AWS CCP

About The Exam

If you’re thinking about getting started with cloud computing, the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CCP) exam is the perfect place to begin. It’s Amazon’s entry-level certification that helps you build a solid understanding of how the cloud works—without needing to be a technical expert.

The exam, currently, focuses on four main areas (Although fast evolving):

  1. Cloud Concepts (26%)

  2. Security and Compliance (25%)

  3. Cloud Technology and Services (33%)

  4. Billing, Pricing, and Support (16%)

The exam itself includes 65 multiple-choice questions, takes about 90 minutes, and costs $100 USD (Always look for vouchers, theyre always available).

What makes the CCP so great is that it’s designed for anyone interested in the cloud—from IT beginners and students to business professionals and managers. You don’t need hands-on experience; just curiosity and a desire to understand the basics of AWS.

Whether you’re planning to advance into more technical certifications or simply want to speak the language of the cloud, the AWS Cloud Practitioner certification is your gateway into the world of cloud computing.

Exam Materials and Resources

CCP is not supposed to challenge you on anything technical like the other exams in the AWS catalogue. Its mostly to test that you understand the services and how they are used/integrated with other services to create secure, compliant and cost effective application solutions.

The number one thing, as with all technical exams, is hands-on experience and fortunately, AWS makes this easy. AWS allows anyone to create a free account, explore the console with unrestricted access and even use some of their services for free or very little money - pennies not pounds. The account creation process does require a credit/debit card but you can setup a plethora of different methods to stop any spend on your card even if you forget to remove a service that can incur a charge.

There is a huuuuge amount of different resources/materials to help study for this exam, Andrew Brown from Exampro has a free course on YouTube, as well as multiple other lesser known content creators. I wouldnt recommend paying for a course to acquire the CCP, instead focus on free materials and plenty of (free) console exposure.

My Experience

I had zero experience with cloud before i took on this challenge, however, i have had a multitude of IT experience particularly in Network engineering space. To utilise a cloud is essentially the same as 'borrowing someone elses DC' - understanding this concept allowed me to apply what i was learning and work out how the cloud fits in todays cyber world. The exam took me four weeks, studying for around 1-2 hours per days. I probably missed some days in the four week period too. I didnt spend as much time as i'd have liked navigating the console as i was concerned of running up a very large bill. This was just me being cautious and not being as knowledgeable as i am now, running up a large bill is certainly a risk but is so easily mitigated in AWS when you know how.

A lot of trainers suggest skipping this certification and going straight for the SAA-C0(x) however i'd only suggest doing that if you have familiarity with any cloud service in general. If you're complete beginner as i was, then the CCP really helps you understand the physical infrastructure and different responsibilities that both the provider (AWS) and the customer (you) have. Its also a good way to acquainted with some of AWS core services which you can then apply to higher level exams.