HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate practice questions
Original questions written from the published exam objectives, never recalled exam content, with an explanation that teaches the concept behind every answer. Why that matters.
- Exam code
- TA-003
- Cost
- $70 USD
- Questions
- 57
- Duration
- 60 minutes
- Passing score
- Not published by HashiCorp
- Format
- Multiple choice, multiple response, true/false, and fill in the blank
The TA-003 exam costs $70. Fail it and the retake is another $70. Practicing until you are ready is the cheapest part of this. Full cost breakdown.
Exam domains and official weightings
From the official HashiCorp study guides. Put your study time where the weight is.
HashiCorp publishes numbered exam objectives without weightings. The percentages here are ours, grouped from the published objectives to show where the questions cluster. They are a study aid, not an official weighting.
- Infrastructure as code concepts and Terraform's purpose15%
- Terraform basics and providers20%
- The core Terraform workflow15%
- Modules and the registry15%
- Implementing and maintaining state20%
- Reading and writing configuration, and HCP Terraform15%
- Infrastructure as code concepts and Terraform's purpose15%
- Terraform basics and providers20%
- The core Terraform workflow15%
- Modules and the registry15%
- Implementing and maintaining state20%
- Reading and writing configuration, and HCP Terraform15%
Where to focus: State is where this exam separates people who have used Terraform from people who have read about it. Import, move, refresh, and remote backends are worth more attention than the syntax.
Try 5 free sample questions
No account needed. Every question includes our three-tier explanation: the concept, why the answer follows, and why each wrong option is wrong.
Sample question 1 of 5
Two engineers run terraform apply against the same configuration at the same time using a local state file. What is the risk, and what removes it?
Sample question 2 of 5
What does terraform plan actually do?
Sample question 3 of 5
A storage bucket was created by hand in the console. You want Terraform to manage it from now on without destroying and recreating it. What do you do?
Sample question 4 of 5
Why should a module sourced from a registry be pinned to a version constraint rather than left unpinned?
Sample question 5 of 5
A variable holds a database password. You mark it sensitive = true. What does that guarantee, and what does it not?
Full Terraform Associate question bank coming
We’re writing the complete bank from the official objectives right now. Leave your email and we’ll tell you when it ships, nothing else, ever.
What 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. HashiCorp, Terraform Associate exam details ↗
An honest study plan
1. Read the official objectives first
Download the official objectives from HashiCorp and skim every line. The exam can only test what’s listed there, it’s the contract.
2. Weight your study toward Terraform basics and providers and Implementing and maintaining state
Together the top two domains are 40% of the exam. Practice them until your accuracy is consistently above 80%.
3. Drill weak domains, then take a mock exam
Use Domain Drill on your weakest areas, then a full timed mock at real length (57 questions, 60 minutes). Book the real exam when you’re consistently passing mocks, not before.
Official free resources
Study from the source. These are HashiCorp’s own materials:
Official Terraform Associate exam page & objectives ↗Where Terraform Associate fits
Frequently asked questions
How hard is the Terraform Associate exam?
It is one of the more approachable certifications on this site if you have actually used Terraform. If you have only read about it, the state questions will catch you: they ask what happens to state in situations you only meet by breaking something.
How long does it take to prepare?
Two to three weeks for someone using Terraform at work, four to six from a standing start. The exam is 57 questions in an hour, so recall speed matters more than depth.
Is the Terraform Associate worth $70?
It is the cheapest credential here by a wide margin and it maps to a tool that appears in a great many infrastructure job descriptions. As a signal per dollar it is hard to beat.
How long is it valid?
Two years. Renewal means sitting the current version of the exam again, at the same low price.
Ready to practice for TA-003?
Play the free samples now. The full question bank is in progress, and you can join the waitlist on any sample question.
Payment is not switched on yet. Everything free stays free either way, and explanations are never behind a payment.
$29 buys the Terraform Associate bank for good, including everything added to it later. Right now that is 5 sample questions, so buy it to back the work rather than for what is there today. Or go Pro for every certification.