Top AWS Online Courses with Certificates [2024]

The cloud computing landscape has undergone a seismic shift in recent years, with Amazon Web Services (AWS) emerging as the undisputed leader. As businesses increasingly embrace the cloud to enhance scalability, flexibility, and cost-efficiency, mastering AWS has become a crucial skill for IT professionals. However, navigating the vast AWS ecosystem and achieving certification can be a daunting task without proper guidance. This comprehensive guide aims to provide a clear roadmap for individuals seeking to embark on their AWS learning journey, offering insights into the best online courses available and the benefits they can bring to your career.

Who Should Take an AWS Online Course?

AWS online courses are designed to cater to a wide range of individuals, from complete beginners to seasoned IT professionals. Here are some specific groups that can benefit from taking these courses:

1. Individuals Entering the Cloud Computing Field

• Recent graduates or individuals transitioning from traditional IT roles can use AWS courses to acquire the necessary skills to enter the growing cloud computing industry.
• Aspiring cloud architects, engineers, or developers will find these courses invaluable in building a strong foundation in AWS services and best practices.

2. IT Professionals Seeking to Upskill

• Existing IT professionals looking to expand their skill set or stay competitive in the market can benefit from AWS courses.
• System administrators, network engineers, or database administrators can learn how to leverage AWS to streamline their operations and improve efficiency.

3. Individuals Looking to Gain a Competitive Advantage

• Professionals in various industries can use AWS certifications to differentiate themselves in the job market.
• Entrepreneurs and small business owners can leverage AWS to scale their businesses and reduce costs.

4. Students and Academics

• Students pursuing degrees in computer science, information technology, or related fields can use AWS courses to complement their academic studies and gain practical experience.
• Faculty members can incorporate AWS into their curriculum to prepare students for the demands of the modern IT landscape.

Top AWS Online Courses with Certificates (categorized by level)

Level up your AWS expertise with these carefully selected online courses, designed to provide the most up-to-date training and certifications in the industry.

1. Beginner Courses

If you’re new to AWS and want to build a solid foundation in cloud computing concepts, these beginner courses are the perfect starting point. They provide a comprehensive introduction to AWS services, architecture, and best practices, equipping you with the essential knowledge to explore more advanced topics.

– AWS Cloud Fundamentals (Free on AWS Training)

This introductory course provides a solid foundation in AWS concepts, including cloud computing basics, AWS services, and pricing models. The course is designed for those interested in gaining a broad understanding of Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud, regardless of their technical background. You will explore key AWS Cloud concepts, services, security, architecture, pricing, and support to enhance your AWS Cloud expertise. Additionally, this course serves as a valuable resource for preparing for the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam.

You will learn:

• Understand the fundamental global infrastructure of AWS Cloud and recognize its six key benefits.
• Identify and illustrate examples of essential AWS services, such as compute, networking, databases, and storage.
• Grasp the AWS Well-Architected Framework, comprehend the shared responsibility model, and familiarize yourself with the core security services in the AWS Cloud, along with the basics of AWS Cloud migration.
• Explain the financial advantages of AWS Cloud in managing organizational costs, outline the core billing, account management, and pricing models, and learn how to utilize pricing tools to make cost-efficient decisions for AWS services.

Provider: Amazon Web Services

Certificate: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner

– AWS for Beginners Course

AWS for Beginners courses is designed to introduce individuals to the fundamental concepts and services of Amazon Web Services (AWS). These courses are typically tailored for those who have little to no prior experience with cloud computing or AWS specifically. Key topics covered in AWS for Beginners courses often include:

• Introduction to AWS
• AWS Services
• AWS Management Console
• AWS Command Line Interface (AWS CLI)
• AWS Pricing
• Best Practices

Providers: Testprep Training, Coursera, and others

Certificate: While these courses may not offer a direct AWS certification, they can provide a strong foundation for pursuing certifications like the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner.

2. Intermediate Courses

Once you grasp AWS fundamentals, these intermediate courses will help you deepen your understanding and prepare for specific roles within the AWS ecosystem. Whether you’re interested in designing cloud architectures, developing applications, or implementing DevOps practices, these courses will provide the necessary skills and knowledge.

– AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate course is designed to prepare individuals for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate certification exam. This certification validates your ability to design and implement scalable, reliable, and cost-effective cloud architectures on AWS. Key topics covered in the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate course typically include:

• AWS Architecture: Understanding the core components and principles of AWS cloud architecture, including regions, availability zones, and VPCs.
• Compute Services: Deep diving into EC2, Lambda, and other compute services, their use cases, and best practices.
• Storage Services: Exploring S3, EBS, and other storage options, their characteristics, and use cases.
• Database Services: Understanding RDS, DynamoDB, and other database offerings, their features, and use cases.
• Networking: Learning about VPCs, subnets, route tables, and other networking components.
• Security: Understanding security best practices on AWS, including IAM, KMS, and security groups.
• Cost Optimization: Exploring strategies for optimizing costs on AWS, such as reserved instances, spot instances, and cost allocation tags.
• Deployment and Management: Learning about deployment tools, automation, and management best practices on AWS.

Providers: Testprep Training, Linux Academy, and others

Certificate: AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate

– AWS Certified Developer – Associate

The AWS Certified Developer – Associate course is designed to prepare individuals for the AWS Certified Developer – Associate certification exam. This certification validates your ability to build, deploy, and manage serverless applications on AWS. Key topics covered in the AWS Certified Developer – Associate course typically include:

• Serverless Architecture: Understanding the concepts and benefits of serverless computing on AWS, including Lambda functions and API Gateway.
• AWS SDKs: Learning to use AWS SDKs to interact with AWS services from your application code.
• Lambda Functions: Deep diving into Lambda functions, their use cases, and best practices for building and deploying them.
• API Gateway: Understanding how to create and manage RESTful APIs using API Gateway.
• DynamoDB: Learning about DynamoDB, a NoSQL database service, and its use cases for serverless applications.
• Cognito: Understanding how to implement user authentication and authorization in serverless applications using Cognito.
• S3: Learning about S3 and its use cases for storing application data.
• CloudFormation: Understanding how to use CloudFormation to automate the deployment of serverless applications.

Providers: EdX, Testprep Training, and others

Certificate: AWS Certified Developer – Associate

– DevOps Engineering on AWS (AWS Training)

The DevOps Engineering on AWS course guides you in applying DevOps cultural philosophies, practices, and tools to enhance your organization’s ability to rapidly develop, deliver, and maintain applications and services on AWS. You’ll dive into key topics such as continuous integration (CI), continuous delivery (CD), infrastructure as code, microservices, monitoring and logging, as well as effective communication and collaboration.

Through hands-on labs, you’ll gain practical experience in building and deploying AWS CloudFormation templates and setting up CI/CD pipelines for applications on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2), serverless platforms, and containerized environments. The course also includes labs for creating multi-pipeline workflows and deploying to multiple environments.

You will learn:

• Applying DevOps best practices to accelerate the development, delivery, and maintenance of applications and services on AWS.
• Understanding small, autonomous DevOps teams’ advantages, roles, and responsibilities.
• Designing and implementing AWS infrastructure that supports DevOps-driven projects.
• Utilizing AWS Cloud9 to write, execute, and debug your code effectively.

Provider: Amazon Web Services

Certificate: While this course doesn’t directly lead to a certification, it can be valuable for individuals pursuing DevOps roles on AWS.

3. Advanced Courses

For experienced professionals looking to specialize in AWS and achieve the highest level of certification, these advanced courses are the ideal choice. They explore the complex cloud architectures, security best practices, and specialized roles within the AWS ecosystem, equipping you with the expertise to tackle challenging projects and lead cloud initiatives.

– AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional

The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional course is designed to prepare individuals for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional certification exam. This advanced certification validates your ability to design and implement complex cloud solutions for enterprise-scale workloads. The main topics include:

• Enterprise-Scale Architectures: Understanding the challenges and requirements of designing complex cloud architectures for large-scale enterprises.
• Advanced Networking: Deep diving into advanced networking topics such as VPNs, load balancing, and content delivery networks.
• High Availability and Disaster Recovery: Learning about strategies for ensuring high availability and disaster recovery in complex cloud environments.
• Performance Optimization: Understanding how to optimize performance in cloud applications, including caching, database tuning, and network optimization.
• Security Best Practices: Exploring advanced security best practices for enterprise-scale workloads, including identity and access management, data protection, and threat detection.
• Cost Optimization Strategies: Learning about advanced cost optimization techniques for large-scale cloud deployments.
• Migration and Modernization: Understanding the challenges and strategies for migrating and modernizing existing applications to the cloud.
• Emerging Technologies: Exploring emerging technologies on AWS, such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and IoT.

Providers: Adrian Cantrill, Testprep Training, LinkedIn Learning, and others

Certificate: AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional

– AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional

The AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional course is designed to prepare individuals for the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional certification exam. This advanced certification validates your ability to implement and manage DevOps practices at scale on AWS. The key topics covered in the course typically include:

• DevOps Principles and Practices: Understanding the core principles and practices of DevOps, including continuous integration, continuous delivery, and continuous deployment.
• AWS DevOps Tools: Learning how to use AWS tools such as CodePipeline, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, and CodeStar to implement DevOps pipelines.
• Infrastructure as Code: Understanding how to manage infrastructure using tools like AWS CloudFormation and Terraform.
• Configuration Management: Learning how to manage configuration using tools like Ansible and Puppet.
• Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery (CI/CD): Understanding the principles and practices of CI/CD, and how to implement CI/CD pipelines on AWS.
• Monitoring and Logging: Learning how to monitor and log AWS resources and applications using tools like CloudWatch and AWS X-Ray.
• Security and Compliance: Understanding security best practices and compliance requirements for DevOps on AWS.
• Automation and Orchestration: Learning how to automate and orchestrate tasks using tools like AWS Step Functions and AWS Batch.

Provider: A Cloud Guru and Testprep Training

Certificate: AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional

– AWS Certified Security – Specialty

The AWS Certified Security – Specialty course is designed to prepare individuals for the AWS Certified Security – Specialty certification exam. This advanced certification validates your ability to implement and manage security best practices for AWS workloads. The key topics are:

• Security Foundations: Understanding the core principles of security on AWS, including identity and access management, data protection, and threat detection.
• AWS Security Services: Deep diving into AWS security services such as IAM, KMS, WAF, GuardDuty, and Inspector.
• Security Best Practices: Learning about best practices for securing AWS workloads, including encryption, vulnerability management, and incident response.
• Compliance Frameworks: Understanding compliance frameworks such as HIPAA, PCI DSS, and GDPR, and how to meet these requirements on AWS.
• Threat Detection and Response: Learning about threat detection techniques, incident response procedures, and security monitoring.
• Security Automation: Understanding how to automate security tasks using tools like AWS Config and AWS Systems Manager.
• Emerging Security Threats: Learning about emerging security threats and how to address them on AWS.

Provider: Testprep Training and AWS Training

Certificate: AWS Certified Security – Specialty

Choosing the Right Course for You: Factors to Consider

When selecting an AWS online course, it’s essential to consider several factors to ensure it aligns with your learning style, career goals, and budget.

1. Your Current Skill Level and Career Goals

• If you’re new to AWS, start with introductory courses like AWS Cloud Fundamentals or AWS for Beginners.
• If you have some experience with AWS, consider intermediate courses focused on specific roles like Solutions Architect or Developer.
• If you’re already experienced with AWS, explore advanced courses like AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional or AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional.
• Determine whether you want to specialize in a particular area of AWS or pursue a generalist approach.

2. Learning Style Preferences

• If you prefer visual learning, look for courses with clear video explanations.
• If you learn best by doing, choose courses with ample hands-on labs.
• If you like to test your knowledge, select courses with regular quizzes and assessments.
• If you prefer live instruction, consider instructor-led courses or workshops.

3. Budget and Course Duration

• Consider your budget and compare prices across different providers.
• Determine how much time you can dedicate to learning and choose a course with a suitable duration.
• Evaluate whether free courses meet your needs or if paid courses offer additional benefits like certifications or instructor support.

4. Reputation of the Course Provider and Instructor

• Research the reputation of the course provider, considering factors like customer reviews, course quality, and instructor expertise.
• Look for courses taught by experienced AWS professionals with a strong track record of student success.
• Check if the course provider or instructor is accredited by relevant organizations.

5. Course Content and Curriculum

• Ensure the course content aligns with your learning goals and career aspirations.
• Review the course syllabus to understand the topics covered and the depth of coverage.
• Check if the course is regularly updated to reflect the latest AWS developments.

6. Student Support and Community

• Consider the availability of student support resources, such as forums, Q&A sessions, or email support.
• Look for courses with active student communities where you can connect with other learners and get help.

Benefits of Taking an AWS Online Course with a Certificate

Taking an AWS online course with a certificate can offer numerous advantages for your career and professional development. Here are some of the key benefits:

• Gain in-depth knowledge and practical skills in AWS cloud services: AWS courses provide a deep dive into the various AWS services, their features, and how to use them effectively. Many courses include practical labs and exercises to help you apply your knowledge and develop hands-on skills. Learn best practices for designing, implementing, and managing AWS solutions.
• Prepare for and pass relevant AWS certification exams: AWS courses are often designed to align with specific AWS certification exams, providing you with the necessary preparation. Many courses include practice exams to help you assess your readiness and identify areas for improvement. Passing an AWS certification exam demonstrates your expertise and can enhance your credibility in the industry.
• Enhance your resume and increase your job prospects: AWS certifications can make your resume stand out from the competition. Certified AWS professionals often command higher salaries and have better job prospects. AWS certifications can open doors to new career opportunities and promotions.
• Stay ahead of the curve in the ever-evolving cloud computing landscape: AWS courses keep you updated on the latest trends and innovations in cloud computing. AWS certifications encourage ongoing learning and professional development. By staying up-to-date with AWS technologies, you can future-proof your career and adapt to changing industry demands.
• Access a global community of AWS professionals: Connect with other AWS professionals through course forums, online communities, and meetups. Learn from the experiences of others and contribute to the AWS community. Seek help and guidance from experienced AWS professionals when needed.

Conclusion

In the rapidly evolving landscape of cloud computing, mastering AWS has become an indispensable skill for IT professionals and businesses alike. By investing in a well-structured AWS online course with a certificate, you can gain the knowledge and expertise needed to design, implement, and manage robust cloud solutions. Remember, the journey to AWS mastery is a continuous one. As AWS continues to innovate and introduce new services, staying updated and pursuing advanced certifications can further enhance your career prospects. So, take the leap, explore the vast world of AWS, and unlock the potential of cloud computing for your professional growth and organizational success.