Beginner

Exam Overview

Everything you need to know about the AWS Certified AI Practitioner (AIF-C01) exam before you start studying — format, scoring, domain breakdown, study plans, and the registration process.

Exam At a Glance

The AWS Certified AI Practitioner (AIF-C01) is an entry-level certification that validates your foundational understanding of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and generative AI concepts — specifically within the AWS ecosystem. It is ideal for beginners, business analysts, project managers, and anyone who works with AI but does not build models from scratch.

💡
Key facts: 85 questions • 120 minutes • 700/1000 to pass • $150 USD • Valid for 3 years • Proctored online or at a testing center

Question Format

The exam consists of two question types:

  • Multiple choice — One correct answer out of four options (majority of questions)
  • Multiple response — Two or more correct answers out of five options (clearly marked as "select TWO" or "select THREE")

There is no penalty for guessing. Never leave a question blank. If you are unsure, eliminate what you can and make your best choice.

Scoring

AWS uses a scaled scoring model from 100 to 1000. The minimum passing score is 700. This does not mean you need 70% correct — the scaled scoring accounts for question difficulty. In practice, most candidates report needing roughly 65-70% of questions correct to pass.

Some questions are unscored (used for statistical evaluation of future exams). You will not know which ones. Treat every question as if it counts.

The 4 Exam Domains

The exam is divided into four domains, each with a specific weight. Understanding these weights is critical for prioritizing your study time.

Domain 1: Fundamentals of AI and ML — 20%

Basic AI/ML concepts, types of learning (supervised, unsupervised, reinforcement), the ML lifecycle, and core terminology every AI practitioner should know.

Domain 2: Fundamentals of Generative AI — 24%

Foundation models, large language models (LLMs), prompt engineering, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and how Amazon Bedrock enables generative AI workloads.

Domain 3: Applications of Foundation Models — 36%

AWS AI/ML services (SageMaker, Bedrock, Rekognition, Comprehend, Textract, Polly, Lex), choosing the right service, and building AI-powered applications. This is the largest domain.

Domain 4: Guidelines for Responsible AI — 20%

Bias detection and mitigation, fairness, transparency, explainability, security, privacy, governance, and AWS tools for responsible AI development.

⚠
Study priority: Domain 3 (Applications of Foundation Models) is worth 36% of your score. If you are short on time, prioritize Domain 3 and Domain 2 (combined 60% of the exam).

Who Should Take This Exam

The AIF-C01 is designed for anyone who wants to demonstrate foundational AI knowledge, regardless of technical background. Ideal candidates include:

  • Beginners exploring a career in AI or cloud computing
  • Business analysts and project managers who work with AI teams
  • Sales and marketing professionals in the AI/cloud space
  • Developers who want to validate their AI fundamentals before pursuing advanced certifications
  • IT professionals transitioning to AI-focused roles

No prior AWS or ML experience is required, but familiarity with basic cloud concepts is helpful.

3-Week Beginner Study Plan

For those new to AI who want a thorough but focused preparation:

📅
Week 1: AI/ML Fundamentals (Domain 1) + Generative AI Fundamentals (Domain 2) — core concepts and terminology
Week 2: AWS AI/ML Services (Domain 3) + Responsible AI (Domain 4) — the two applied domains
Week 3: Practice exam + review weak areas + exam day preparation

1-Week Accelerated Study Plan

For those with existing AI/cloud knowledge who want to move quickly:

📅
Day 1-2: Skim AI/ML Fundamentals and Generative AI — focus on AWS-specific terminology
Day 3-4: Deep dive into AWS AI/ML Services (the biggest domain at 36%)
Day 5: Responsible AI domain + review
Day 6-7: Practice exam, review explanations, final prep

Registration Process

  1. Create or sign in to your AWS Certification account at aws.training
  2. Select "Schedule an Exam" and choose AWS Certified AI Practitioner (AIF-C01)
  3. Choose your testing provider: Pearson VUE or PSI
  4. Select online proctored or testing center, pick your date and time
  5. Pay the $150 USD exam fee (50% discount if you hold an existing AWS certification)
💡
Pro tip: At $150, this exam costs half the price of specialty-level AWS certifications ($300). It is one of the most affordable entry points into the AWS certification ecosystem and a great way to build confidence before tackling advanced AI/ML certs.

How This Certification Compares

Understanding where the AIF-C01 sits in the AWS certification landscape:

  • AWS AI Practitioner (AIF-C01) — Entry-level. Tests conceptual understanding of AI/ML and generative AI on AWS. No coding or model-building required. This course.
  • AWS Machine Learning Engineer - Associate — Mid-level. Requires hands-on experience with SageMaker, data preparation, and model deployment.
  • AWS Machine Learning - Specialty (MLS-C01) — Advanced. Deep technical knowledge of ML algorithms, SageMaker, and ML operations on AWS.

The AI Practitioner is the ideal starting point. Passing it builds a solid foundation for any of the more advanced AWS ML certifications.

What Is Next

Now that you understand the exam format and have a study plan, it is time to dive into the first domain. In the next lesson, we cover AI/ML Fundamentals — the core concepts of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep learning that form Domain 1 of the exam.