SecProve
AssociateVendor-specificMicrosoft· issued from US

AZ-104

Microsoft Azure Administrator Associate

Microsoft Azure Administrator Associate

Official page at Microsoft↔ Compare with another cert
Exam fee
$165
Ongoing
—
Study time
60–120 hrs
Delivery
Hybrid
Validity
1 yr (renewal cycle)

› Quality score

31.5 / 40

Four-axis SecProve rubric, each 0–10. SecProve editorial assessment — each axis carries a written justification so you can push back on any single call without dismissing the whole score.

Blueprint rigor
How well-defined and rigorous the exam blueprint is.
Detailed skills outline; covers core Azure admin tasks.
7.5/10
Practical evidence
Hands-on labs / written reports vs pure MCQ.
PBQ-style scenarios — closer to admin work than pure MCQ.
6.5/10
Currency & upkeep
How aggressively content is kept current with the field.
Refreshed continuously alongside Azure platform changes.
9.0/10
Market recognition
How often this signal actually moves a hiring decision.
Default Azure admin signal; common stepping stone before AZ-500 / SC-300.
8.5/10

› Exam format

40–60 questions (multiple-choice + case studies + labs), 120 minutes. Proctored via Pearson VUE. Passing score: 700/1000.

Retake policy
Fee: $165 per attempt
Wait: 1d between attempts

24-hour wait after first fail; 14 days between attempts 2-4. Max 5 attempts per 12-month window.

› Recertification

Valid for 1 year. Free online renewal assessment on Microsoft Learn.

› NICE Framework work roles

The NIST NICE work-role IDs this cert maps to. NICCS lookup.

DD-WRL-001IO-WRL-005DD-WRL-004
Recognition
Global
Exam languages
en

› Core domains covered

The 2 domains this cert is centrally about. Passing the exam demonstrates working knowledge of each.

A5Cloud Security

AWS/Azure/GCP security controls, IAM policies, CSPM, container security, shared responsibility model.

A6Identity & Access Management

AuthN/AuthZ, SSO, MFA, PAM, RBAC/ABAC, identity governance, FIDO2/passkeys, plus non-human identity: service accounts, workload identity, agent / plugin identities.

› Prerequisites

Experience

No formal prerequisites. Recommended: AZ-900 + 6 months Azure experience.

› Progression

requiredrecommended

Where this cert fits in the typical learning path. Required edges are vendor-gated; recommended edges reflect de facto industry progression.

Required prereqs (0)

No vendor-gated prereqs.

Recommended priors (1)
AZ-900Microsoft
AZ-104
Microsoft
Required by (0)

No certs require this one.

Recommended next (3)
AZ-500MicrosoftAZ-305MicrosoftSC-300Microsoft

› Common exam traps to study

Cybersecurity cert exams reuse the same 25 distractor patterns over and over — category confusion, RTO vs RPO, IDS vs IPS, MD5 vs SHA-256, and more. Once you can name the trap, you stop falling for it. Each archetype page covers what it is, the specific pairs candidates confuse, and how to avoid it.

Browse all 25 cert-exam trapsStart with: BEST vs correct

See this cert’s domains highlighted on the interactive map, or compare it against the rest of the catalog.

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