Azure certification path 2026: AZ-900, AZ-104, AZ-305

The standard Azure certification path is AZ-900 (Azure Fundamentals), then AZ-104 (Azure Administrator Associate), then AZ-305 (Azure Solutions Architect Expert). AZ-900 is optional, but AZ-104 is not: Microsoft only awards the Solutions Architect Expert certification once you hold the Azure Administrator Associate certification.

This guide walks through each of the three exams with the same facts in the same order, explains why the order works, covers the other branches (and which of them retired in 2026), lists what you can skip, and sets out cost and preparation. Every exam fact was checked on Microsoft Learn on October 21, 2026.

How Azure certifications are organised

Microsoft groups its certifications into three levels:

Fundamentals: AZ-900. No prerequisites, a short exam, and a certification that never expires.
Associate: role-based exams such as AZ-104 (administrator) and AZ-700 (network engineer). No formal prerequisite.
Expert: AZ-305 (solutions architect) and AZ-400 (DevOps engineer). Each needs an associate certification before Microsoft awards the expert title.

Every exam on this path passes at 700 on Microsoft's 1,000-point scale. Associate and expert certifications expire after a year, and you renew them free by passing a short, unproctored, open-book assessment on Microsoft Learn in the six months before expiry. Fundamentals certifications don't expire.

One more rule changes how you prepare. During associate and expert exams you can open Microsoft Learn (the documentation, not the practice assessments or Q&A), though the clock keeps running. During fundamentals exams you can't.

AZ-900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals

Certification: Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals.
Status: live; skills measured updated July 20, 2026 with minor changes.
Who it's for: people starting out with Azure. Microsoft calls it a "common starting point" and suggests some IT background in infrastructure, databases or development.
Prerequisites: none.
Format: 45 minutes (65 minutes of seat time) as of October 2026. Microsoft doesn't publish question counts per exam, but says most of its exams have 40 to 60 questions.
Passing score: 700.
Languages: 13, including English, Japanese, Korean, Chinese and Indonesian.
Validity: never expires.
Domains: cloud concepts (25-30%), Azure architecture and services (35-40%), and management and governance (30-35%).

AZ-900 tests vocabulary and judgement, not hands-on skill. Typical questions ask which service model fits a team, as in this practice question on IaaS, PaaS and SaaS, or which tool estimates a bill before anything is deployed, as in this practice question on the Azure pricing calculator. The AZ-900 practice tests cover all three domains.

AZ-104: Microsoft Azure Administrator

Certification: Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate.
Status: live; skills measured updated April 17, 2026 with minor changes to storage, virtual machines, containers, virtual networks and monitoring.
Who it's for: administrators who implement and run Azure, using the portal, PowerShell, the Azure CLI, ARM templates or Bicep, and Microsoft Entra ID.
Prerequisites: none. AZ-900 is not required.
Format: 100 minutes as of October 2026, and it may include interactive components.
Passing score: 700.
Languages: 10.
Validity: one year, renewed free online.
Domains: identities and governance (20-25%), storage (15-20%), compute (20-25%), virtual networking (15-20%), and monitoring and maintenance (10-15%).

AZ-104 is where Azure gets practical. Its skills are written as "configure", "create" and "manage", and its questions turn on how things actually behave. Role assignments add up across scopes, which this practice question on RBAC role scope tests. VNet peering is not transitive, which this practice question on hub-and-spoke peering tests. The guide to Azure RBAC vs Azure Policy and the guide to Azure storage redundancy cover two areas the exam returns to often.

AZ-305: Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions

Certification: Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert.
Status: live, with no retirement date; updated April 17, 2026.
Who it's for: solution architects with advanced IT operations experience plus Azure administration, development and DevOps knowledge.
Prerequisites: to earn the certification, you must also hold Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104). The exam page itself lists no prerequisite, but the expert title isn't awarded until you have both.
Format: Microsoft doesn't state the length on the AZ-305 page as of October 2026. Its general rule is 100 minutes, or 120 for exams that may include labs. Case studies are one of the question types Microsoft shows in its exam sandbox.
Passing score: 700.
Languages: 10.
Validity: one year, renewed free online.
Domains: identity, governance and monitoring (25-30%), data storage (20-25%), business continuity (15-20%), and infrastructure (30-35%).

AZ-305 asks a different kind of question. Its skills are written as "recommend a solution", so each question gives you requirements and asks which design meets them. This practice question on regional disaster recovery for VMs is typical: an RPO and RTO, and four designs to choose between. So is this practice question on choosing a messaging service.

Why this order works

AZ-900 first, if you're new. It gives you the names and the basic model (regions, resource groups, subscriptions, the pricing tools) that AZ-104 assumes you know. If you already work in Azure, skip it: nothing requires it.
AZ-104 before AZ-305. It's required for the expert title anyway, and it teaches how the services behave. AZ-305 assumes you know that and asks you to choose between them.
AZ-305 last. Its answers are trade-offs between designs, which are easier to judge once you've configured the services yourself.

Other branches of the Azure path

The three-exam path is the core, but Azure has other routes, and two of them changed in 2026:

AZ-204 (Azure Developer Associate) retired on July 31, 2026. You can no longer earn or renew it. Microsoft's pages don't name a direct replacement. For developers building AI features, AI-103 is the live associate exam; the Microsoft AI certification path guide covers it and AI-200.
AZ-500 (Azure Security Engineer Associate) retired on August 31, 2026. It can no longer be earned or renewed.
AZ-400 (DevOps Engineer Expert) is live. It needs Azure Administrator Associate or Azure Developer Associate. With AZ-204 retired, AZ-104 is the live route for new candidates. Build and release pipelines are 50-55% of the exam.
AZ-700 (Azure Network Engineer Associate) is live: 100 minutes, with core networking the largest domain. It suits administrators who specialise in networking after AZ-104.
AZ-802 (Administering Windows Server) showed up in the same searches, but it's a Windows Server exam, not part of the Azure path.

How the three exams differ

Level: AZ-900 is fundamentals. AZ-104 is associate. AZ-305 is expert.
Question style: AZ-900 asks what a service is for. AZ-104 asks how to configure it. AZ-305 asks which design to recommend.
Length (as of October 2026): AZ-900 is 45 minutes. AZ-104 is 100 minutes. AZ-305's length isn't on its page.
Microsoft Learn during the exam: not in AZ-900. Allowed in AZ-104 and AZ-305.
Expiry: AZ-900 never expires. AZ-104 and AZ-305 renew every year, for free.
Prerequisite: AZ-900 and AZ-104 have none. The AZ-305 certification needs AZ-104.

What to skip

AZ-900, if you already use Azure at work. It's optional, and AZ-104 assumes the basics anyway.
AZ-303 and AZ-304. Searches for AZ-304 are rising, but both were the old architect exams, retired on March 31, 2022. AZ-305 is the only exam for Solutions Architect Expert.
AZ-204 and AZ-500 prep material. Both exams retired in 2026.

Renewing along the path

Once you pass AZ-104 and AZ-305, renewal becomes a yearly habit, and it's free. Microsoft's rules, as of October 2026:

The window: you can renew in the six months before your certification expires, not earlier.
The assessment: an online test on Microsoft Learn, about 45 minutes, open book and unproctored. It's shorter than the exam and focuses on what has changed in the technology.
Retakes: unlimited. You can retry once straight away, then wait 24 hours between attempts.
The result: passing extends your certification by one year from its current expiry date, so renewing early in the window costs you nothing.
If you miss it: you can't renew by retaking the exam. An expired certification means passing the full exam again, at the full price.

AZ-900 needs none of this, because fundamentals certifications don't expire. If you hold both AZ-104 and AZ-305, you renew each separately.

Azure certification cost and preparation

Microsoft's certification FAQ says associate and expert exams "typically cost US$165", with the price set by the country or region where you take the exam, as of October 2026. Exam pages show your local price when you schedule, so check there before booking. Microsoft offers academic pricing in most countries, but its student discount page excludes India and China. Renewal is free, so after the first exam the ongoing cost is your time.

Microsoft's free preparation covers the basics:

A free practice assessment for each exam, which you can retake as often as you like.
An exam sandbox that shows the question types and the exam interface.
The study guide, with the skills measured and the latest changes.
Exam-prep videos for AZ-104 and AZ-305.

For timed practice, this site has 100 questions and a full-length mock exam for each exam on the path. Browse the AZ-104 question list to drill networking and identity, or work through the AZ-305 practice tests once AZ-104 is done. The AZ-305 question list is grouped by test, and the AZ-900 question list is a quick way to check you're ready to move up.

A workable plan for AZ-104 or AZ-305: read the study guide and mark every skill you haven't done, build those in a free Azure account, take Microsoft's practice assessment to find gaps, then do timed practice tests until you score well above 700.

Frequently asked questions

Is AZ-900 required for AZ-104 or AZ-305?

No. AZ-900 isn't a prerequisite for anything. The only prerequisite on this path is that the Azure Solutions Architect Expert certification needs Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104).

What are the AZ-305 prerequisites?

To be awarded Azure Solutions Architect Expert, you need the Azure Administrator Associate certification as well as a pass on AZ-305. The AZ-305 exam page lists no prerequisite, but Microsoft won't give you the expert title until you have both.

Which Azure certification should I do first?

AZ-900 if you're new to cloud, AZ-104 if you already work with Azure. Developers interested in AI should look at AI-103, now that AZ-204 has retired.

How much do Azure certifications cost in India?

Microsoft states only that associate and expert exams typically cost US$165, priced by country. The rupee price appears when you schedule the exam on Microsoft Learn. Microsoft's student discount does not apply in India.

Do Azure certifications expire?

Azure Fundamentals never expires. Associate and expert certifications, including AZ-104 and AZ-305, expire after one year. You renew them free with an online assessment, starting six months before the expiry date.

Is AZ-304 still available?

No. AZ-303 and AZ-304 retired on March 31, 2022, and AZ-305 replaced them. AZ-305 is the only exam for Azure Solutions Architect Expert.