AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner

Career-switchers from non-IT backgrounds report meaningful ROI — interviews reference it as proof of self-direction. Cheap, accessible, no prerequisites. Andrew Brown's freeCodeCamp course often cited as sufficient prep.

Sales / pre-sales people regularly cite this cert as a door-opener for AWS-aligned roles. Some employers reimburse the fee. Renewal every 3 years at full price ($100) — slightly stingy compared to SAA's 50% renewal.

Solid foundational overview but content is dated in places (still tests on services like Snowmobile that AWS deprecated). Take it for the keyword-on-resume value, not for the learning.

Most-recommended starting point for non-engineers (sales, PMs, consultants). Covers AWS services at a high level + pricing/billing. Most pass with 20–40h prep. $100 fee is the lowest of any AWS cert.

For technical engineers, often considered a waste of time — content is too shallow to teach anything new, and the cert alone won't land technical roles. Recommendation: skip and go straight to SAA if you have any cloud background.