Take CCAO-F if you use Claude in a business role. Take CCDV-F if you write the code that calls it. Take CCAR-F if you design Claude systems and have not done so at scale. Take CCAR-P if you already run enterprise Claude deployments.
All four run 120 minutes and need 720 out of 1,000 to pass.
Side by side
| Code | Certification | Items | Time | Anthropic's fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCAO-F | Claude Certified Associate, Foundations | 60 | 120 min | $99 |
| CCDV-F | Claude Certified Developer, Foundations | 53 | 120 min | $125 |
| CCAR-F | Claude Certified Architect, Foundations | 60 | 120 min | $125 |
| CCAR-P | Claude Certified Architect, Professional | 63 | 120 min | $175 |
Pick by what you do today
CCAO-F, Claude Certified Associate, Foundations
For people who use Claude in their daily work: operations, marketing, finance, HR, legal, consulting, support. It covers what the models can and cannot do, how to write instructions that hold up, where human review belongs and how to work safely with company data.
Take it if you want to prove competence to an employer without claiming to be an engineer. Skip it if you write production code.
CCDV-F, Claude Certified Developer, Foundations
For engineers building on the API: tool use, structured output, evaluation, context handling, error paths and cost control. It has the fewest items of the four at 53, which does not make it the easiest.
Take it if you ship features that call Claude. Skip it if you design the system and leave the code to others.
CCAR-F, Claude Certified Architect, Foundations
For solution architects and technical leads deciding how Claude fits into a wider system: integration patterns, data flow, security boundaries, evaluation strategy and where humans stay in the loop.
Take it if you are moving from building to designing. Skip it if you have already run several deployments to production, because CCAR-P is the credential that says so.
CCAR-P, Claude Certified Architect, Professional
The senior credential, at 63 items and a $175 fee. It assumes production experience: multi-team rollouts, governance, cost at scale, reliability, model selection and the failure modes you only meet with real traffic.
Take it if you already carry responsibility for a live Claude deployment. It is the track employers ask for by name when hiring architects.
If you are between two tracks
- Business role that writes some Python: CCAO-F. The developer exam assumes you ship code for a living.
- Engineer moving into architecture: CCDV-F now, CCAR-F next. They stack.
- Architect with no production Claude work yet: CCAR-F. CCAR-P tests experience you can only get by doing it.
- Consultant selling Claude work: CCAR-F. Clients read the architect title and it matches the conversations you are already in.
What all four have in common
- 120 minutes, delivered by Pearson VUE online or at a test centre.
- Scaled score of 720 out of 1,000 to pass.
- Credly badge on a pass, valid for 12 months.
- Registration through a Claude Partner Network organisation with a work email on a recognised domain.
- Retake waits of 14, 30 and 90 days, four attempts maximum per rolling 12 months.
At TIMO Labs the price is the same $500 whichever you choose, so the fee difference does not need to enter the decision.
Get certified through TIMO Labs
Pick your track on the page after payment, and change it any time before we book the exam.
Pay $500 and start today