The AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02) is a foundational, mostly non-technical exam. It checks that you understand what the cloud is, the core AWS services, basic security, and how AWS pricing and support work. You do not need an engineering background. This guide is study guidance only, with no real or simulated exam questions.
The four domains, and how to study each
1. Cloud Concepts (24%)
The value of cloud computing (elasticity, pay-as-you-go, global reach), the AWS Cloud Adoption Framework, and basic economics. Focus on why organisations move to the cloud.
2. Security and Compliance (30%)
The shared responsibility model (the most-tested idea), IAM basics, and where to find compliance information. Be clear on what AWS secures versus what the customer secures.
3. Cloud Technology and Services (34%)
Recognise the core services by category: compute (EC2, Lambda), storage (S3), databases (RDS), and networking (VPC). You need to know what each is for, not how to configure it.
4. Billing, Pricing and Support (12%)
Pricing models (On-Demand, Reserved, Spot), the free tier, the pricing calculator, and the support plans. Small domain, easy marks.
How to prepare
Free AWS digital training plus the exam guide is usually enough. A little time in a free-tier account makes the services concrete, even though hands-on skill is not required. Avoid “exam dump” sites — they breach AWS policy and copyright.