AWS SysOps Administrator and Solutions Architect Associate are both intermediate AWS certifications but focus on different aspects. SysOps covers day-to-day operations, monitoring, and maintenance, while Solutions Architect covers design and architectural decision-making.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| AWS SysOps Administrator – Associate | AWS Solutions Architect – Associate | |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor | Amazon Web Services | Amazon Web Services |
| Exam Code | SOA-C02 | SAA-C03 |
| Level | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| Cost | $150 | $150 |
| Duration | 130 min | 130 min |
| Questions | 65 | 65 |
| Passing Score | 720/1000 | 720/1000 |
| Renewal | 3 years | 3 years |
| Prerequisites | None required; one or more years of hands-on AWS administration experience recommended | None required; one or more years of hands-on experience designing solutions on AWS recommended |
| Avg Salary Range | $90,000–$130,000 | $100,000–$140,000 |
Focus Areas
AWS SysOps Administrator – Associate
Deploying, managing, and operating workloads on AWS including monitoring, logging, networking, security, automation, and cost optimization
AWS Solutions Architect – Associate
Designing resilient architectures, high-performing architectures, secure applications and architectures, and cost-optimized architectures on AWS
Who Should Get Which?
Get AWS SysOps Administrator – Associate if...
Cloud operations engineers, system administrators managing AWS environments, or DevOps professionals responsible for monitoring, automation, and incident response in AWS
Get AWS Solutions Architect – Associate if...
Cloud architects who design solutions, evaluate service options, and make infrastructure decisions for resilience, performance, and cost across AWS
Recommended Order
Get SAA first. It establishes the foundational knowledge of AWS services and architecture that SysOps builds upon. SysOps assumes you understand how services work and tests whether you can operate and troubleshoot them.
Study Tips
SysOps includes hands-on lab components that SAA does not. Focus on CloudWatch, Systems Manager, automated remediation, and deployment strategies. Both exams share about 40% content in networking, storage, and compute, so leverage that overlap.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between AWS SysOps Administrator – Associate and AWS Solutions Architect – Associate?
AWS SysOps Administrator and Solutions Architect Associate are both intermediate AWS certifications but focus on different aspects. SysOps covers day-to-day operations, monitoring, and maintenance, while Solutions Architect covers design and architectural decision-making.
Should I get AWS SysOps Administrator – Associate or AWS Solutions Architect – Associate first?
Get SAA first. It establishes the foundational knowledge of AWS services and architecture that SysOps builds upon. SysOps assumes you understand how services work and tests whether you can operate and troubleshoot them.
Who should get AWS SysOps Administrator – Associate?
Cloud operations engineers, system administrators managing AWS environments, or DevOps professionals responsible for monitoring, automation, and incident response in AWS
Who should get AWS Solutions Architect – Associate?
Cloud architects who design solutions, evaluate service options, and make infrastructure decisions for resilience, performance, and cost across AWS
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