The Linux Foundation / CNCF exam preparation
Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)
Follow a topic roadmap built from the published exam blueprint, with lessons, practice exercises in a real terminal and practice exams.
The developer counterpart to CKA. Same format and same time limit, but the tasks are about building and running applications on a cluster rather than operating the cluster itself.
What you'll learn
Every objective CKAD publishes, and what it asks you to be able to do. The percentage is how much of the exam each one is worth.
- Application Environment, Configuration and Security (25% of the exam)Understand ConfigMaps. Create & consume Secrets. Understand requests, limits, quotas. Define resource requirements. Understand ServiceAccounts. Understand authentication, authorization and admission control. And 2 more, each a topic in the course below.
- Application Design and Build (20% of the exam)Define, build and modify container images. Choose and use the right workload resource (Deployment, DaemonSet, CronJob, etc.). Understand multi-container Pod design patterns (e.g. sidecar, init and others). Utilize persistent and ephemeral volumes.
- Application Deployment (20% of the exam)Understand Deployments and how to perform rolling updates. Use Kubernetes primitives to implement common deployment strategies (e.g. blue/green or canary). Use the Helm package manager to deploy existing packages. Kustomize.
- Services and Networking (20% of the exam)Provide and troubleshoot access to applications via services. Use Ingress rules to expose applications. Demonstrate basic understanding of NetworkPolicies.
- Application Observability and Maintenance (15% of the exam)Implement probes and health checks. Utilize container logs. Use built-in CLI tools to monitor Kubernetes applications. Debugging in Kubernetes. Understand API deprecations.
Explore related topics
The exam at a glance
- Length
- 2 hours
- Cost
- $445
- Validity
- 2 years
- Style
- Hands-on
Online proctored, performance-based, solved entirely at a command line. Based on Kubernetes v1.35.
What to expect on the day
Confirmed 1 October 2026
Current detail on the CKAD exam, beyond what its published format covers.
- kubectl is already there as `k`, with Bash autocompletion configured, on every host a task sends you to. You do not set either up and you do not lose tab completion.
- Nested ssh does not work: `exit` back to the base system, whose hostname is `base`, before you start the next task. `sudo -i` gets you root on any host.
- Do not reboot the base node, whose hostname is `base`. Rebooting it does not restart the exam environment.
- Copy and paste inside the terminal is Ctrl+Shift+C and Ctrl+Shift+V. Everywhere else on the desktop it is Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V.
- Ctrl+W closes the browser tab instead of deleting a word, so the exam remaps it to Ctrl+Alt+W. The INSERT key is blocked outright: press `i` to get into vim's insert mode.
- The environment runs Kubernetes v1.35, and is realigned to each new minor version within roughly 4 to 8 weeks of its release. Practise against the version you will actually sit.
Sitting the exam
The part nobody publishes in a syllabus. For CKAD the logistics are study strategy: what you are allowed to read while the clock runs changes how you should practise, and what a second attempt costs changes when you should book.
Where you sit it
- Online proctored through PSI's Bridge platform. You sit it in a secure browser on your own machine and work inside a Linux remote desktop, so the cluster is never local.
- The base node has no tooling on it. The work happens over SSH to the hosts each task names, where kubectl (aliased to k), yq, curl, wget and man pages are already installed.
- One monitor. Dual monitors are not supported, virtual machines are not permitted, and no other application or browser window may be running.
- A private walled room with the door closed, a clear desk with nothing on or under it, and nobody else present. Audio, video and your screen are streamed to a proctor for the full two hours, and you have to stay in the camera frame throughout.
What you are asked
- 15 to 20 performance-based tasks in 2 hours, solved at a command line against a live cluster.
- That is roughly 6 to 8 minutes a task on average. Triage matters more than finishing any single one perfectly.
What you can look at
- The Kubernetes documentation (kubernetes.io/docs), the Kubernetes blog (kubernetes.io/blog) and the Helm documentation (helm.sh/docs).
- Searching within kubernetes.io/docs is allowed, but you must not open a search result that leads off it.
- Documentation shipped on the exam machine under /usr/share, the distribution's own packages, and the task instructions in the terminal.
- Practise with those pages open. Being able to find a manifest quickly is worth more here than remembering its fields.
How it is marked
- 66% or above is a pass.
- A score report reaches you by email within 24 hours of finishing.
Identification and proctoring
- One valid, unexpired, original government-issued photo ID, physically in your hand. Photocopies, photos of a document and electronic copies are all refused.
- Accepted: an international travel passport, a government-issued driving licence or permit, a national identity card, a state or province identity card, an alien registration or permanent resident card, and in Japan the Basic Resident Register card or My Number card.
- It has to carry your name, photo and signature. A government-issued biometric ID with no signature is accepted.
- The first and last name on your Linux Foundation account must match the ID exactly. If the ID is in a non-Latin script, enter your name in that script rather than a transliteration.
- Check-in includes uploading a picture of the ID. Being assigned a check-in specialist should take no more than 15 minutes, so start early.
If you do not pass
- One retake is included in the exam price, granted when the first attempt is graded as not passed. It is not a second exam you buy.
- The retake has to be taken within 12 months of the original purchase, or before a corporate subscription expires, whichever comes first.
- Registrations sold as SINGLE or SINGLE-ATTEMPT get one attempt and no simulator. Check which one you are buying.
- Bought through an authorised training partner? Retake eligibility is the partner's to confirm, not the Linux Foundation's.
Booking it
- 12 months from purchase to schedule and sit it.
- $445 for the exam alone. Bundles with a subscription at $625 and with a course at $645 are also listed.
- You accept the Linux Foundation Global Certification and Confidentiality Agreement at registration and again before testing. Declining it ends the exam and the fee is not refunded.
What comes with it
- Two exam simulator attempts from Killer.sh, each giving 36 hours of access from the moment you activate it. Candidates routinely never claim these.
- The simulator's questions are the same for every attempt and every candidate, unlike the real exam. Treat it as a rehearsal of the environment and the clock, not a preview of the tasks.
Read off the official exam page on 25 August 2026. Rules change without notice, so confirm anything you are about to spend money on.
What the exam covers
Straight from the published curriculum. The weights are how much of the exam each area is worth, so they are the honest guide to where your study time should go.
Course content
24 topics
1. How Kubernetes Runs an Application
What happens between a manifest and a running container: how a pod is scheduled, started and kept running, and which component is responsible for each step.
2. Core Concepts: Pods, Manifests and kubectl
The objects you work with all day and the tool you work with them through: pods, YAML manifests, namespaces and labels, applied and inspected with kubectl.
3. Container Images: Define, Build and Modify
- Define, build and modify container images
4. Choosing the Right Workload Resource
- Choose and use the right workload resource (Deployment, DaemonSet, CronJob, etc.)
5. Multi-Container Pod Patterns: Init Containers and Sidecars
- Understand multi-container Pod design patterns (e.g. sidecar, init and others)
6. Ephemeral and Persistent Volumes for an Application
- Utilize persistent and ephemeral volumes
7. Configuration with ConfigMaps
- Understand ConfigMaps
8. Creating and Consuming Secrets
- Create & consume Secrets
9. Requests, Limits and Quotas
- Understand requests, limits, quotas
- Define resource requirements
10. Probes and Health Checks
- Implement probes and health checks
11. Container Logs and the Built-In CLI Monitoring Tools
- Utilize container logs
- Use built-in CLI tools to monitor Kubernetes applications
12. Debugging a Workload in Kubernetes
- Debugging in Kubernetes
13. Exposing an Application with Services
- Provide and troubleshoot access to applications via services
14. Ingress Rules
- Use Ingress rules to expose applications
15. NetworkPolicies for an Application
- Demonstrate basic understanding of NetworkPolicies
16. ServiceAccounts
- Understand ServiceAccounts
17. Authentication, Authorization and Admission Control
- Understand authentication, authorization and admission control
18. Application Security: SecurityContexts and Capabilities
- Understand Application Security (SecurityContexts, Capabilities, etc.)
19. Deployments and Rolling Updates
- Understand Deployments and how to perform rolling updates
20. Blue/Green and Canary Deployment Strategies
- Use Kubernetes primitives to implement common deployment strategies (e.g. blue/green or canary)
21. Deploying Existing Packages with Helm
- Use the Helm package manager to deploy existing packages
22. Kustomize
- Kustomize
23. Extending Kubernetes: CRDs and Operators
- Discover and use resources that extend Kubernetes (CRD, Operators)
24. API Deprecations and Migrating Manifests
- Understand API deprecations
What to know before you start
- Building and running containers day to day
- Reading and editing YAML quickly
- One programming language well enough to debug a running service
Further reading
Other The Linux Foundation / CNCF certifications
All The Linux Foundation / CNCF certificationsFrequently asked questions
How much does the CKAD exam cost?
$445. Confirm it on The Linux Foundation / CNCF's page before you book: exam fees change.
How long is the CKAD exam?
2 hours. Online proctored, performance-based, solved entirely at a command line.
How many questions are on the CKAD exam?
15 to 20 performance-based tasks in 2 hours, solved at a command line against a live cluster. Check the current count with The Linux Foundation / CNCF before you book.
How long is CKAD valid?
2 years. Check The Linux Foundation / CNCF's recertification route before it lapses.
Is the CKAD exam hands-on?
Yes. It is performance-based: you are given a live environment and a command line, and marked on what you actually do rather than what you can recognise. Reading alone does not prepare you for it.
What is on the CKAD exam?
5 domains. The heaviest is Application Environment, Configuration and Security at 25% of the exam, so it is the one worth over-preparing.
What should I know before starting CKAD?
Building and running containers day to day. Reading and editing YAML quickly. One programming language well enough to debug a running service.
CKAD vs CKA: what is the difference?
CKAD: 2 hours, $445, hands-on. CKA: 2 hours, $445, hands-on. Both are The Linux Foundation / CNCF exams with their own guide on this site.
Exam details from The Linux Foundation / CNCF, checked August 2026. Always confirm on their page before booking.
What learners say about Acelro
About Acelro rather than the CKAD exam: what learners made of the gap analysis, the roadmap and the projects.
“The roadmap makes me focus on a learning curve, no matter the length.”
“Acelro has been really great for me, an inspiring experience. I've gained a lot of confidence doing projects I thought were rocket science.”
“The gap analysis maps your actual skills against what the current job market is asking for. Nobody else made it that clear where I stood.”