Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Fundamentals

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Exam at a Glance

DP-900 measures whether you understand the vocabulary of data work in the cloud: the kinds of data and workloads that exist, what relational and non-relational storage look like on Azure, and how the pieces of an analytics solution, from ingestion through Microsoft Fabric to Power BI, fit together. It is a concepts exam: you describe, identify, and choose between services, you do not build them.

 

What the Exam Covers

The exam has four domains with unequal weights. Core data concepts and the analytics workload together make up about half of the exam, relational data on Azure is close behind, and non-relational data is the smallest at 15 to 20 percent. The concepts domain is where candidates who skip straight to the Azure services lose points.

 

Describe core data concepts — 25-30%

The features of structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data; common data file formats; the features of common data stores including databases, and which Azure datastore fits a given use case; the difference between transactional and analytical workloads; and what database administrators, data engineers, and data analysts are each responsible for.

 

Identify considerations for relational data on Azure — 20-25%

The features of relational data, normalization and why it is used, the common SQL statements, and the common database objects such as tables, views, indexes, and stored procedures. Then the Azure SQL family of products (Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, and SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines) and the Azure database services for open-source engines such as MySQL and PostgreSQL.

 

Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure — 15-20%

The capabilities of Azure Storage (the features of Azure Blob storage, Azure Files, and Azure Table storage) plus the use cases for Azure Cosmos DB and its APIs (NoSQL, MongoDB, PostgreSQL, Apache Cassandra, Apache Gremlin, and Table).

 

Describe an analytics workload on Azure — 25-30%

The common elements of large-scale analytics: considerations for data ingestion and processing, the options for analytical data stores (data warehouses, data lakes, and lakehouses), and the Microsoft cloud services for large-scale analytics, including Azure Databricks and Microsoft Fabric. Then real-time analytics (the difference between batch and streaming data and which Microsoft cloud services handle streams) and data visualization in Power BI: its capabilities, the features of Power BI data models, and picking the right visualization for the data.

 

The full bullet-level list lives in the official study guide. Treat it as your checklist:

The Official DP-900 Study Guide

 

How This Maps to CertiAce Practice Modules

The CertiAce question bank mirrors the four exam domains and the four learning paths of the DP-900 course, so you can drill each area in isolation:

 

Where DP-900 Fits

DP-900 has no prerequisites: it is the entry point to the Microsoft data certifications, designed for anyone beginning to work with data in the cloud. It is also not a prerequisite for any role-based certification (Microsoft's own wording), so passing it earns no exemption, but it builds the vocabulary every exam above assumes. The same foundation also leads to Azure Databricks Data Engineer Associate (DP-750) if your platform is Databricks, and to SQL AI Developer Associate (DP-800) if you develop on SQL. If you are new to cloud computing itself, Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) is an optional companion before or after DP-900.

Certification and Exam Details Page

 

Before You Start

You do not need to be a developer, data engineer, or database administrator to start. The official course lists only light prerequisites. Check yourself against this table, and treat anything unfamiliar as the first thing to study:

 

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Step-by-Step Study Plan

How long you need depends on where you start. Treat these estimates as planning guidance and adjust them to your starting knowledge and weekly study hours:

 

Step 1: Read the Official Study Guide

Skim the full skills-measured list once, and mark every bullet you could not explain to a colleague. That marked-up list is your personal syllabus: everything else in this plan exists to clear it. The July 21, 2026 update made only minor wording changes and added or removed nothing, so recent materials still match the scope, but the analytics domain is built around Microsoft Fabric, which older materials cover thinly or not at all.

The Official Study Guide

 

Step 2: Schedule Your Exam

Choose a realistic target date after reviewing the skills list and your available study time. A date on the calendar turns studying into a countdown, so pick one using the prep-time table above and plan backwards from it. The exam is available in thirteen languages. If the exam is not available in your native language, check the English as a Second Language accommodation and arrange any approved extra time before booking.

Exam accommodations

Certification and Exam Details Page

 

Step 3: Work Through the Official Learning Path

Complete the DP-900 course modules on Microsoft Learn. Its four learning paths map one-to-one to the four exam domains and to the four CertiAce practice modules. Take notes on concepts you cannot explain in simple terms, and focus on the purpose of each Azure data service: the exam rewards knowing when a service is the right choice, not memorizing product names.

Official Learning Path Course Page

 

Step 4: Watch a Full Video Course

Microsoft Learn's official DP-900 course video series walks through the same module content as the learning path, delivered by a Microsoft Certified Trainer, and is current with the Microsoft Fabric and real-time analytics units that most older DP-900 videos predate. Watch it end to end as a second pass, pausing whenever the trainer names a service you could not yet place in a scenario.

DP-900: Introduction to Microsoft Azure Data

 

Step 5: Get Hands-On Practice

DP-900 is not a deep implementation exam, but the concepts stick much faster once you have seen the real services. The official lab exercises behind the DP-900 course are free and self-paced; with a free Azure account and a Microsoft Fabric trial you can complete every one of them. Make sure you personally see:

• An Azure SQL Database, its tables, and a simple query against it
• An Azure Storage account with blob containers, file shares, and tables
• An Azure Cosmos DB account and how a document differs from a row
• A Microsoft Fabric lakehouse, and where a warehouse and a data lake fit around it
• A real-time analytics stream in Fabric
• A Power BI report built from a small data model

You do not need to become an expert in any of these: the goal is to recognize what each service is for and how it fits into a data solution.

Official DP-900 Lab Exercises

 

Step 6: Benchmark Your Knowledge

Use CertiAce to benchmark your readiness module by module. The practice modules map to the exam domains as shown above, so use the module mapping and the topics behind your missed questions to identify the skills-measured areas to revisit. Microsoft also offers a free official practice assessment on Microsoft Learn. Aim for consistent performance across every module, not one lucky high score; pay particular attention to workload-type and service-selection questions, the two patterns the exam returns to again and again.

CertiAce DP-900 Exam Practice

Free Official Practice Assessment

 

Step 7: Take the Exam

The day before, review only your weak topics: no brand-new material. On exam day, read each question for what it is truly asking: most DP-900 questions come down to matching a one-line scenario to the right workload type or the right service, so first decide whether the scenario is relational or non-relational, transactional or analytical, batch or streaming. That alone eliminates most of the options.

Worth knowing before you sit down:

• This is a closed-book exam: unlike the role-based exams, Microsoft Learn is not available during fundamentals exams.
• You can take unscheduled breaks, but the clock keeps running and you cannot return to questions you already saw.
• Watch the naming: the exam distinguishes carefully between Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, and SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines, and uses current names such as Microsoft Fabric and Azure Cosmos DB for NoSQL. Cross-check older materials that blur those names against the current study guide.
• Try the exam sandbox beforehand so the question formats and interface hold no surprises: Exam Sandbox

 

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Additional Learning Resources