Frequently asked questions
Condensed from the official certification FAQ, reorganized for quick reading. The official page is the authoritative version.
Program
What is the program? Four certifications across three roles that validate real working skill with Claude: Claude Certified Associate – Foundations, Claude Certified Developer – Foundations, Claude Certified Architect – Foundations, and Claude Certified Architect – Professional. Certifications signal an invested Claude practice to customers, and all except the Associate count toward the organization's Claude Partner Network tier eligibility.
Architect Foundations versus Professional? Separate certifications with separate exams. Foundations proves an architect can build with Claude; Professional proves they can design and govern solutions at enterprise scale. Neither requires the other, and Foundations does not convert into Professional.
Eligibility
Who can take an exam? People at Claude Partner Network organizations, registering with a company email on a recognized partner domain. Personal addresses do not work, and certification is not currently open to customers or the general public. Organizations can apply to the Claude Partner Network.
My partner email is not recognized. Confirm you used your company address, then email partner-support@anthropic.com. Domain record changes take 7 to 10 days, so start early. Certifications earned on an unrecognized domain, including subsidiary or regional domains, do not credit to the partner account, though they can be fixed afterward through the same support route.
Registration, scheduling, and format
How do I register? From the certification's page on Partner Academy: pay there, then schedule on Pearson VUE, online proctored or at a test center. The full walkthrough is in Registration and scheduling.
What is the format? Multiple-choice and scenario-based multiple-response questions, 120 minutes of testing, roughly 135 minutes of seat time. Per-exam question counts: Associate 60, Developer 53, Architect Foundations 60, Architect Professional 63.
Is it open book? No. Closed book, no notes or documentation, no AI assistants, and no browser translation tools.
Technical requirements? Run Pearson's system test before exam day and clear the corporate-network requirements in Registration and scheduling.
Can I reschedule or cancel? Free until 24 hours before the appointment, with a full refund for cancellation. Later than that, or a no-show, forfeits the fee.
Pricing and discounts
What do exams cost? In USD before discounts: Associate 99, Developer Foundations 125, Architect Foundations 125, Architect Professional 175. Payment is by credit card at registration.
What discounts exist? Registered-tier partners pay full price. Select, Preferred, and Global Premier partners get 50% off automatically at checkout. Through August 31, 2026, Global Premier partners get 100% off; the standard 50% applies afterward.
My discount is not showing. Verify you are signed in with your company email. If the price is still wrong, your domain is probably not linked to the partner record; email partner-support@anthropic.com and allow 7 to 10 days before you register.
Bulk purchase? Not yet. Anthropic has said a voucher storefront with discounts and usage tracking is in progress.
Did prices change? Yes. Architect Foundations went from 99 to 125 USD effective June 30, 2026.
Results and scoring
When do I get my result? On screen immediately after the exam, with a printed report at test centers. Passing candidates receive a Credly email to claim the badge, usually within minutes for online exams.
How is it scored? Scaled score from 100 to 1,000, passing at 720 for all four exams. Scaled scoring equates results across exam forms of slightly different difficulty. Score reports include percent-correct per domain; the domain breakdown is informational and only the total scaled score determines the result.
Retakes and recertification
If I fail? Retake after a waiting period that grows per attempt: 14, then 30, then 90 days, with at most four attempts per exam per rolling 12 months. Each retake costs the full fee, with partner discounts applying. Failing one exam never blocks registering for a different one.
How long is certification valid? 12 months from the earn date. Renewal before expiry is free: an open-book, non-proctored assessment on Partner Academy, retakable as needed. A lapsed credential means retaking the full exam at full fee. Credentials earned before June 30, 2026 were automatically extended from 6 to 12 months of validity.
Badges and credential portability
What do I receive? The credential plus a Credly digital badge, shareable on LinkedIn and elsewhere.
Does it move with me? Yes, the credential belongs to you. Add a personal email to your Credly profile to keep badge access across employers, and email certifications-support@anthropic.com if your work email changes or you move to another partner firm.
The Pearson migration
Delivery moved to Pearson VUE and badging to Credly on June 30, 2026. If you registered or certified before then, see the migration notes covering transferred registrations, cleared Architect Foundations attempts, extended validity, and missing badge emails.
Preparation
Note
There is no official practice exam. The previous platform's was retired in the Pearson migration, so the sample questions inside each exam guide are the only official items, alongside this repository's practice engine.
Is there a practice exam? No. The previous platform's practice exam was retired in the Pearson migration. Each exam guide contains official sample questions with rationales, and this repository's study strategy covers how to use them.
How should I prepare? Start with the exam guide for your certification; it lists the domains and task statements and is the authoritative scope. Then use the prep courses, which vary in coverage by certification.
Other languages? Exam and prep content are English only, and translation tools are prohibited during proctoring.
Can my organization track certifications? Partner Portal shows the organization's total certification count, updated weekly. A per-person breakdown is not currently available to partners.
Accommodations, appeals, and support
Accommodations: requested through Pearson, 10 or more days ahead, approved before scheduling.
Appeals: within 14 days of a decision or of the exam date for result concerns, submitted to Pearson. Reporting a faulty question is separate, open to everyone, and never counts against you.
Support routes: Pearson VUE for exam delivery, Credly support for badges, partner-support@anthropic.com for domain and crediting issues, certifications-support@anthropic.com for name corrections and record transfers, academy-support@anthropic.com for the Academy platform.
Facts last verified against the official sources on 2026-08-01. Repository index