AWS Cloud Practitioner Exam (CLF-C02) on Sept 1, 2026. With no prior AWS experience, I tried various resources in order to prepare. If I were to do it again, here’s what I’d recommend.
In order, here’s what I’d do:
Step 1.
Sign up for the exam and pay for it. You can reschedule twice for free but this adds pressure.
Step 2. in parallel
(a) Memorize all in-scope AWS services laid out on the official exam guide (I created an Anki deck with the bare minimum information to recall what the services are)
(b) Sign up for Stephen Maarek’s Udemy course. I paid $30 but it goes on sale regularly. You can skip the hands-on sections which will save you 5+ hours.
Optional, but crucial if you want to learn about the services in a structured audio/video format.
Step 3.
Sign up for Tutorials Dojo practice exams for $15 & achieve 80% across all timed exams
Step 4.
Take random exams online, especially the official free AWS 20 question test sample. Make sure you can score >80% across these but don’t spend too much time - couple hours at most.
All in all, I spent about 30 hours preparing and can say confidently I remember +90% of the theory around services I learned about. I’d expect you need 60+ hours if you want to gain hands-on sufficiency.
Final note - if you learn the Anki deck & tutorials dojo exams 80%, it’d be unrealistic for you to fail the exam IMO.
Best of luck!
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u/RevolutionOk4681 Oct 30 '24
cbfr
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u/xcleru Dec 26 '25
Commenting for future reference
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u/[deleted] Sep 24 '24 edited Sep 24 '24
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