Microsoft Certified: Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty

Exam format

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Microsoft Certified: Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty Exam Format

DP-420

Everything the official exam blueprint specifies: question count, time limit, scoring and the weight each domain carries. The Microsoft Certified: Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty certification validates your expertise in designing, building, testing, and optimizing Azure Cosmos DB solutions. This credential focuses on non-relational data modeling, partitioning, indexing, consistency, global distribution, and integration. It demonstrates your ability to deliver scalable, high-performance database solutions using one of the world's leading multi-model cloud database services.

60 questions
100 min
70% to pass
5 domains

Exam facts at a glance

The published specifications for this certification.

SpecificationValue
Questions60
Time limit100 minutes (100s per question)
Passing score70% — 700 or greater (on a scale of 1 to 1,000)
Domains5
LevelAssociate
Question bank here60 questions
Published formatNot published by the provider; exam duration is 100 minutes
SourceOfficial exam specification, published by the vendor

Official domain weights

The percentage of the exam each domain carries. Weight your revision by these numbers, not by what you find hardest.

DomainWeightTopicsPractice Qs
Design and implement data models38%
  • Design a data model for Azure Cosmos DB applications
  • Use the API to model entities and relationships
  • Implement data duplication and denormalization strategies
  • +7 more
23
Optimize an Azure Cosmos DB solution18%
  • Monitor performance with Azure Monitor and Cosmos DB metrics
  • Diagnose and fix slow queries and throttling issues
  • Optimize server-side and client-side throughput
  • +5 more
11
Maintain an Azure Cosmos DB solution28%
  • Implement data encryption at rest and in transit
  • Configure network isolation with private endpoints
  • Manage authentication and authorization with RBAC
  • +6 more
16
Integrate an Azure Cosmos DB solution8%
  • Integrate Azure Cosmos DB with Azure Functions and event hubs
  • Use Azure Synapse Link for near-real-time analytics
  • Develop stored procedures, triggers, and user-defined functions
  • +4 more
5
Design and implement data distribution8%
  • Design multi-region Azure Cosmos DB accounts
  • Define failover priorities and automatic failover settings
  • Implement manual and service-managed failover
  • +3 more
5

The heaviest domain is Design and implement data models at 38%, and that is where lost points cost you the most. Certilum scores you per domain so you can see the difference between a knowledge gap and a formatting problem.

Note from the vendor record: RENAME effective 2026-10-06: the certification becomes 'Microsoft Certified: Azure Cosmos DB AI Developer Associate' (exam code stays DP-420; no action required for holders). Renewal every 12 months. No standalone exam page: /exams/dp-420/ 301-redirects to the certification page. Official exam page

More about the Microsoft Certified: Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty exam

Explore the rest of this page series: format, cost, difficulty, requirements and how to prepare.

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Frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know about the Microsoft Certified: Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty exam.