AWS certifications guide: which certification should you choose
Independent English guide to compare the main AWS certifications: Cloud Practitioner, AI Practitioner, Associate, Professional, and Specialty.
This page summarizes the 11 AWS certification guides from LoSimplifica. Use it as a starting point to choose a certification based on your level, role, and target skill area: cloud fundamentals, architecture, development, operations, data, machine learning, generative AI, or security.
⚠️ Always confirm details directly with AWS.
Exam formats, fees, available languages, and certification policies can change. These guides are independent references. They are not official AWS training and are not endorsed by AWS.
In this guide
- AWS certification overview
- Detailed English guides
- Which certification to choose
- Exam language and availability
- Prep resources
1. AWS certification overview
AWS offers certification levels for different roles and experience levels. Foundational certifications are useful for starting out. Associate certifications focus on specific technical roles. Professional and Specialty certifications usually require deeper architecture, operations, or domain expertise.
| Level | Typical use |
|---|---|
| Foundational | CLF-C02, AIF-C01 — cloud or AI foundations |
| Associate | SAA-C03, DVA-C02, SOA-C03, DEA-C01, MLA-C01 — role-specific technical skills |
| Professional | SAP-C02, DOP-C02, AIP-C01 — complex scenarios and advanced experience |
| Specialty | SCS-C03 — specialized cloud security |
2. Detailed English guides
These are the detailed guides included in this series.
3. Which certification to choose
| Goal | Suggested starting point |
|---|---|
| Start with AWS and cloud | CLF-C02 |
| Understand AI and generative AI | AIF-C01 |
| Cloud architecture | SAA-C03 → SAP-C02 |
| Application development | DVA-C02 → DOP-C02 |
| Cloud operations or SRE | SOA-C03 → DOP-C02 |
| Data engineering | DEA-C01 |
| Machine learning | MLA-C01 |
| Generative AI applications | AIP-C01 |
| Cloud security | SAA-C03 or equivalent experience → SCS-C03 |
4. Exam language and availability
AWS exams may be available in multiple languages depending on the exam, region, and scheduling session. Before paying, confirm the language available for the exact exam in AWS Certification or Pearson VUE.
AWS service names and many technical terms usually remain in English. Keeping the official names unchanged helps when reading documentation, using the console, and searching for jobs.
5. Prep resources
For study notes, practice questions, and preparation resources, use the central page: