Answers to the most common questions about AZ-305: what’s tested, prerequisites, how it differs from AZ-104, how long to study, labs, and exam-day tactics.
AZ-305 validates solution architecture decisions in Azure: identity/governance/monitoring, data services, business continuity, and infrastructure design. It’s for architects and senior engineers who translate requirements into Azure designs that are secure, reliable, and cost-aware.
AZ-104 is operational (configure and run Azure). AZ-305 is design-heavy (choose the right services and justify trade-offs). AZ-305 assumes you understand operational realities (monitoring, backup, RBAC scopes), but tests your ability to select architectures.
You can usually sit AZ-305 without AZ-104, but to earn Azure Solutions Architect Expert, you must hold Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104) and pass AZ-305. Always confirm current requirements on Microsoft Learn.
The passing score is typically 700/1000 (scaled). Question count and format vary (MCQ/MR, case studies, drag-and-drop). Expect scenario wording that forces trade-offs.
Hands-on work helps, but AZ-305 is not “lab-y.” You should be able to design from first principles, and it’s much easier if you’ve built a small reference stack: hub-spoke VNet, Private Endpoints, a workload with App Insights + Log Analytics, a relational DB, a storage account with lifecycle rules, and a basic DR story.
With strong Azure exposure: 3–5 weeks part-time. If you’re new to Azure, it’s better to do AZ-900 → AZ-104 → AZ-305 rather than jumping straight to architecture patterns.