AWS Solutions Architect
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Exam format
65 questions; multiple choice or multiple response
Cost
$150 USD
Duration
130 minutes
Delivery
Pearson VUE test center or online proctored
Passing score
720 out of 1000 (scaled)
Validity
3 years
Prerequisites
No prerequisites; AWS recommends about 1 year of hands-on experience designing on AWS
About AWS Solutions Architect
AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03) validates your ability to design cost-effective, resilient, secure, and high-performing systems on AWS. It's one of the most in-demand cloud certifications and a common first role-based AWS cert after the Cloud Practitioner.
The exam focuses on architecture design decisions across the breadth of AWS services rather than deep coding, making it approachable for people with solid IT fundamentals.
Who it’s for: Engineers, architects, and IT professionals who design or want to design solutions on AWS.
What the AWS Solutions Architect exam covers
- Design Secure Architectures30%
- Design Resilient Architectures26%
- Design High-Performing Architectures24%
- Design Cost-Optimized Architectures20%
How to study for the AWS Solutions Architect
- 1Get comfortable with core services: EC2, S3, VPC, IAM, RDS, and DynamoDB.
- 2Read the official SAA-C03 exam guide and map each domain to services.
- 3Build hands-on: launch a VPC, host a resilient web app, and practice IAM policies.
- 4Study the AWS Well-Architected Framework — the exam is built around its pillars.
- 5Take the official practice exam and review every wrong answer's reasoning.
AWS Solutions Architect — frequently asked questions
Should I take Cloud Practitioner first?
It's optional. If you're new to AWS or to IT, Cloud Practitioner builds useful foundations, but experienced engineers often go straight to Solutions Architect – Associate.
How much coding is on the exam?
Very little. It focuses on architecture and service selection, not writing code.
Official exam page· Details verified 2026-08
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