AWS Certified Developer - Associate: the honest guide
Everything Amazon Web Services (AWS) publishes about DVA-C02, in one place: what the exam asks, how the domains are weighted, and what it takes to be ready.
This guide page is built from the registry, not written yet.
Everything below comes from Developer Associate’s published exam data, and every figure links to the vendor page it came from. The researched version, with study plans and the parts nobody publishes, is still being written. This page is not submitted to search engines until it is.
Practise Developer Associate questions in the meantimeWhat the exam actually asks you to do
Multiple choice and multiple response only. No simulations, no labs, and nothing to configure.
- Multiple choice
- Multiple response
Nothing here needs a lab. Reading carefully and eliminating options is the whole skill. AWS, Developer Associate exam guide ↗
Domain breakdown and official weightings
From the official AWS exam guides. Development with AWS Services is the heaviest domain at 32 percent, followed by Security at 26 percent.
- Development with AWS Services32%
- Security26%
- Deployment24%
- Troubleshooting and Optimization18%
What comes after passing
AWS certifications last three years. Recertifying means passing the current version of the exam, or a higher one in the same track, at full price. The 50 percent benefit voucher from your last pass applies.
Where people go next
Costs across the full renewal cycle are on the Developer Associate cost page.
Frequently asked questions
How does DVA-C02 differ from Solutions Architect Associate?
DVA-C02 tests building on AWS rather than designing it: SDK calls, Lambda configuration, DynamoDB access patterns and pipeline behaviour. SAA asks which architecture fits; DVA asks why your code or deployment misbehaves and how to fix it.
How much coding does the exam involve?
You read code rather than write it. Questions show SDK snippets, IAM policies and buildspec files and ask what happens or what fixes the error. Comfort reading Python or JavaScript examples is enough.
What services dominate the exam?
Lambda, DynamoDB, API Gateway, S3, SQS, CloudFormation and the CI/CD family (CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, CodePipeline), with IAM woven through everything. The development domain alone is 32% of scored content.
Keep reading
Developer Associate practice questions
Free sample questions with the full explanation on every answer.
Developer Associate passing score
The exact cut score, what kind of number it is, and the retake terms.
How hard is Developer Associate?
An honest difficulty read from the format, the clock and the weights.
Practise Developer Associate for free while you decide
Original questions written from the published objectives, with the concept, the reasoning, and a note on every wrong option. No account needed to start.
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