How Long Does It Take to Prepare for AZ-104? Realistic Study Plan for Beginners (2026)

Most candidates need 6 to 12 weeks to prepare for AZ-104, studying 1–2 hours a day. The exact number depends on your prior IT and Azure experience. It also depends on how much time you can study each week, and whether you have hands-on access to an Azure environment. Complete beginners with no cloud background should plan for the longer end of that range. Experienced IT professionals with some Azure exposure can often be exam-ready in about a month to six weeks.

Here’s a quick breakdown:

These ranges assume consistent, focused study; not cramming the week before your exam date. The rest of this guide breaks down exactly why timelines vary and gives you a detailed AZ-104 study plan for beginners, plus a shorter track for those with some IT background.

Factors That Affect How Long You Need to Prepare

No two candidates start from the same place, so no single number fits everyone. Here are the variables that matter most:

1. Your existing IT background. If you’ve worked with servers, networking, or system administration, concepts like virtual machines, DNS, and access control will feel familiar. If you’re coming from a non-technical role, you’ll need extra time to absorb foundational networking and identity concepts before layering Azure specifics on top.

2. Prior Azure or cloud exposure. Even light experience, using a free Azure account, or having completed AZ-900 (Azure Fundamentals); shortens your ramp-up considerably. AZ-900 isn’t a prerequisite for AZ-104, but it does build vocabulary that makes the associate-level material click faster.

3. Hands-on practice time, not just reading time. AZ-104 is a scenario-based exam. Questions describe real configurations and ask what you’d do next. You cannot pass reliably by watching videos or reading documentation alone, you need real time inside an Azure subscription creating, breaking, and fixing resources.

Hands-on practice is non-negotiable for AZ-104. Reading alone is not enough because the exam tests real configuration scenarios. Structured AZ-104 labs that walk you through identities, storage, compute, networking, and monitoring are one of the fastest ways to reduce your overall preparation time. You can find a complete list of the best free and paid hands-on exercises here: AZ-104 labs.

4. How much time you can realistically commit per week. Someone studying 10 hours a week will finish in roughly half the calendar time of someone studying 5 hours a week. This assumes both candidates start from a similar place. Be honest about your actual available hours, not your aspirational ones.

5. Whether you study one domain at a time or spread yourself thin. Jumping between topics without reinforcement slows retention. A structured, sequential plan (which this article provides) is more time-efficient than random studying.

6. Test-taking comfort and English-language question complexity. AZ-104 uses scenario and case-study formats. If you’re not used to this exam style, budget extra time for practice assessments so the format itself isn’t a surprise on exam day.

AZ-104 Exam Overview (2026)

Before building a study plan, it helps to know exactly what you’re preparing for. Passing AZ-104 earns you the Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate credential. Microsoft last updated the AZ-104 skills-measured outline on April 17, 2026. Here’s the current format:

• Exam duration: 100 minutes of actual exam time (plus time for the pre-exam survey)
• Number of questions: Typically 40–60, including scenario-based and case-study questions
• Passing score: 700 out of 1000
• Question formats: Multiple choice, drag-and-drop, case studies, and interactive labs
• Prerequisites: None required, though familiarity with networking, virtualization, and operating systems is expected
• Cost: Varies by country (check your local pricing on the official exam page)

Official Domain Weightings (as of April 2026)

For a complete breakdown of every skill Microsoft currently tests, review the full list of AZ-104 exam topics. Pair that with a practical AZ-104 study guide and the detailed AZ-104 exam guide so you know exactly how to allocate your study hours across the five domains.

Notice that identities/governance and compute together make up nearly half the exam. Any efficient study plan should weight time accordingly rather than splitting hours evenly across all five domains. For the full, authoritative breakdown of every skill measured, refer to the official AZ-104 study guide, it’s the single most important resource for anyone preparing for this exam.

Realistic Preparation Timelines by Experience Level

Expanding on the table above, here’s what each experience level typically looks like in practice.

AZ-104 preparation time is rarely wasted if it’s spent hands-on. Picture two candidates. One spends 60 hours split evenly between Microsoft Learn modules and an actual Azure subscription. The other spends 90 hours only reading or watching videos. The first candidate will typically outperform the second on exam day. Time in the portal is not optional, treat it as core study time, not a bonus activity.

Complete Beginner-Focused Study Plans

Both plans below follow a 1:1 ratio of theory to hands-on practice for every hour spent learning a concept, spend roughly an hour applying it in a real Azure environment. This is the single biggest lever for reducing your overall preparation time, because hands-on repetition is what makes scenario-based questions solvable on exam day.

Before you start either plan, set up an Azure free account so you have a real environment to practice in throughout your studies.

Primary: 12-Week Study Plan for Beginners

Weeks 1–2: Foundations and Environment Setup

• Goals: Understand core cloud concepts, Azure structure (subscriptions, resource groups, regions), and get comfortable navigating the Azure portal.
• Focus domain: Prerequisites / foundational concepts
• Hands-on tasks: Create your Azure account, create your first resource group, explore the Azure portal, Cloud Shell, and try basic Azure CLI and PowerShell commands.
• Recommended hours: 8–10 hrs/week
• Resource: Work through the AZ-104 prerequisites learning path on Microsoft Learn.

Weeks 3–4: Identities and Governance (Part 1)

• Goals: Understand Microsoft Entra ID, users, groups, and licensing.
• Focus domain: Manage Azure identities and governance (20–25%)
• Hands-on tasks: Create users and groups in Microsoft Entra ID, assign licenses, configure a guest (B2B) user.
• Recommended hours: 9–10 hrs/week (roughly half theory, half hands-on)

Weeks 5–6: Identities and Governance (Part 2)

• Goals: Master Azure RBAC, resource locks, tags, Azure Policy, subscriptions, and cost management.
• Focus domain: Manage Azure identities and governance (continued)
• Hands-on tasks: Assign roles at different scopes, create a resource lock, apply tags, build a simple Azure Policy definition, set up a cost alert.
• Recommended hours: 9–10 hrs/week
• Resource: AZ-104: Manage identities and governance in Azure covers this entire block.

Week 7: Storage

• Goals: Understand storage accounts, redundancy options, Blob Storage, and Azure Files.
• Focus domain: Implement and manage storage (15–20%)
• Hands-on tasks: Create a storage account, configure redundancy, create a blob container and a file share, generate a SAS token, configure lifecycle management rules.
• Recommended hours: 8–10 hrs
• Resource: Work through AZ-104: Implement and manage storage in Azure.

Weeks 8–9: Compute Resources

• Goals: Deploy and manage virtual machines, containers, App Service, and ARM/Bicep templates.
• Focus domain: Deploy and manage Azure compute resources (20–25%)
• Hands-on tasks: Deploy a VM, resize it, attach a data disk, deploy a VM scale set, create an App Service and deploy a simple app, deploy a resource using an ARM template and then convert it to Bicep.
• Recommended hours: 9–10 hrs/week
• Resource: AZ-104: Deploy and manage Azure compute resources

Week 10: Virtual Networking

• Goals: Understand VNets, subnets, NSGs, DNS, load balancing, and secure access.
• Focus domain: Implement and manage virtual networking (15–20%)
• Hands-on tasks: Create a VNet with subnets, configure an NSG, set up VNet peering, deploy Azure Bastion, configure a public load balancer, test Azure DNS.
• Recommended hours: 8–10 hrs
• Resource: Work through AZ-104: Configure and manage virtual networks for Azure administrators.

Week 11: Monitoring, Backup, and Recovery

• Goals: Learn Azure Monitor, alerts, backup policies, and Azure Site Recovery basics.
• Focus domain: Monitor and maintain Azure resources (10–15%)
• Hands-on tasks: Set up an alert rule, query logs in Azure Monitor, create a Recovery Services vault, back up a VM, perform a test restore.
• Recommended hours: 7–8 hrs
• Resource: AZ-104: Monitor and back up Azure resources

Week 12: Review, Practice Assessment, and Exam Readiness

• Goals: Identify weak areas, reinforce hands-on skills, simulate exam conditions.
• Focus domain: All domains, weighted toward your weakest scores
• Hands-on tasks: Re-do any labs you struggled with, revisit the exam skills outline bullet by bullet.
• Recommended hours: 8–10 hrs
• Resource: Take the official AZ-104 practice assessment at least twice, a week apart, to track improvement.

In the final week, shift most of your time to realistic exam simulation. Learn the proper system for using mock exams effectively in this guide: how to prepare for AZ-104 with mock exams. Combine that approach with high-quality AZ-104 practice tests and carefully selected AZ-104 Microsoft Azure Administrator exam questions so you can identify weak domains before exam day.

Secondary: 8-Week Balanced Plan (Some IT Background)

If you already understand networking, servers, and general IT administration, you can compress the plan above:

This compressed plan still respects the 1:1 theory-to-practice ratio; it simply assumes faster comprehension of underlying IT concepts, not less hands-on time.

How to Fit AZ-104 Preparation Around a Full-Time Job

Most candidates aren’t studying full-time. Here’s a practical weekly template that fits around a standard 9-to-5:

Weekday schedule (Monday–Friday):

• 30–45 minutes in the morning or during lunch: review one Microsoft Learn module or re-read notes from the previous session
• 45–60 minutes in the evening: hands-on lab work in your Azure subscription, applying what you reviewed

Weekend schedule (Saturday and Sunday):

• One 2–3 hour focused block each day: deeper hands-on labs, tying together multiple concepts from the week, or taking a section of the practice assessment

This template gives you roughly 8–10 hours per week without requiring you to sacrifice entire evenings. A few tips to protect this schedule:

• Batch similar tasks. Do all your reading in short weekday sessions and save longer hands-on blocks for weekends when you have more uninterrupted time.
• Use a recurring calendar block. Treat study time like a meeting you can’t skip.
• Shut down your Azure resources when not in use. This keeps you within free-tier limits and avoids unexpected costs while practicing on nights and weekends.
• Track progress weekly, not daily. Full-time work makes daily consistency hard; weekly consistency is more sustainable and still keeps you on pace for your 6–12 week target.

Best Official and High-Quality Free Resources

Stick to official Microsoft resources as your primary source of truth. They’re free, current, and directly aligned with what’s tested. Here’s your complete toolkit, in the order you’ll actually use it:

1. Official AZ-104 study guide: read this first. It’s the definitive breakdown of every skill measured, with exact domain weightings and links to relevant documentation. Bookmark it; you’ll return to it often.
2. Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate certification page): check this once you know what you’re working toward. It covers how the certification works, renewal requirements, and how to schedule your exam.
3. Azure free account: set this up before your first study session. Every hands-on task in this guide runs on it, at no cost.
4. The five domain-specific Microsoft Learn paths throughout the study plan (identities and governance, storage, compute, networking, and monitoring/backup), work through these in order; they’re the backbone of your entire schedule.
5. Official AZ-104 practice assessment: save this for your final review week. It’s free, Microsoft-authored, and the most reliable way to gauge real readiness.
6. Exam Readiness Zone: short, free videos where certified experts walk through each exam objective. Use these as a supplement once you’ve finished the core Learn modules, not as a replacement for them.
7. Microsoft Q&A: a moderated community forum for when you get stuck on a specific concept or lab step.

Free Downloadable AZ-104 Resources

To make your study plan even more practical, you can download these free checklists and practice materials:

• AZ-104 Practice Tests + Labs Hands-on Practice 2026 (PDF)
• AZ-104 Labs Checklist & Study Path (PDF)
• PassITExams AZ-104 Study Guide – Free Checklist & Notes (PDF)

These resources pair perfectly with the weekly plans above and help you track progress without extra cost.

You genuinely do not need a paid course to pass AZ-104. Complete the official learning paths, do the hands-on labs, and take the practice assessment seriously. That combination covers everything the exam tests. A paid course can help learners who prefer structured video instruction, but it should never replace hands-on practice or the official study guide.

Common Mistakes That Make Preparation Take Longer

Avoiding these mistakes can shave weeks off your timeline:

• Skipping hands-on practice. Reading about NSGs is not the same as configuring one and troubleshooting why traffic isn’t flowing. Scenario questions punish theory-only preparation.
• Studying all domains equally. Since identities/governance and compute together make up 40–50% of the exam, under-studying them relative to lower-weighted domains like monitoring is a common and costly error.
• Relying on outdated material. Azure changes frequently, and Microsoft updates the AZ-104 outline periodically (most recently in April 2026). Old blog posts or outdated video courses can teach you services or workflows that no longer match the current exam.
• Braindumping instead of practicing. Memorizing leaked questions doesn’t build the reasoning skills the exam actually tests. Microsoft’s question pools also rotate regularly. This approach wastes your time and risks certification integrity violations.
• Not simulating exam conditions. If your first timed, full-length practice run happens on exam day itself, pacing issues will cost you points you otherwise would have earned.
• Inconsistent study cadence. Long gaps between sessions mean re-learning material you’ve forgotten. That relearning quietly adds hours to your total prep time.
• Ignoring your weak areas. It’s tempting to keep reviewing what you already know because it feels productive. Real progress comes from identifying and closing specific gaps.

Once you pass AZ-104, the certification opens clear career paths. Many candidates want to know what roles and salary ranges to expect after becoming a Microsoft Certified Azure Administrator. You can see the current job market, typical salaries, and career opportunities in detail here: AZ-104 jobs, salary & career opportunities.

How to Know You Are Ready for the Exam

You don’t need to feel 100% confident to pass, but you should be able to check off most of these before booking your exam date:

• You consistently score 80% or higher on the official practice assessment. This should hold across multiple attempts, not just once.
• You can complete every hands-on task listed in each domain’s bullet points from the official study guide without looking up basic steps.
• You understand why an answer is correct, not just which answer is correct, scenario questions often have multiple plausible-looking answers.
• You can explain, out loud, the difference between related services (for example, when to use Azure Files versus Blob Storage, or an NSG versus Azure Bastion) without hesitating.
• You’ve reviewed every bullet point in the skills-measured outline at least once and can honestly say you’ve either studied it or practiced it hands-on.
• You feel comfortable with the exam’s pacing after at least one full timed practice run.

If you’re consistently missing questions in one domain, don’t move on, go back to that domain’s Microsoft Learn path and the corresponding hands-on labs before scheduling your exam.

Frequently Asked Questions FAQ’s

Is AZ-104 hard for beginners?

AZ-104 is an associate-level exam, meaning it assumes some familiarity with IT concepts like networking and operating systems. Complete beginners can absolutely pass, but they should expect to spend more time on foundational concepts before the Azure-specific material makes full sense.

Can I pass AZ-104 in 2 weeks?

It’s possible only if you already have substantial hands-on Azure or cloud administration experience. For most beginners, 2 weeks is not enough time to build the depth of hands-on skill the scenario-based questions require.

Do I need AZ-900 before AZ-104?

AZ-900 (Azure Fundamentals) is not a formal prerequisite for AZ-104. However, if you’re completely new to cloud concepts, spending a week on AZ-900-level material can make your AZ-104 preparation faster and less overwhelming.

How many hours a day should I study for AZ-104?

Most successful candidates study 1–2 hours per day, or equivalent longer sessions on weekends, totaling 8–10 hours per week. Consistency matters more than long, infrequent study marathons.

Is the AZ-104 exam open-book?

No. You cannot access outside documentation during the exam. All preparation, including familiarity with Microsoft Learn documentation, needs to happen before exam day.

What’s the best AZ-104 study plan for 2026?

The most reliable approach for an AZ-104 study plan in 2026 is to follow the current, April 2026 skills-measured outline directly from Microsoft, work through the five official domain-specific learning paths in order, and pair every concept with hands-on practice in a free Azure account before taking the official practice assessment.

Conclusion: Your Next Steps

There’s no universal answer to how long AZ-104 preparation takes; it depends on your background, your weekly availability, and how much hands-on time you put in. But as a realistic baseline: beginners should plan for 10–12 weeks, intermediate IT professionals for 6–8 weeks, and experienced Azure users for 4–6 weeks, all built around consistent, hands-on study rather than passive reading.

Don’t overthink your first move. Do these two things today, in this order:

1. Open the official AZ-104 study guide and skim the skills-measured outline once, start to finish. This takes 15 minutes and shows you the full shape of the exam.
2. Set up your Azure free account and create one resource group before you close your laptop tonight. That single action turns “studying” into “doing,” which is the habit this entire plan depends on.

Then open Week 1 of the 12-week plan and get started. Momentum built in the first two weeks is what carries most candidates through to exam day.