A practical AZ-204 study plan you can follow: 30-day intensive, 60-day balanced, and 90-day part-time schedules with weekly focus by domain, suggested hours/week, and tips for using the Mastery Cloud practice app.
This page answers the question most candidates actually have: “How do I structure my AZ‑204 prep?”
Below are three realistic schedules (30/60/90 days) based on Microsoft’s domain weights and the way AZ‑204 questions are written (scenario + trade‑offs + implementation details).
Use the plan that matches your available time, then follow the loop: Syllabus → drills → review misses → mixed sets → mocks.
| Your starting point | Typical total study time | Best-fit timeline |
|---|---|---|
| You build on Azure weekly (App Service/Functions/Entra ID) | 40–60 hours | 30–60 days |
| You’ve used Azure but not deeply as a dev | 60–90 hours | 60–90 days |
| You’re new to Azure development patterns | 90–120 hours | 90 days |
Choose a plan based on hours per week:
| Time you can commit | Recommended plan | What it feels like |
|---|---|---|
| 10–15 hrs/week | 30‑day intensive | Fast learning + lots of practice |
| 6–9 hrs/week | 60‑day balanced | Steady progress + room for review |
| 3–5 hrs/week | 90‑day part‑time | Slow-and-solid with repetition |
AZ‑204 domain weights:
| Domain | Weight | What you should be good at |
|---|---|---|
| Develop Azure compute solutions | 25–30% | App Service, Functions, containers, deployments and scaling |
| Develop for Azure storage | 15–20% | Cosmos DB SDK + change feed; Blob SDK + lifecycle controls |
| Implement Azure security | 15–20% | Entra ID auth, identity platform, SAS, Key Vault, managed identity |
| Monitor and troubleshoot Azure solutions | 5–10% | Application Insights instrumentation, queries, alerts |
| Connect/consume Azure + third-party services | 20–25% | API Management + policies; Event Grid/Hubs; Service Bus/Queues |
If you want a single rule: spend ~70% learning + 30% practice early, then invert it to ~30% learning + 70% practice in the final 1–2 weeks.
Target pace: ~10–15 hours/week (1.5–2.5 hrs/day).
Goal: finish the syllabus quickly, then rely on drills + mocks to harden instincts.
| Week | Focus (domains/tasks) | What to do | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Compute foundations • Task 1.1 • Task 1.2 |
Build mental “pickers”: App Service vs Functions vs Container Apps vs ACI. Do 2–3 drills and start a miss log. | Syllabus • Cheatsheet • Practice |
| 2 | Functions + storage • Task 1.3 • Task 2.1 • Task 2.2 |
Drill triggers/bindings and storage SDK patterns. End the week with a 40‑question mixed set. | Syllabus • Practice |
| 3 | Security • Task 3.1 • Task 3.2 |
Practice auth scenarios: MSAL flows, token validation, Graph permissions, SAS. Add Key Vault + managed identity “defaults” to your notes. | Cheatsheet • Practice |
| 4 | Integration + monitoring + full mocks • Task 5.1 • Task 5.2 • Task 5.3 • Task 4.1 |
Do 2 full mocks under time; re-drill weakest tasks until misses repeat less. Build 1-page “last mile” notes from the cheatsheet tables. | Practice • Cheatsheet |
Target pace: ~6–9 hours/week.
Goal: build coverage plus room for repetition and labs.
| Week | Focus (tasks) | What to do | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Task 1.1 | Docker/ACR/Container Apps basics; 2 drills. | Syllabus • Practice |
| 2 | Task 1.2 | Deploy code + containers, diagnostics, slots; 2 drills. | Cheatsheet |
| 3 | Task 1.3 | Triggers/bindings + retries; end with 30Q mixed set. | Practice |
| 4 | Task 2.1 | SDK CRUD/query + consistency + change feed; 2 drills. | Syllabus |
| 5 | Task 2.2 | Blob SDK, metadata, lifecycle; 2 drills. | Practice |
| 6 | Task 3.1 | MSAL + token validation + Graph + SAS; 2–3 drills. | Cheatsheet |
| 7 | Task 3.2 | Key Vault + App Config + managed identity patterns; end with 40Q mixed set. | Practice |
| 8 | Integration + monitoring + mocks Task 5.1–Task 5.3 + Task 4.1 |
2 full mocks under time; review every miss; re-drill weakest areas. | Practice |
Target pace: ~3–5 hours/week.
Goal: slow repetition and “stickiness” while building consistent practice habits.
| Week | Focus (tasks) | What to do | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Setup + Overview | Pick a cadence (2 study blocks + 1 drill). Start a miss log. | Practice |
| 2 | Task 1.1 | Containers + ACR fundamentals; 1–2 drills. | Syllabus |
| 3 | Task 1.2 | Deploy + config + slots; 1–2 drills. | Practice |
| 4 | Task 1.3 | Triggers/bindings; write one-line “binding pickers”. | Cheatsheet |
| 5 | Task 2.1 | CRUD/query + partition key thinking; 1–2 drills. | Practice |
| 6 | Task 2.2 | Blob metadata + lifecycle; end with a 25–30Q mixed set. | Practice |
| 7 | Task 3.1 | Identity platform basics; Graph permissions; 2 drills. | Syllabus |
| 8 | Task 3.2 | Key Vault + managed identity; add “no secrets” rules. | Cheatsheet |
| 9 | Task 5.1 | Policies and products; 2 drills. | Practice |
| 10 | Task 5.2 | Event Grid vs Event Hubs; end with a mixed set. | Practice |
| 11 | Task 5.3 | Service Bus vs queues; DLQ patterns; 2 drills. | Cheatsheet |
| 12 | Task 4.1 | App Insights queries/alerts; 1–2 drills. | Practice |
| 13 | Final review + mocks | 2 full mocks under time; re-drill weakest tasks; finalize 1-page notes. | Practice |
Use the app to turn the syllabus into a repeatable loop:
Direct practice link: /app/cloud/#/topic-selection/azure_az-204