Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty
The DP-420 exam is designed for professionals who implement and configure Azure. It validates your ability to design and implement data models, design and implement data distribution, integrate an Azure Cosmos DB solution, optimize an Azure Cosmos DB solution, and maintain an Azure Cosmos DB solution.
Exam details
- Certification
- Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB Developer Specialty
- Exam code
- DP-420
- Level
- Specialty
- Duration
- Approximately 100 minutes
- Questions
- Typically 40–60 questions
- Passing score
- 700 out of 1000
- Cost
- USD $165 — typical price; the exact fee varies by country/region and currency, and local taxes may apply.
- Prerequisites
- None required
- Languages
- English (also available in Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Korean, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Traditional) and Italian)
- Delivered by
- Pearson VUE
- Renewal
- Free online assessment, every 12 months
Skills measured
Design and implement data models (35–40%)
- Design NoSQL models, partition keys, TTL, and document versioning.
- Plan throughput, serverless versus provisioned capacity, and client connectivity.
- Implement SQL queries, SDK point and bulk operations, and JavaScript stored procedures.
Design and implement data distribution (5–10%)
- Design replication, failover, and consistency models and their RU and latency impact.
- Implement multi-region writes and custom conflict resolution.
Integrate an Azure Cosmos DB solution (5–10%)
- Enable analytical workloads with Fabric mirroring, Spark, and change data capture.
- Integrate Change Feed with Azure Functions, Event Hubs, and Azure AI Search.
Optimize an Azure Cosmos DB solution (15–20%)
- Optimise queries with indexes, RU cost, and the integrated cache.
- Implement change feeds and a custom indexing strategy, including composite indexes.
Maintain an Azure Cosmos DB solution (25–30%)
- Monitor RU consumption, latency, partition distribution, and Azure Monitor alerts.
- Implement backup, restore, encryption, RBAC, and network access control.
- Move data and manage DevOps with ARM, CLI, and throughput changes.
Study resources & practice tests
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Frequently asked questions
Who should take DP-420?
DP-420 is for Cosmos DB developers, cloud-native backend engineers, and NoSQL specialists. Most work at software product companies, or in gaming, retail, and IoT or telemetry programmes.
What is the average salary for an Azure Cosmos DB Developer?
Cosmos DB developers are usually hired as Azure developers or data engineers. As of 2026, US Azure developer averages are about $120,000, and US Azure data engineer mid-level ranges are about $125,000 to $160,000. In the United Kingdom, IT Jobs Watch shows a median of £65,000 for Azure Cosmos DB roles and £67,500 for Azure Developer. Western European cloud data developers often earn about €65,000 to €90,000 in Germany. There is no single published EMEA average.
Where do I find exam questions to practice?
You will find websites selling exam dumps or brain dumps that claim to be real DP-420 questions. Those materials are not official. Microsoft treats using brain dumps as cheating. It can invalidate your score, revoke certifications you already hold, and ban you from future exams. Microsoft publishes a free Practice Assessment for DP-420 on Microsoft Learn. Those questions are examples only, not the live exam. MeasureUp also sells the official practice test linked in the study resources on this page. You can try the Microsoft exam sandbox to see the question types and timer, but it does not use real exam questions. Practise the skills measured in a real product environment rather than memorising leaked items.
Does the exam include official labs I can use to practice?
Microsoft does not publish a stable list of which certification exams include labs, and a lab can be dropped for a candidate if the live environment is unavailable. Role-based Azure and security exams such as DP-420 may include performance-based labs in a live cloud environment. You only find out at the start of your sitting. For practice, Microsoft Learn modules for this exam often include a free Azure sandbox, and official instructor-led DP-420T00 training delivered by a Microsoft Learning Partner includes labs. Those labs are for the course, not a copy of the exam. Applied Skills assessment labs are a separate Microsoft credential, not DP-420 exam labs. The Microsoft exam sandbox shows traditional question types only. It does not give you the lab virtual machine.