Most people attack AWS certifications bottom-up: start with Cloud Practitioner, climb slowly toward Professional. Most people also stall somewhere in the middle — the gap between each level feels enormous, and motivation runs out before the hard exams even start.
I did the opposite. Between August 2024 and 2025, I passed all 12 AWS certifications in about a year — by taking the hardest one first. Here's the full strategy, the exact order, difficulty rankings from someone who sat every exam, and what it actually cost.
The "reverse" strategy: hardest first
My first exam was Solutions Architect – Professional (SAP) — widely considered the hardest AWS certification, with the broadest service coverage.
The logic: if you clear the exam with the widest scope first, every remaining exam becomes a subset. Each subsequent certification feels psychologically smaller, not bigger. Instead of climbing toward a summit that keeps growing, you descend from it. Momentum works for you instead of against you.
My exact order
SAP (Aug 2024) → SAA → DEA → AIF → MLA → SCS → DVA → SOA → DOP → ANS → MLS → CLF
Yes, Cloud Practitioner came last. By then it was a victory lap — though not a free one (more on that below).
Difficulty rankings — from someone who sat all 12
Foundational
- CLF (Cloud Practitioner) — Not trivial, even with 11 certs behind me. The frameworks, support plans, and contract topics need dedicated study; they don't appear anywhere else.
- AIF (AI Practitioner) — Harder than people expect. AI knowledge is independent from infrastructure knowledge; infrastructure veterans start from zero here.
Associate
- DVA (Developer) — Personally the hardest Associate exam for me.
- SAA (Solutions Architect) — Noticeably harder in recent versions than its reputation suggests.
- SOA (SysOps/CloudOps) — My best result: a perfect 1000.
- DEA (Data Engineer) — Smooth if you have a data background.
- MLA (Machine Learning Engineer) — Took me the longest at this level; be ready for deep SageMaker coverage.
Professional
- SAP (Solutions Architect Pro) — The widest scope of any exam. As exam #1, it was brutal — which was exactly the point.
- DOP (DevOps Pro) — My hardest certification overall.
Specialty
- SCS (Security) — Moderate if you have security design experience.
- ANS (Advanced Networking) — The hardest Specialty: complex multi-region, hybrid scenarios.
- MLS (Machine Learning) — Retired in April 2025, so I'm glad I caught it in time.
What it cost
Exam fees alone came to roughly ¥300,000–400,000 (about $2,000–2,700) before tax. One important cost hack: AWS gives you a 50% discount voucher every time you pass, so each exam effectively halves the next one. Chain them and the total drops dramatically — one more reason the momentum-based approach pays off.
How I actually studied
Shift from input to output. Early in each exam's prep, I leaned on video courses and books. As the exam approached, I shifted almost entirely to practice exams. The ratio moves from mostly-input to mostly-output — staying in input mode too long is the most common way to stall.
Use English resources. Even if English isn't your first language (it isn't mine), the freshest documentation, exam guides, and community intel are in English. Limiting yourself to your native language caps your ceiling.
Aim for 80%, not 100%. Perfect knowledge of AWS is impossible — the platform is too big and moves too fast. Around 80% comprehension is enough to pass, and chasing the last 20% costs more than it returns.
When motivation dies, sleep. Not a joke. I treated rest as part of the study plan. Grinding through burnout produces worse retention than stopping.
A warning about paper certs. All 12 badges without hands-on experience will hurt you in the field. I built and operated real systems alongside the exams — the certifications organize knowledge; they don't replace it.
Wrapping up
The reverse strategy is not just a stunt — it's a momentum design. Front-load the pain while motivation is highest, then let every following exam feel smaller. If you're planning a multi-certification run, seriously consider starting closer to the top than the bottom.
About the author
Maruchin Tech — 12x AWS Certified | Cloud & AI for manufacturing and supply chain (AWS / Google Cloud / Azure) | Udemy instructor (100K+ students)
📚 My AWS certification courses (Udemy profile):
https://www.udemy.com/user/maruchin-tech-2/
🎫 Monthly discount coupons:
https://www.youtube.com/@MaruchinTech-cloud/community
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