AWS Solutions Architect Associate (SAA-C03) vs Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ-104)
AWS Solutions Architect Associate (SAA-C03) and Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ-104) are both popular associate-level cloud certifications, but they map to different jobs — not just different clouds. AWS SAA is about designing resilient, cost-effective architectures; AZ-104 is about operating and administering an Azure environment. Both are earned via a separate vendor exam that these courses prepare you for, and both assume you already understand cloud fundamentals.
Side-by-side comparison
Price, certificate, length, rating and more — straight from each course, compared field by field.
Figures are pulled from each course listing and can change — always confirm price, certificate cost and availability on the provider’s own site before enrolling. We’re not affiliated with either provider, and blank fields mean the data isn’t published, not zero. Last reviewed August 2026.
Which should you choose?
There’s no single winner — it depends on where you’re starting and where you’re headed. If you are…
You want to design cloud architectures → AWS Solutions Architect Associate
You want to operate and administer cloud environments → Azure Administrator (AZ-104)
You work in an AWS environment → AWS Solutions Architect Associate
You work in a Microsoft or Azure environment → Azure Administrator (AZ-104)
You want the most in-demand associate cert overall → AWS Solutions Architect Associate
You’re aiming for a cloud operations / sysadmin role → Azure Administrator (AZ-104)
You’re on a solutions or cloud architect path → AWS Solutions Architect Associate
AWS Solutions Architect Associate is the choice if you want to design cloud architectures on the market-leading platform, while Azure Administrator (AZ-104) fits an operations and administration role in Microsoft environments — they lead to different jobs, not just different clouds.
Best for: Both are associate-level cloud certifications, but they target different roles. AWS Solutions Architect Associate is about designing resilient, cost-effective architectures on AWS — EC2, S3, VPC, high availability. Azure Administrator (AZ-104) is about operating and administering Azure — identity, storage, networking and compute. Both prepare you for a separate vendor exam, and both assume you already grasp cloud fundamentals.
Career outcomes: AWS Solutions Architect Associate points toward Cloud and Solutions Architect and cloud-engineering roles; Azure Administrator points toward Cloud Administrator, SysAdmin and Azure operations roles. Both are among the most valued associate certifications in their ecosystems. Whichever you pick, you sit a separate vendor exam to hold the credential (AWS SAA around $150, Azure AZ-104 around $165) that the course prepares you for — and hands-on lab practice matters as much as passing the exam.
Frequently asked questions
It depends on the role and the cloud you work in: choose AWS SAA if you want to design architectures, or Azure AZ-104 if you want to operate and administer environments — and match it to the cloud your employer uses.
Both are associate-level, but they focus on different things: SAA is architecture and design, AZ-104 is administration and operations.
Yes — both assume cloud fundamentals (e.g. AWS Cloud Practitioner or Azure AZ-900) and some hands-on comfort. They’re a step up from the entry certs.
AWS Solutions Architect Associate is one of the most sought-after cloud certifications overall; AZ-104 is key within Azure and Microsoft-heavy organisations.
AWS SAA is around $150 and Azure AZ-104 around $165, paid separately from the course.
Yes, but most people specialise in one cloud first; holding both signals genuine multi-cloud ability.