AWS Certification Guide: Cost, Courses, Salary, Exam Details

David TaylorByDavid Taylor Hours Updated

What is AWS certification?

AWS Certification helps professionals to build credibility and confidence by validating their cloud expertise with an industry-recognized credential. It helps skilled professionals to obtain the various type of AWS certificate according to his/her skill.

Amazon offers a certification for different IT professionals like Cloud Practitioner, Architect, Developer, and Operations roles. Moreover, it also provides certain Specialty certifications to validate advanced skills in specific technical areas.

In this tutorial, you will learn:

Benefits Of AWS Certificate

Here are pros/benefits of AWS certificate.

  • AWS Certification helps any professional to demonstrates their technical expertise and advance their career
  • It helps employers find skilled cloud professionals.
  • AWS certification allows you to verify your technical understanding and skills.
  • Helps to gain access to the AWS Certified LinkedIn Community.
  • Allows you to gather latest knowledge about your domain
  • Owning AWS certification open door for new opportunities
  • Allows you to boost your self-esteem
  • You can validate your skills and knowledge in the preeminent cloud computing platform.
  • Helps you to demonstrate credibility and dedication to your cloud computing career path.
  • It provides access to a network of like-minded peers and AWS thought-leaders.
  • Allows you to leverage the AWS shared security responsibility model.

Types Of AWS Certifications Courses

Here, are some most important AWS certification which helps you boost your career.

  • AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
  • AWS Certified Developer – Associate
  • AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate
  • AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
  • AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional
  • AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional
  • AWS Certified Big Data – Specialty
  • AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty
  • AWS Certified Security – Specialty

Let’s see each of AWS certification along with with exam its exam details:

AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner

This certification course helps you to gain knowledge about various types of cloud technology roles with a method to validate their AWS Cloud knowledge to enhance your credibility as an IT professional.

Exam details:

  • Prerequisites: Minimum of six months of general AWS cloud experience in any role is recommended.
  • Exam Format: Multiple choice questions
  • Exam Duration: 90 minutes
  • Exam Language: Available in English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese
  • Cost: 100 USD

After the End, of this course, you will learn,

  • Understanding of most fundamental AWS architectural principles
  • The value proposition of the AWS cloud
  • Important AWS cloud services and their applications
  • Underlying security and compliance and shared responsibility model for security
  • Core cloud deployment and operating principles

AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate

It is an associate certification course which helps you to validate your ability to effectively demonstrate knowledge of how to build and deploy a secure and robust application using AWS technologies.

  • Prerequisites: Knowledge and some experience in designing distributed applications
  • Format: Multiple choice questions and multiple answers
  • Exam Duration: 130 minutes
  • Cost: 150 $

After the End, of course, you will learn,

  • About the network technologies and how they work in AWS and how client interfaces connect to the AWS platform.
  • AWS-related data security practices, disaster recovery methods, and troubleshooting.
  • You will also know the concept of to build secure and reliable applications on the AWS platform.
  • Deploying hybrid systems on-premises data center and AWS components
  • This exam AWS course includes the design of highly available and scalable systems and its implementation and deployment in AWS server.

AWS Developer -Associate

The AWS certified Developer is an associate exam. The course for this exam teaches you how you can developer and maintaining AWS-based applications. You will able to learn how to write actual code which used AWS software to in your business.

  • Prerequisite: One or more years of hands-on experience using AWS.
  • Format: Multiple choice and multiple answers
  • Exam Duration: 130 minutes
  • Exam Cost: $150

At the End of this course, you will learn,

  • You will understand the underlying AWS architecture and the core AWS service
  • Hands-on experience in designing, developing, deploying, and maintaining AWS applications.
  • AWS services like AWS databases, notifications, workflow services, and services for storage and change management services.

AWS sysops Administrator- Associate

The AWS Certified SysOps Administrator Associate is only a certification exam which is entirely geared toward system administrators. Passing this exam is quite tricky as you need both technical expertise as well as conceptual understanding about the operational aspect of the AWS platform.

Exam Details:

  • Prerequisite: Previous experience as a Linux or Windows administrator will be a plus.
  • Format: Multiple choice and multiple answers
  • Duration: 130 minutes
  • Exam Cost: $150
  • Exam Language: Available in English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese

After the End of this course, you will learn,

  • How to deploy applications for the AWS platform
  • Learn how you can send and receive data between data centers and AWS
  • Selecting the appropriate AWS services to meet the requirement of your business
  • Provisioning, managing, maintaining, and securing systems in an AWS environment

AWS solution Architect- Professional

A professional AWS architect is an AWS certification course for someone who needs to evaluate an organization’s demands and make architectural recommendations for implementing and deploying applications on AWS.

Exam Details:

  • Prerequisites: You should be Certified Solutions Architect – Associate to attain this exam.
  • At least two years of hands-on experience designing and deploying cloud architecture on AWS and best practice knowledge of multi-application architectural design is strongly recommended.
  • Format: Multiple-choice, multiple-answer
  • Time: 170 minutes
  • Cost: 300 USD

After the End of this course, you will learn,

  • Learn about best practices for architecting and the designing of applications on AWS
  • Techniques for migrating complex application systems to AWS
  • Picking the right AWS service for the requirements of an application
  • Knowledge of cost optimization strategies

AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional

The DevOps Engineer certification course is all about operating, managing, and build on the AWS platform. The course mainly two fundamental concepts of Develops continuous delivery and automation of processes.

Exam Details:

  • Prerequisites: It is an associate-level certification and a minimum of five years of relevant experience
  • Format: Multiple-choice, multiple-answer
  • Exam time: 170 Minutes
  • Cost: 300 USD

At the End of this AWS certification, you will learn,

  • The concept of continuous developer and modern CD methodologies
  • Techniques for implementing CD systems
  • Set up, monitoring, and logging and maintaining systems on AWS server

AWS Certified Big Data – Specialty

The AWS certified Big Data- specialty certification is suited for those who have a background in data analytics and experience using various types of AWS service for designing the most reliable big data solutions.

  • Prerequisite: At least two years of hands-on experience using Amazon web services.
  • Exam Duration: 170 minutes
  • Format: Multiple choice questions and multiple-answer
  • Exam Fees: 300 USD

At the End of this AWS certification, you will learn,

  • AWS Architecting best practices for implementing big data services solutions offered by AWS
  • AWS tools for automating data analysis
  • You will learn how to access control to secure the data.
  • The course covers how to design and to maintain big data applications.
  • AWS services covered include: Kinesis, Athena, Quick sight, and Recognition

AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty

This AWS certification course is designed to validate a candidate’s skills and experience in connection with performing complex networking tasks on AWS.

Exam Details:

  • Prerequisite: Candidates should have a background in architecting and implementing network solutions.
  • Format: Multiple-choice and multiple-answer
  • Duration: 170 minutes
  • Exam Language: Available in English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese
  • Exam Cost: 300 USD

At the End of this AWS certification, you will learn,

  • Designing, developing, and deploying AWS cloud solutions
  • Implementing core services as per the architectural best practices
  • Automation of AWS tasks for network deployments
  • Security and compliance design and implementation
  • Learn about network optimization and troubleshooting

AWS Certified Security – Specialty

The AWS security -the course covers topics that security pros and teams need to master security fundamentals. It follows best practices and builds in-depth knowledge of key services unique to the AWS platform.

It covers topics like protection and encryption, infrastructure security, access management, monitoring, and logging, etc.

Exam Details:

  • Prerequisite: At least two years hand-of-experience sourcing AWS workloads. Security control for the workload on AWS. At least five years of experience of designing and implementing security solutions
  • Exam Format: Multiple choices, Multiple-answer
  • Exam time; 170 minutes
  • Exam Cost: 300 USD
  • Exam Language: Available in English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese

At the End of this AWS certification, you will learn,

  • Concept of specialized data classifications and AWS data protection mechanisms.
  • Helps you to understand data encryption methods and AWS mechanisms to implement them.
  • How to manage secure Internet protocols and AWS mechanisms for implementation.
  • You will able to take a right with regard to cost, security, and deployment complexity given a set of application requirements.
  • Implement logging and monitoring to detect and analyze security vulnerabilities within your infrastructure

Learning Objective Of AWS Certification

Here, are the most important objective of learning AWS course:

  • Allows you to Identify the security and compliance benefits of by using the AWS Cloud.
  • Allows you to understand the access control and management features of AWS.
  • You can learn about data encryption methods to secure all types of sensitive data.
  • Get knowledge about the important steps for managing various AWS resources.
  • You can use AWS services to protect network security.
  • You will get the knowledge about how to audit an AWS environment.
  • Explain the AWS compliance and assurance programs.
  • Formulate solution plans and learn about AWS architectural best practices

How To Start For AWS Certificaiton?

While there are not standard define steps to start AWS certification, below-given steps are the most straight-forward.

Step 1)

  • First of all, you need to Enroll yourself in an AWS training class.
  • Select the desired module that you wants to take.

Step 2) Review all the available study materials and Exam Guides related to selected AWS module.

Step 3) Read multiple AWS whitepapers. It offers plenty of crucial information regarding topics. These hold some useful information, which may answer your questions.

Step 4) Next, you need to take regular practice. A practice test will help you to become free of stress about the AWS certification exams.

Step 5) Schedule the final AWS certification exam once you are ready. It generally takes around 80-120 hours of practice/studying to be prepared for the exam. However, it depends on your experience and the certification course that you have selected.

Exam Preparation

These training courses and materials will help with exam preparation:

  • Architecting on AWS instructor-led, live or virtual 3-day course
  • AWS Whitepapers faws.amazon.com/whltepapers, Kindle.pdf, and Other Materials
  • Identify AWS services which help you to automate, monitor, and manage security operations on AWS.
  • AWS Well-Architected web page (various whitepapers linked)

Exam Content

There are mainly two types of questions on the examination:

  • Multiple-choice: It has one correct and three incorrect responses
  • Multiple-response: Has two correct responses out of five options.

Current Salary for AWS Certified Professionals

Here, is the latest salary by AWS certificate in USA

  • AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate: $121,292
  • AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional: $142,160
  • AWS Certified Developer – Associate: $114,148
  • AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional: $118,395
  • AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate: $142,160