Azure AI certification path
Start with AI-901 if you are new to AI on Azure, then move to AI-103 if you write code, or AB-620 if you build agents without writing code. SC-500 is the security specialisation and assumes you already work in cloud security. There is no need to collect all four.
The order that makes sense
Microsoft’s AI exams are not a single ladder. They fan out from one fundamentals exam into three quite different associate-level roles, and the right route depends on what you actually do.
| Exam | Level | Assumes | Take it if |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI-901 | Fundamentals | No prior AI experience | You are new to AI, or need a shared vocabulary with a technical team |
| AI-103 | Associate | Python, and hands-on Azure work | You build generative AI apps and agents in code |
| AB-620 | Associate | Copilot Studio experience | You build agents through configuration rather than code |
| SC-500 | Associate | Working cloud security experience | Security is your job, not an interest |
Where to start
If you have never worked with AI services, take AI-901. It is genuinely a fundamentals exam: it tests whether you can recognise which capability fits a scenario, not whether you can build one. It is the cheapest and shortest of the four, and it gives you the vocabulary the associate exams assume you already have.
If you already build things on Azure, skip AI-901. It will teach you little and the credential carries little weight with people who can read a CV. Go straight to AI-103 or AB-620.
There is no prerequisite enforcement here. Microsoft does not require AI-901 before AI-103. The question is only whether you need it.
AI-103 or AB-620?
These two exams sound similar and are not. The distinction is whether you write code.
AI-103 is for developers. It expects you to work in Python against Azure AI Foundry, understand retrieval-augmented generation properly, and know how to run AI services in production — quotas, identity, monitoring, cost. Roughly two-thirds of the score sits in planning, managing and building generative AI and agentic solutions. It replaced AI-102, which Microsoft retired in June 2026, and it shifted substantially towards agents and RAG in the process.
AB-620 is for people building agents in Copilot Studio. It tests design decisions — scope, knowledge sources, actions, escalation, testing — rather than code. If your work happens through configuration rather than a Python file, this is your exam and AI-103 would be a frustrating detour.
Plenty of people do both, but do them in the order your work demands. Taking the one that matches your job first means the study reinforces what you already do.
Where SC-500 fits
SC-500 is not an AI exam with security on top; it is a cloud security exam that now includes AI workloads. It covers identity and access, securing storage, databases and networking, securing compute, and posture management. The AI content is a slice, not the spine.
Take it if you work in security. If you are a developer hoping to broaden, it is a hard exam to pass on reading alone — it assumes you have configured these controls, argued about them, and cleaned up after them.
How long each takes
Assuming you already work in the area and study consistently:
- AI-901 — two to three weeks
- AI-103 — four to six weeks
- AB-620 — four weeks
- SC-500 — six to eight weeks, longer without security experience
These are honest estimates for people with relevant daily work. Without it, double them and expect to build things rather than read about them.
What to do next
Pick the exam that matches your work, read its exam format guide to see what the real thing actually asks, and take the free 20-question practice test in that section. If you score under fourteen, the domain guides will tell you where the gaps are before you spend anything.
If you are still undecided between the developer and the low-code route, the comparison guide inside each section lays out the difference against the official skills outlines rather than the marketing.
Still choosing between clouds? See AIF-C01 vs AI-901 at foundational level and MLA-C02 vs AI-103 at associate level. Check the exam changes tracker before booking — AI-102 was retired and replaced by AI-103 in June 2026.