Is AWS CLF-C01 Still Valid?
You can’t take CLF-C01 anymore, and the certificates it produced have now reached the end of their three-year window. Here’s the timeline and what to do about it.
The CLF-C01 exam is retired, so it’s no longer valid for testing. A CLF-C01 certification stays valid for three years from the date you passed. Because AWS retired the exam in September 2023, the last CLF-C01 certificates reach their three-year limit around September 2026, so check your AWS Certification account for your exact date.
There are really two questions inside this one: is the exam still available, and is a certificate you earned on it still good? They have different answers.
Can you still take CLF-C01?
No. AWS retired CLF-C01 when it launched CLF-C02 in September 2023. The only Cloud Practitioner exam now is CLF-C02. If a course or practice test site still advertises C01 as current, it’s out of date.
Is a certificate earned on C01 valid?
That depends on when you passed. AWS certifications last three years from the date you pass, regardless of which version of the exam you took. Your account shows your exact expiry date, and so does your digital badge.
Do the math for the last possible C01 pass: September 2023 plus three years is September 2026. That means that, by the calendar, essentially every CLF-C01 certification either has expired or is expiring around now. Your account shows the authoritative date. If you earned yours earlier, it expired earlier.
I’d rather you check than trust my arithmetic. Log in to your AWS Certification account, open your certifications, and read the date.
What if yours has expired?
You have a few options.
Take CLF-C02. This is the simplest way to hold an active Cloud Practitioner credential. It costs $100, and the content overlaps a lot with C01, with more emphasis on security. See the differences between C01 and C02.
Move up instead. If you’ve been working with AWS, you may be better served by an associate exam. A passing associate certification gives you a more valuable credential, and it’s current.
Do nothing. If you don’t need the credential for work, you can let it go. It doesn’t affect your AWS account.
How to list it on a resume
If it has expired, be honest. You can write something like “AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C01), earned March 2021, expired March 2024.” That way an employer who verifies it finds exactly what you said. Listing an expired certification as active is a bad idea, since badges are verifiable.
Better yet, update it. A current certification speaks louder than an old one.
Does C01 knowledge still help?
Yes. The foundation hasn’t changed much: cloud benefits, shared responsibility, core services, pricing models, and support plans are still the heart of the exam. If you studied for C01, you’ve got a good base for C02. You’ll want to add security depth and check newer services.
Is anything else from the C01 era still valid?
Digital badges from the period stay on record, but they show their status and expiry. The 50% discount voucher you got when you passed has long since expired as well.
What about newer AWS exams?
AWS keeps updating its lineup. Exams get new versions every few years, and new ones appear. To see what’s current, the certification page on AWS’s site is the only reliable source. It lists live exams and their codes.
For how renewals work generally, see do AWS certifications expire, and for the current exam’s timeline, read does CLF-C02 expire.
A few more questions people ask
Can I renew a CLF-C01 certification?
You can’t retake C01, but you can recertify by passing CLF-C02 or a higher-level exam, according to AWS policy. Check the recertification page for current options.
Does an expired certification affect my AWS account?
No. Your AWS account and any resources are unaffected. It only changes the status of your certification credential.
Will employers still accept a C01 badge?
An expired badge shows as expired when verified. If you need an active credential, renewing is the safer move.
Practice for the CLF-C02 with full-length exams
Six full-length CLF-C02 practice exams, 390 questions in all, built around the real exam blueprint. Run them timed to rehearse your pacing, or drill one domain at a time when you know where you are weak. You see how you did by domain after every attempt, so you know what to study next.
- 6 full-length exams, 65 questions each
- Timed exam mode and practice by domain
- Explanations to learn from your misses
- Results broken down by exam domain