AWS Certified Solution Architect vs AWS Certified Developer: Which is Right for You?

The AWS Certified Developer and the AWS Certified Solutions Architect exams are popular first exam choices for IT pros who want to transition into cloud-related careers.

If you are new to the cloud or the AWS ecosystem, picking the best starting point can be confusing. And despite their names, you need more than these certificates to get a job as a solution architect or a developer. The good news is the skills you develop as you prepare for the exams can open a variety of career paths. What’s more, we provide all the AWS training needed to help you succeed.

While topics overlap between the AWS Certified Developer and the AWS Certified Solutions Architect exams, there are meaningful differences between these two exams — and how they help further your career in the cloud. This article will help you pick the right first exam for your career goals.

What Does the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Exam Cover? 

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate exam assesses your ability to design and deploy scalable, fault-tolerant systems on AWS. The exam focuses on the following key areas:

• Design Resilient Architectures (30%): Use services like Elastic Load Balancing, EC2, and RDS for scalable, fault-tolerant systems; ensure high availability with redundancy across zones; decouple components with SQS and SNS; and select resilient storage like S3, EBS, or Glacier.

• Design High-Performing Architectures (28%): Choose scalable compute options like EC2, Lambda, or Elastic Beanstalk; pick high-performance storage (EBS, EFS, S3); optimize database choices (RDS, DynamoDB, Aurora, Redshift); and design efficient networking with VPC, VPN, Direct Connect, and Route 53.

• Design Secure Applications and Architectures (24%): Implement IAM best practices (roles, policies, MFA), secure applications with security groups, network ACLs, and AWS WAF, and encrypt data with KMS, SSE-S3, or CloudHSM.

• Design Cost-Optimized Architectures (18%): Optimize storage costs using S3, Glacier, and EBS; reduce compute and database expenses with appropriate instance types and reserved instances; and manage network costs with VPC endpoints, CloudFront, and Direct Connect.

The exam is multiple-choice and lasts 130 minutes. It costs $150.00 USD to take the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Exam. While there are no prerequisites, the exam is designed to test your hands-on knowledge of AWS, so one year of experience is recommended. 

What Does the AWS Certified Developer Exam Cover? 

The AWS Certified Developer - Associate exam evaluates your ability to develop and maintain applications on the AWS platform. The exam focuses on the following key areas:

• Deployment (22%): Understand how to deploy applications using Elastic Beanstalk, manage deployment pipelines with AWS CodePipeline, and implement CI/CD using CodeBuild and CodeDeploy.

• Security (26%): Implement secure coding practices, manage IAM roles and policies, integrate encryption with KMS, and ensure API security with AWS API Gateway.

• Development with AWS Services (30%): Use AWS SDKs to interact with core services like S3, DynamoDB, SQS, and SNS; write code to handle exceptions and optimize performance; and implement AWS Lambda for serverless applications.

• Refactoring (10%): Modernize existing applications to leverage AWS services, optimize for cloud-native designs, and refactor for performance improvements.

• Monitoring and Troubleshooting (12%): Monitor application performance using CloudWatch, troubleshoot issues with AWS X-Ray, and implement logging with CloudTrail.

The exam consists of 65 multiple-choice questions and lasts 130 minutes. It costs $150.00 USD to take hte AWS Certified Developer Exam. While there are no formal prerequisites, Amazon recommends you have at least one year of experience developing applications on AWS.

What is the Difference Between the AWS Certified Developer - Associate and AWS Certified Solutions Architect Exams? 

The main difference between the AWS Certified Developer - Associate and AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate certifications lies in their focus areas and the skills they emphasize. 

Overall, the Developer cert is more about application development and integration, while the Solutions Architect certification centers on designing and building AWS solutions.

• AWS Certified Developer - Associate: This certification is geared towards professionals who develop and maintain applications on AWS. It emphasizes skills like writing and deploying code, integrating AWS services through SDKs, implementing secure coding practices, and managing continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines. The exam tests your ability to interact with AWS services programmatically, optimize application performance, and troubleshoot issues in a development context.

• AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate: This certification is designed for those who design solutions on AWS. It focuses on creating scalable, resilient, secure, and cost-effective architectures. The exam covers topics like choosing the right AWS services for specific requirements, designing highly available systems, ensuring data security, and optimizing costs across AWS services. The focus is more on the design and strategic deployment of AWS resources rather than hands-on coding.

How to Choose Between the AWS Certified Developer - Associate and AWS Certified Solutions Architect 

There are several factors to consider when deciding which AWS certification to pursue first. The most important ones are your current skill set and desired career.

Both the solutions architect and developer exams test your knowledge of core AWS services and best practices. Also, both exams help you build a foundation for a range of AWS careers spanning from hands-on development work to advisory roles. However, these exams are different in many regards. 

If you have experience with traditional IT functions such as networking, security, server management, Linux or Windows administration, your background will help you understand how these services work. In this case, the solutions architect exam would be a better place to start, as your experience will help you understand how cloud environments operate, which is one of the key topics in the exam.

On the other hand, if you have experience with scripting, programming, or performing QA activities, the developer associate exam is the better choice for you. While preparing for this exam, you will learn about the developer tools that AWS offers — and build confidence in building using AWS.

In general, if you have experience writing code, you should prepare for the developer exam, as it will help you gain familiarity with the tools needed to develop and deploy solutions in AWS. If you are interested in pursuing a career as a cloud engineer or cloud architect, the AWS solutions architect exam will help you build the foundation needed for those careers.

Factor in Your Career Goals

Regardless of your background, you might have specific career goals that motivate you to learn AWS, which can help you select the right AWS exam for you.

If you are more interested in writing code, several jobs require varying ranges of programming or coding skills. These include writing serverless functions and programmatically managing AWS resources. If this interests you, prepare for the developer exam. As you prepare for the developer exam, you can consider careers related to cloud automation, DevOps, and development.

If you are more interested in the big picture and working with a range of AWS offerings, you should study for the solutions architect exam. As you prepare for the solutions architect exam, you will develop an understanding of key topics such as how users and AWS services get authorized to use AWS services and building optimal AWS architectures. The knowledge you gain while preparing for the solutions architect exam can lead to roles in AWS operations, governance, and administration.

Are the AWS Solution Architect/Developer Associate Exams Difficult?

Another consideration before deciding between the solutions architect and developer exams could be their difficulty. The AWS Developer exam is predominantly fact-based, whereas the AWS Solutions Architect exam focuses on scenario-based questions.

Several questions on the solutions architect exam force you to think through the prompt and select the most accurate answer, and this requires an understanding of the breadth of AWS services and how they interact with each other. 

Taking the developer exam is a part of the preparation for the solution architect exam, as it familiarizes you with time management and the exam format for AWS certification exams.

Final Thoughts

A career in cloud computing can be very rewarding, and there are several ways to gain skills to reach your goals. AWS certifications can be a great way to learn and demonstrate your skills in the cloud.

Carefully evaluate your current skill set and career goals to pick the exam that will help you benefit the most. If you do not have a career goal in mind, consider whether you want to be a generalist or a specialist as you progress.

Are you preparing for an AWS exam? Check out CBT Nuggets AWS training courses.