AWS Certification Path: Certification Levels, Exam Costs, and Career Opportunities

AWS certifications are some of the most sought-after credentials in cloud computing, helping professionals validate their expertise and knowledge. This guide provides detailed information about each certification, including domains, costs, and how it can help you advance your career.

If you’re considering a career in cloud computing, understanding the AWS certification pathway is critical. Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers one of the most recognized and respected certification programs in the tech industry.

By following a structured AWS cloud certification path, you get to validate your knowledge of cloud concepts, thereby increasing your earning potential, and advancing your career in roles like cloud architect, DevOps engineer, and data engineer.

Overview of the AWS Certification Path

The AWS certification learning pathway is divided into four levels:

1. Foundational – Designed for beginners to cloud computing.
2. Associate – Focuses on specific roles like developers, architects, and administrators.
3. Professional – Validates advanced skills for experienced cloud professionals.
4. Specialty – For experts in niche areas like AI, networking, and security.

To help you navigate the AWS certification path, here’s a comprehensive table listing all currently available AWS certifications.

Let’s explore each certification in detail, including domains, costs, and how it can help you advance your career.

1. Foundational Level Certifications

AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02)

This is the starting point in the AWS certification path for those new to cloud computing.

Domains and Weightage:

• Cloud Concepts (26%)
• Security and Compliance (25%)
• Technology (33%)
• Billing and Pricing (16%)

Exam Cost: $100

Who Is It For?

Beginners to Cloud Computing: Individuals who are new to the cloud and want to gain a foundational understanding of AWS and cloud concepts.

Non-Technical Professionals: Professionals in roles like sales, finance, or project management who interact with cloud-based projects and need a basic understanding of AWS services.

Key Learning Areas: Understand core AWS services, cloud economics, security basics, and billing models.

Career Opportunities: Cloud Sales Specialist, Junior Cloud Analyst, or Cloud Consultant.

AWS Certified AI Practitioner – Foundational (AIF-C01)

This certification is for beginners exploring artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) within AWS.

Domains and Weightage:

• AI/ML Fundamentals (30%)
• AWS AI Services (35%)
• AI/ML Use Cases (35%)

Exam Cost: $100

Who Is It For? Non-technical professionals and beginners interested in AI/ML concepts.

Key Learning Areas: AI/ML basics, SageMaker services, and practical AI applications.

Career Opportunities: AI Support Specialist, AI Solutions Consultant.

2. Associate Level Certifications

AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03)

This is one of the most popular AWS certifications, validating the ability to design scalable and secure cloud solutions.

Domains and Weightage:

• Design Resilient Architectures (30%)
• Design High-Performing Architectures (28%)
• Design Secure Applications (24%)
• Design Cost-Optimized Architectures (18%)

Exam Cost: $150

Who Is It For? IT Professionals transitioning into Architecture Roles: IT professionals looking to design and deploy scalable, secure, and cost-effective applications on AWS.

Developers and SysAdmins: Professionals who have experience with AWS and want to expand their skills into architectural design and best practices.

Key Learning Areas: Designing secure, resilient, performance-optimized, and cost-efficient architectures.

Career Opportunities: Cloud Architect, Solutions Architect, Infrastructure Architect.

AWS Certified Developer – Associate (DVA-C02)

This certification focuses on developing and maintaining AWS-based applications.

Domains and Weightage:

• Deployment (22%)
• Security (26%)
• Development with AWS Services (30%)
• Troubleshooting and Optimization (22%)

Exam Cost: $150

Who Is It For? Software Developers: Professionals who design, develop, and maintain applications on AWS and want to validate their skills in using AWS services.

Programmers Exploring Cloud Computing: Developers experienced in programming languages such as Python, Java, or JavaScript, who want to expand their expertise into AWS cloud development.

Key Learning Areas: Building, deploying, and optimizing cloud applications.

Career Opportunities: AWS Developer, Cloud Application Developer, Software Engineer.

AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate (SOA-C02)

This certification validates expertise in managing, deploying, and operating AWS systems.

Domains and Weightage:

• Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation (20%)
• Reliability and Business Continuity (16%)
• Deployment, Provisioning, and Automation (18%)
• Security and Compliance (16%)
• Networking and Content Delivery (18%)
• Cost and Performance Optimization (12%)

Exam Cost: $150

Who Is It For? System Administrators Managing AWS Workloads: IT professionals responsible for deploying, managing, and operating systems on the AWS platform.

DevOps Engineers Focused on Operations: Those working in DevOps roles who want to deepen their expertise in AWS operational best practices, automation, and monitoring.

Key Learning Areas: Monitoring systems, automation, and performance optimization.

Career Opportunities: SysOps Administrator, Cloud Operations Engineer, DevOps Engineer.

AWS Certified Data Engineer – Associate (DEA-C01)

This certification is tailored for professionals working with data pipelines and analytics in AWS.

Domains and Weightage:

• Data Ingestion and Transformation (34%)
• Data Store Management (26%)
• Data Operations and Support (22%)
• Data Security and Governance (18%)

Exam Cost: $150

Who Is It For? Data Engineers Working with AWS Services: Professionals who design, implement, and manage data pipelines, workflows, and storage solutions on AWS.

Big Data and Analytics Specialists: Individuals focusing on data ingestion, transformation, and analysis using AWS services like Amazon S3, Redshift, DynamoDB, and Glue.

Key Learning Areas: Data ingestion, transformation, and storage in AWS.

Career Opportunities: Data Engineer, Big Data Specialist, Analytics Engineer.

AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer – Associate (MLA-C01)

This certification focuses on designing and deploying machine learning (ML) models using AWS services.

Domains and Weightage:

• Data Engineering (20%)
• Exploratory Data Analysis (24%)
• Modeling (36%)
• Machine Learning Implementation and Operations (20%)

Exam Cost: $150

Who Is It For? Machine Learning Engineers Using AWS Services: Professionals who design, train, and deploy machine learning models using AWS services like Amazon SageMaker.

Data Scientists Transitioning to Applied Machine Learning: Individuals who analyze data and now want to develop and optimize ML models on AWS platforms.

Key Learning Areas: Building and deploying scalable ML pipelines and AI models.

Career Opportunities: Machine Learning Engineer, AI Specialist, Data Scientist.

3. Professional Level Certifications

AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional (SAP-C02)

This advanced certification is ideal for experienced cloud architects managing complex systems.

Domains and Weightage:

• Design for Organizational Complexity (30%)
• Design for New Solutions (28%)
• Migration Planning (20%)
• Cost Control (12%)
• Continuous Improvement for Existing Solutions (10%)

Exam Cost: $300

Who Is It For? Experienced Cloud Architects: Cloud professionals who design and implement large-scale, complex AWS solutions for enterprise-level applications.

Cloud Professionals Managing Advanced Workloads: Individuals responsible for architecting highly available, scalable, and secure systems on AWS.

Key Learning Areas: Migration strategies, cost management, and advanced architectural design.

Career Opportunities: Enterprise Solutions Architect, Senior Cloud Architect.

AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional (DOP-C02)

This certification focuses on CI/CD, automation, and managing complex deployments.

Domains and Weightage:

• SDLC Automation (22%)
• Configuration Management and Infrastructure as Code (19%)
• Monitoring and Logging (15%)
• Policies and Standards Automation (10%)
• Incident and Event Response (18%)
• High-Availability, Fault Tolerance, and Disaster Recovery (16%)

Exam Cost: $300

Who Is It For? Experienced DevOps Professionals: Individuals who design, implement, and manage CI/CD pipelines, automate infrastructure, and ensure smooth deployment processes on AWS.

Cloud Engineers with Operational Expertise: Professionals responsible for managing production environments, automating deployments, and monitoring cloud workloads.

Key Learning Areas: CI/CD pipelines, disaster recovery, and incident response.

Career Opportunities: DevOps Engineer, Cloud Automation Engineer, Site Reliability Engineer.

4. Specialty Level Certifications

AWS Certified Security – Specialty (SCS-C02)

This certification focuses on securing AWS workloads and is an integral part of the AWS certificate path for security professionals.

Domains and Weightage:

• Incident Response (12%)
• Logging and Monitoring (20%)
• Infrastructure Security (26%)
• Identity and Access Management (20%)
• Data Protection (22%)

Exam Cost: $300

Who Is It For? Security Engineers and Analysts: Professionals responsible for securing AWS workloads, managing identity and access, and implementing best practices for data protection.

Cloud Professionals Specializing in Compliance and Governance: Individuals ensuring regulatory compliance and managing secure architectures within cloud environments.

Key Learning Areas: Incident response, data protection, and monitoring.

Career Opportunities: Cloud Security Engineer, Compliance Specialist, Security Consultant.

AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty (ANS-C01)

This certification validates advanced networking expertise.

Domains and Weightage:

• Design and Implement Hybrid IT Network Architectures (23%)
• Design and Implement Core Networking (29%)
• Automation of Networking Tasks (18%)
• Network Security (20%)
• Troubleshooting (10%)

Exam Cost: $300

Who Is It For? Networking Professionals: Engineers and architects designing, deploying, and managing complex networking solutions in hybrid and AWS environments.

Cloud Architects Specializing in Networking: Professionals responsible for implementing scalable, secure, and high-performance network architectures on AWS.

Career Opportunities: Network Architect, Cloud Network Engineer.

AWS Certified Machine Learning – Specialty (MLS-C01)

This certification validates ML and AI expertise.

Domains and Weightage:

• Data Engineering (20%)
• Exploratory Data Analysis (24%)
• Modeling (36%)
• Machine Learning Implementation and Operations (20%)

Exam Cost: $300

Who Is It For? Machine Learning Engineers: Professionals who design, build, and deploy machine learning models at scale using AWS services like SageMaker.

Data Scientists: Individuals focused on analyzing data, building predictive models, and optimizing machine learning workflows on AWS.

Career Opportunities: Data Scientist, AI Specialist, ML Engineer.

Next Step: Build Job-Ready Skills with the Cloud Mastery Bootcamp

Earning an AWS certification is a great achievement, but certifications alone won’t land you your dream cloud job. What sets you apart is having real-world skills that employers value. That’s where the Cloud Mastery Bootcamp comes in.

This hands-on program goes beyond certification prep by combining:

• AWS Certification Training – Gain the knowledge you need to pass your exams.
• Project-Based Learning – Build hands-on experience by solving real-world challenges.
• Career Coaching – Get expert guidance on resumes, interviews, and job placement.
• Direct Access to Expert Instructors – Receive comprehensive support every step of the way.
• Hands-On Labs – Master practical cloud skills through project-based learning.

Whether you’re aiming to land your first cloud job or advance your cloud career, the Cloud Mastery Bootcamp provides the practical experience you need to stand out in a competitive market.

Take the next step and join the Cloud Mastery Bootcamp to build your cloud future today!