Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate credential artwork

Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate Practice Tests

Validates foundational knowledge of ingesting, transforming, orchestrating, deploying, monitoring and governing data pipelines on the Databricks platform.

The Data Engineer Associate exam is 45 scored multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes, mostly scenarios and code to read. We compared the main options on timed full exams, sample questions and price.

Databricks sells no practice exams, so most people should start with the five official sample questions in the exam guide. Then work through Derar Alhussein's four paid exams and use your section scores to target weak areas.

Free first look

Exam guide sample questions

Five retired exam questions at the end of the official guide, each tied to a stated objective, with an answer key. Databricks says it offers no practice exams, so this is the only official sample.

Great fit if you want to see the real scenario style and question length before you pay for anything.

Poor fit if you want explanations or a timed run; use BricksNotes or Derar's exams.

Timed full exams

Practice Exams: Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate

Four timed 55-question exams with detailed explanations, rebuilt for the May 2026 outline. It is the set passers name most; one learner reports questions that go beyond his video course.

Great fit if you want timed, full-length practice with explanations written for the current exam.

Poor fit if you want a second author's wording; one set is used up after a single pass, so add the free tests.

What to look for in a Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate practice test

  • Match the May 4, 2026 outline. The exam changed on May 4, 2026 to seven sections, adding CI/CD and Troubleshooting, Monitoring and Optimization, and moving to Lakeflow Spark Declarative Pipelines and Unity Catalog. Sets that mention five sections or the Hive metastore are out of date.
  • Check the update date. Many Udemy sets are labelled 2025 or older, and a few were last updated in 2022. Prefer a set that names the May 2026 version and says what it covers.
  • Expect scenarios and code reading. Passers describe long scenario questions where every option sounds plausible, plus syntax and code-reading items. Choose sets whose explanations say why the other options are wrong.
  • Plan for small banks. Each paid set holds a few hundred questions, and the free test draws from a pool of 360. Mix two sources so you are not just memorising repeats.
  • Remember what Databricks offers. Databricks provides only the five guide samples and says practice results can mislead, so treat any third-party score as a rough guide to weak sections.
  • Skip sites selling "real exam questions." Sites promising actual Databricks Data Engineer Associate questions or a guaranteed pass are selling leaked or copied items. Databricks' exam terms ban brain-dump material and let Databricks revoke all your Databricks certifications and bar you from its exams. A real practice test explains why each answer is right; a dump only lists answers.

How to use Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate practice tests

  • Read the exam guide first. Its seven sections and weights show where to spend time, and the five samples show the question style.
  • Practise in a real workspace. Use the free Databricks Free Edition to run Auto Loader, Unity Catalog grants, Jobs and bundle deployments. Candidates say hands-on time makes the scenarios easier.
  • Log misses by section. Write each wrong answer against its section and revisit that topic, especially Spark UI, Unity Catalog permissions and the CI/CD section, which older material skips.
  • Do one full timed run late. The real exam gives about two minutes per question. Sit a full 90-minute set before your attempt and read the code in every question.
  • Review every explanation. If you score in the 60s or 70s on a practice set, work out why each option was wrong instead of retaking the same set.

Databricks: exam guide (May 2026) ↗Databricks: certification FAQ ↗Reddit: low scores on Derar's exams ↗Reddit: passed using Derar and another set ↗Reddit: what changed in May 2026 ↗

Databricks Certified Data Engineer Associate practice test FAQ

Does Databricks offer a free practice exam?

No. Databricks says it does not offer practice exams, but its exam guide includes five retired sample questions with an answer key.

Are Databricks Data Engineer Associate practice tests like the real exam?

Candidates say they match the scenario style but not question for question. A few questions repeat, and some practice questions go beyond the course material.

How many practice exams should I take?

There is no official number. Most candidates take the guide samples, one free timed test and one or two paid sets, reviewing each explanation rather than retaking sets.

How many questions are on the Databricks Data Engineer Associate exam?

The exam has 45 scored multiple-choice questions and a 90-minute limit. It may include extra unscored questions that you cannot identify.