My AWS Cloud Practitioner Journey: What Actually Works (And What Doesn’t)

I just wrapped up my AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02) exam and walked away with a passing score. After months of preparation using different resources, I learned some hard lessons about what’s worth your time and money – and what isn’t.

Let me break down my honest experience with the various study materials I used, so you can skip the stuff that doesn’t work and focus on what actually helps.

The Reality Check on Popular Study Resources

Study Guides: Playing Catch-Up with AWS

Here’s the thing about traditional study guides – they’re fighting a losing battle against AWS’s rapid pace of innovation. I quickly discovered that most guides I picked up were already showing their age, missing crucial topics that appeared on the actual exam.

The most glaring example? AI and machine learning services. AWS has been rolling out new AI/ML offerings constantly, and these services are now fair game for exam questions. Yet the study guides I used barely touched on them, if at all. When you’re sitting in the exam and facing questions about services you’ve never heard of because your study guide was published six months ago, it’s a wake-up call.

The fundamentals in these guides are still solid – concepts like the shared responsibility model and basic service categories haven’t changed. But if you’re relying solely on a study guide, you’re setting yourself up to be blindsided by questions on newer services and features.

Udemy Courses: Expensive Recycling

This one stung because I fell for the hype. Popular Udemy courses with thousands of five-star reviews seemed like a safe bet, right? Wrong.

After spending money on a highly-rated course, I realized I was essentially paying someone to read AWS’s free documentation to me. The content was regurgitated straight from AWS SkillBuilder, which you can access for free with an AWS account. The instructor added very little original insight or real-world context that would justify the price tag.

The production quality was decent, and some people might prefer video content over reading documentation. But when you strip away the marketing and fancy graphics, you’re left with content that AWS provides for free, repackaged and sold at a premium. Save your money and go straight to the source.

Practice Exams: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Practice exams were a mixed bag, and this is where I learned that not all prep materials are created equal.

Most of the practice tests I encountered were disappointing. Generic questions that felt nothing like the real exam, explanations that were either wrong or unhelpfully vague, and content that didn’t align with the actual exam domains. Some were so bad that I wondered if the authors had even taken the CLF-C02 exam themselves.

Then I found CertVista and everything changed.

What Actually Made the Difference: CertVista

I wish I had discovered CertVista earlier in my prep journey because it would have saved me a lot of time and frustration. Their practice tests were the closest thing to the real exam experience I encountered.

The questions felt authentic – not the generic, textbook-style questions you find elsewhere, but scenarios that mirror what AWS actually tests you on. They covered all the exam domains comprehensively, including those newer AI/ML services that other resources missed.

But what really set CertVista apart were the explanations. When you get a question wrong (or even when you get it right), they don’t just tell you the correct answer. They explain the reasoning, provide test-taking tips, and reference the actual AWS documentation where you can learn more. It’s like having a knowledgeable mentor walking you through each concept.

The detailed explanations helped me understand not just what the right answer was, but why the wrong answers were incorrect. This deeper understanding was crucial for tackling similar questions on the actual exam.

My Recommendations for Future Test-Takers

If you’re planning to take the CLF-C02 exam, here’s what I’d recommend based on my experience:

**Start with AWS SkillBuilder.** It’s free, it’s official, and it’s up-to-date. Don’t pay someone else to repeat this content to you.

**Supplement with current AWS documentation** for newer services, especially AI/ML offerings that might not be covered in older materials.

**Invest in quality practice exams** – specifically CertVista. Skip the generic practice tests and go with something that actually prepares you for the real thing.

**Stay away from outdated study guides** unless you’re using them only for foundational concepts and supplementing heavily with current AWS resources.

The Bottom Line

The AWS certification landscape is tricky to navigate because there’s so much conflicting advice and varying quality in prep materials. The key is being selective about what you invest your time and money in.

AWS is constantly evolving, and your study approach needs to account for that reality. Stick with current, official resources as much as possible, and when you do pay for supplementary materials, make sure they’re worth it.

CertVista was the only paid resource that genuinely added value to my preparation. Everything else felt like either a waste of money or a waste of time – sometimes both.

Now that I’m certified, I feel confident that this approach will serve me well for future AWS certifications. The key is staying current and being smart about which resources actually help you succeed.