About the exam, for when you are ready to book
Quick answer
The Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate exam has 45 scored multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes, costs USD 200 plus tax, and has no required prerequisites (checked November 2026). See all the exam facts.
About the exam
Data Engineer Associate
The Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate certification is for people who build and run data pipelines on the Databricks platform. It is an associate-level credential. It suits data engineers, people moving into data engineering, and anyone who works with Databricks day to day. The exam guide lists seven sections: the Databricks Intelligence Platform, data ingestion and loading, data transformation and modeling, working with Lakeflow Jobs, implementing CI/CD, troubleshooting, monitoring and optimization, and governance and security. Each section covers a different part of the data engineering job, so a practice test that covers only one area leaves gaps. Many questions here describe a situation and ask which feature or setting fits it.
Our questions are original, written from the Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate exam guide and Databricks documentation, and each answer is explained. Studying nearby topics? Try the Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer, Snowflake SnowPro Core and Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer free practice tests.
Reviewed against the sources below · Report a problem
Exam facts
Data Engineer Associate: format, time and fee Last checked November 2026
- Exam name
- Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate. No exam code is published.Databricks certification page
- Questions
- 45 scored multiple-choice questions, plus up to 10 unscored items that are not identifiedDatabricks certification page
- Time
- 90 minutes (extra time for unscored items is already included)Databricks certification page
- Fee
- USD 200, plus applicable taxesDatabricks certification page
- Question types
- Multiple choice. Code is shown in SQL when possible, otherwise Python.Databricks certification page
- Languages
- English, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, KoreanExam guide (August 2026)
- Delivery
- Online proctored or at a test center; no test aides allowedDatabricks certification page
- Prerequisites
- None required; related training and about six months of hands-on Databricks experience are recommendedExam guide (August 2026)
- Validity
- 2 years; recertify with the renewal exam or the current full examDatabricks certification page
- Exam guide version
- Published May 4, 2026; guide updated August 6, 2026Exam guide (August 2026)
- Sections
- Databricks Intelligence Platform; Data Ingestion and Loading; Data Transformation and Modeling; Working with Lakeflow Jobs; Implementing CI/CD; Troubleshooting, Monitoring, and Optimization; Governance and SecurityExam guide (August 2026)
- Passing score
- Not published.Not published by Databricks
- Our practice test
- Single-answer questions only, with our own question count, pass mark and timer. These are not Databricks' settings.This site
Every question here has exactly one correct answer. If the real exam also uses multiple-select or other types, the facts above say so. Confirm current details with Databricks before you register.
What to focus on for the Data Engineer Associate
- Reading without hands-on practice. Databricks recommends about six months of hands-on experience, so run the pipeline steps yourself in a workspace rather than only reading about them.
- Mixing up look-alike features, such as COPY INTO versus Auto Loader, managed versus external tables, or serverless versus classic compute. Learn what each one is for and when it fits.
- Getting Unity Catalog privileges and ownership wrong. Know who can grant, use and own objects, since governance and security is one of the seven sections.
- Skimming code. Read each snippet carefully, because questions can show SQL or Python, and a single keyword or argument can change the answer.
- Set up a Databricks workspace and practice each section, starting with data ingestion and transformation.
- Take this free practice test one section at a time, read every explanation, then retake your weakest section.
Sample Data Engineer Associate practice questions
Three questions pulled straight from the bank, with the answer shown. For the timed, no-peeking version, use the quiz above.
Why: Delta Lake is the optimized storage layer that supports ACID transactions and schema enforcement. Unity Catalog is the governance layer, Spark is the processing engine, and Auto Loader is an ingestion tool, so none of them is the storage layer.
Why: The standard file connector for S3, ADLS and GCS uses Auto Loader or COPY INTO. File upload is for local files, JDBC and pyodbc connect to databases, and the Google Drive and SharePoint connectors read other file services.
Why: Databricks recommends Auto Loader in Lakeflow pipelines for incremental ingestion, and pipelines manage the schema and checkpoint settings automatically. Hand-managed streaming adds work, and file upload suits small local files.
FAQ
Data Engineer Associate questions, answered
How much does the exam cost and how do I register?
Databricks lists the fee as USD 200, plus applicable taxes. Registration and the current price are on the Databricks certification page (checked November 2026), so confirm there before you book. Databricks certification page.
Is this the real exam?
No. This is a free mock test made of original questions we wrote from Databricks's public documentation. It is not the real exam, it is not affiliated with or endorsed by Databricks, and it cannot promise a pass.
Does the real exam have questions with more than one correct answer?
Databricks describes the exam as multiple choice and does not mention multiple-select items. Every question here has exactly one correct answer; the real exam may still differ in other ways, so use this test to learn the topics.
Is the timed test the same as the real Data Engineer Associate exam?
No. Ours has 45 questions in 90 minutes, all single-answer, with a 70% practice pass mark we chose ourselves. Databricks's own format is in the exam facts.
How should I use this Data Engineer Associate practice test?
Start with quick practice and read every explanation, including for the answers you got right. Then check Where you stand to find your weakest section, practice it again, and finish with a timed test.