AZ-900 Cheat Sheet.
The night-before summary, built like the exam.
AZ-900 Cheat Sheet: Microsoft Certified Azure Fundamentals
A condensed reference for the beginner-level Azure Fundamentals credential, earned by passing Exam AZ-900.
Exam Logistics At-a-Glance
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Credential level | Beginner-level, foundational certification |
| Exam duration | 45 minutes |
| Seat duration (incl. intro/survey) | 65 minutes |
| Built-in unscheduled break | 5 minutes |
| Question count | Roughly 40-60 questions (typical range for Microsoft exams) |
| Passing score | 700 or greater |
| Score scale | 1 to 1,000 |
| Languages offered | 13 languages, including English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Korean, Spanish, German, and French |
| Number of content domains | 3 domains |
| Guessing penalty | None — no points deducted for wrong answers |
| First retake wait | 24 hours after a failed attempt |
| Subsequent retake wait | 14 days between later attempts |
| Max attempts per year | 5 attempts within a 12-month period from the first attempt |
Official Content Domains (Quick List)
- Describe cloud concepts — weighted 25-30% of the exam
- Describe Azure architecture and services — weighted 35-40% of the exam (the heaviest domain)
- Describe Azure management and governance — weighted 30-35% of the exam
Key Terms and Concepts to Memorize
Cloud Concepts
- Cloud computing fundamentals: on-demand delivery of compute, storage, and networking over the internet
- Shared responsibility model: Microsoft secures the underlying cloud infrastructure; the customer secures data, identities, and endpoints — the split shifts depending on IaaS vs. PaaS vs. SaaS
- Cloud deployment models: public, private, and hybrid cloud
- Consumption-based (pay-as-you-go) pricing model vs. upfront capital expenditure
- Core benefits of cloud services: high availability, scalability, elasticity, agility, disaster recovery, and global reach
- Cloud service types: IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service), and SaaS (Software as a Service) — know which layer the customer manages in each
Azure Architecture and Services
- Core architectural components: Azure regions, region pairs, availability zones, resource groups, and subscriptions
- Azure compute services: virtual machines, containers, and serverless computing (e.g., Functions)
- Azure networking services: virtual networks, VPN Gateway, and load balancing concepts
- Azure storage services: storage tiers, redundancy options, and migration options
- Azure identity, access, and security: Azure Active Directory (Microsoft Entra ID) concepts, authentication vs. authorization, and multi-factor authentication
Azure Management and Governance
- Cost management: pricing calculator, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) calculator, and cost-saving strategies
- Governance and compliance: resource locks, tags, Azure Policy, and role-based access control (RBAC)
- Deployment and management tools: Azure Portal, Azure CLI, Azure PowerShell, and Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates
- Monitoring tools: Azure Monitor, Azure Service Health, and Azure Advisor
Common Gotchas and Traps
- Don't confuse the 45-minute exam duration with the 65-minute seat duration — the extra time covers the NDA, survey, and instructions, not extra question time
- Remember the 5-minute built-in break is optional and unscheduled, not a mandatory pause
- Domain weights are ranges (e.g., 35-40%), not fixed percentages — don't expect an exact split
- Since there's no guessing penalty, never leave a question unanswered — always select an option before moving on
- Retake timing has two different rules: 24 hours after the first failed attempt, but 14 days between every attempt after that
- IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS responsibility boundaries are a frequent trap — know exactly which layers the customer vs. Microsoft manages for each
- Availability zones and region pairs are often confused — zones are physically separate datacenters within one region, while region pairs span two separate regions
- Azure management and governance (30-35%) is nearly as heavily weighted as architecture and services — don't under-study it relative to cloud concepts
Night-Before Checklist
- Review the three domain weights and confirm you can explain at least two subtopics from each
- Recite the shared responsibility model split for IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS from memory
- Skim the differences between availability zones, region pairs, and resource groups
- Confirm your exam appointment time and add buffer for the 65-minute total seat duration
- Remember: answer every question, since there is no penalty for guessing
- Get a full night's sleep — foundational exams reward broad recall over deep problem-solving, so freshness matters more than last-minute cramming
- Have valid photo ID ready and confirm your testing environment (in-person or online proctoring) meets requirements
Frequently asked questions
How long is the AZ-900 exam, and how many questions should I expect?
You get 45 minutes of actual exam time, but your total seat duration is 65 minutes, which includes time for things like instructions and the exam experience outside the questions themselves. Microsoft does not publish an exact question count for AZ-900, but most Microsoft certification exams typically contain between 40 and 60 questions. Five minutes are also built into the exam time that you can use for an unscheduled break. Budgeting roughly 45 to 65 seconds per question keeps you on pace with time left over to review flagged items.
What score do I need to pass AZ-900, and do wrong answers count against me?
You need a score of 700 or greater to pass. Microsoft reports technical exam scores on a scale of 1 to 1,000, and the 700 cutoff is a scaled score — it does not mean you need 70% of questions correct. There is no penalty for guessing: no points are deducted for incorrect answers, so you should answer every single question. Even a blind guess has a chance of earning points, while a blank answer earns nothing.
Which AZ-900 exam domain is weighted the most heavily?
AZ-900 assesses foundational knowledge across three areas: Describe cloud concepts (25-30%), Describe Azure architecture and services (35-40%), and Describe Azure management and governance (30-35%). Azure architecture and services carries the highest weight, covering core architectural components, Azure compute and networking services, Azure storage services, and Azure identity, access, and security — so that domain deserves the largest share of your study time. Cloud concepts, the lightest domain, covers cloud computing, the shared responsibility model, cloud models, the consumption-based model, the benefits of cloud services, and the IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS service types.
How soon can I retake AZ-900 if I fail, and how many attempts am I allowed?
If you don't pass on your first attempt, you must wait 24 hours before retaking the exam. After that, a 14-day waiting period applies between all subsequent attempts, up to 5 attempts total — you may not take a given exam more than five times within a 12-month period from your first attempt. Practically, this means a quick second attempt is easy to schedule, but from the third attempt onward you'll have at least two weeks between tries, so use that window to close the gaps your score report reveals rather than rushing back in.
Sources
- 1.Study guide for Exam AZ-900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals — Microsoft (accessed Jul 18, 2026)
- 2.Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals certification page — Microsoft (accessed Jul 18, 2026)
- 3.Exam and Applied Skills assessment lab retake policies — Microsoft (accessed Jul 18, 2026)
- 4.Exam duration and exam experience — Microsoft (accessed Jul 18, 2026)
- 5.Exam scoring and score reports — Microsoft (accessed Jul 18, 2026)