AWS · SAA-C03 · Balanced pace

10-week AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate Study Plan (SAA-C03)

A 10-week study plan for AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03) covers roughly 100 hours at ~10 hours per week across the published 4 exam domains. The sweet spot for most SAA-C03 candidates. 10 hours per week is sustainable while working, and leaves time for hands-on labs alongside reading.

Timeline
10 weeks
Hours per week
~10
Total hours
~100
Plan setup
ExamSun, Jul 26, 2026· Week 1010 weeks · ~10h/week

10-week SAA-C03 activity tracker

Visual preview of how exclam.ai distributes 10 weeks across the 4 SAA-C03 domains, plus review and mock phases. Adjust the start date and review week to match your exam timeline.

Preview · planner-style activity
0 / 4
EP today
4d
projected
49
study days
10h
100h total
10w
to exam
JunJul
lighter dayfull targetforecastModule startReviewMocksExam

Week-by-week module breakdown

A 10-week SAA-C03 plan walks the 4 domains in syllabus order. Heavier domains get more time; lighter ones may pair with adjacent material on intensive paces. Review and mock phases follow the coverage modules.

Module 1 of 4
Weeks 1–2
Exam weight 30%

Design Secure Architectures

Cover Design Secure Architectures end-to-end. Build flashcards covering every learning objective and quiz yourself before moving to the next module.

Module 2 of 4
Weeks 3–4
Exam weight 26%

Design Resilient Architectures

Cover Design Resilient Architectures end-to-end. Build flashcards covering every learning objective and quiz yourself before moving to the next module.

Module 3 of 4
Week 5
Exam weight 24%

Design High-Performing Architectures

Cover Design High-Performing Architectures end-to-end. Build flashcards covering every learning objective and quiz yourself before moving to the next module.

Module 4 of 4
Week 6
Exam weight 20%

Design Cost-Optimized Architectures

Cover Design Cost-Optimized Architectures end-to-end. Build flashcards covering every learning objective and quiz yourself before moving to the next module.

Phase: Review
Weeks 7–8

Review

Weak-topic drilling. exclam.ai surfaces topics where you underperformed during coverage and re-quizzes them. Daily FSRS flashcard reps across all 4 topics to prevent decay. Start doing timed question batches focused on the heaviest-weight sections.

Phase: Mocks
Weeks 9–10

Mocks

Full-length SAA-C03 practice exams under timed conditions. Target one mock every 3–5 days. Same-day error review: for every question you miss, re-derive the solution from scratch. Taper in the final 3 days — light flashcards only.

What this plan covers

AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate has 4 domains. This plan allocates time across all of them, weighted by the published exam weights from the SAA-C03 exam guide.

Design Secure Architectures
30%
Design Resilient Architectures
26%
Design High-Performing Architectures
24%
Design Cost-Optimized Architectures
20%

Source: official SAA-C03 exam guide published by Amazon Web Services.

Is a 10-week plan right for you?

This plan works if…

  • You can commit 10 hours per week consistently
  • You want full domain coverage plus hands-on lab time
  • You are working full-time alongside prep
  • You want room for multiple practice exams before the real thing

Consider a different plan if…

  • ×You have less than 7 hours per week available
  • ×Your exam is fewer than the full plan length away

Other SAA-C03 durations

Start your 10-week SAA-C03 plan

Upload the free AWS SAA-C03 exam guide and exclam.ai builds the plan for you. Free to start.

See pricing