You can see it againUnder pressure people bring back shapes and positions long after the wording has gone.
Picture superiority · Shepard 1967, Standing 1973
HASHICORPHashiCorp Certified:Terraform Associate
The HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate (004) certification validates your foundational Terraform knowledge and skills, from core workflow to HCP Terraform. Designed for cloud engineers, it proves you can manage infrastructure as code across multi-cloud and hybrid environments. Earning this credential demonstrates your ability to use Terraform effectively in real-world scenarios, setting you apart in the cloud engineering field.
Exam formatMultiple choice
Duration60 minutes
DeliveryHashiCorp Certification Exam Portal
Free questions889
Content last reviewed 1 January 2025 · Up to date
The certification
What TERRAFORM-ASSOCIATE-004 proves, and what it asks of you
What this certification covers, who it is written for, and what the exam itself looks like on the day.
8domains
37objectives
286concepts
$70.50 USDexam fee
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
The HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate (004) certification validates your foundational Terraform knowledge and skills, proving you can manage infrastructure as code across multi-cloud and hybrid environments. This certification is ideal for cloud engineers who want to demonstrate their ability to use Terraform effectively in real-world scenarios, from writing configuration to managing state and collaborating with HCP Terraform.
The exam covers eight key domains, including core Terraform workflow, configuration, modules, state management, and HCP Terraform. It tests your understanding of infrastructure as code concepts, Terraform fundamentals, and best practices for managing sensitive data. By earning this certification, you show that you can contribute to infrastructure automation projects with confidence and skill.
Who it’s for
This certification is for cloud engineers with foundational Terraform knowledge and skills. It is designed for professionals who can identify Terraform Enterprise features and distinguish them from the Community edition, and who are comfortable working with infrastructure as code. Ideal candidates have basic terminal skills and an understanding of on-premises and cloud architecture. While professional experience is recommended, you can also prepare by practicing the exam objectives in a personal demo setup.
Recommended experience
Basic terminal skills and an understanding of on-premises and cloud architecture are recommended. Professional experience is recommended but not required. Basic terminal skills; Understanding of on-premises and cloud architecture
The syllabus
What you’ll learn
Every domain and objective HashiCorp measures, with the weight they carry on the exam.
The official HashiCorp exam outline · checked 1 January 2025 · See the source
Infrastructure as Code (IaC) with Terraform
- 1a Explain what IaC is
- 1b Describe the advantages of IaC patterns
- 1c Explain how Terraform manages multi-cloud, hybrid cloud, and service-agnostic workflows
Terraform fundamentals
- 2a Install and version Terraform providers
- 2b Describe how Terraform uses providers
- 2c Write Terraform configuration using multiple providers
- 2d Explain how Terraform uses and manages state
Core Terraform workflow
- 3a Describe the Terraform workflow
- 3b Initialize a Terraform working directory
- 3c Validate a Terraform configuration
- 3d Generate and review an execution plan for Terraform
- 3e Apply changes to infrastructure with Terraform
- 3f Destroy Terraform-managed infrastructure
- 3g Apply formatting and style adjustments to a configuration
Terraform configuration
- 4a Use and differentiate resource and data blocks
- 4b Refer to resource attributes and create cross-resource references
- 4c Use variables and outputs
- 4d Understand and use complex types
- 4e Write dynamic configuration using expressions and functions
- 4f Define resource dependencies in configuration
- 4g Validate configuration using custom conditions
- 4h Understand best practices for managing sensitive data, including secrets management with Vault
Terraform modules
- 5a Explain how Terraform sources modules
- 5b Describe variable scope within modules
- 5c Use modules in configuration
- 5d Manage module versions
Terraform state management
- 6a Describe the local backend
- 6b Describe state locking
- 6c Configure remote state using the backend block
- 6d Manage resource drift and Terraform state
Maintain infrastructure with Terraform
- 7a Import existing infrastructure into your Terraform workspace
- 7b Use the CLI to inspect state
- 7c Describe when and how to use verbose logging
HCP Terraform
- 8a Use HCP Terraform to create infrastructure
- 8b Describe HCP Terraform collaboration and governance features
- 8c Describe how to organize and use HCP Terraform workspaces and projects
- 8d Configure and use HCP Terraform integration
On the day
The exam itself
Everything HashiCorp publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
No mandatory prerequisites — this certification has no required predecessor exam or credential.
Exam codeTERRAFORM-ASSOCIATE-004
CertificationHashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate
Exam formatMultiple choice
Duration60 minutes
DeliveryHashiCorp Certification Exam Portal
LanguagesEnglish
Pricing$70.50 USD
Certification levelAssociate
After you pass
Where this credential goes next
The path HashiCorp lays out, how the credential is kept, and where to book.
Step-by-step path to HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate
Credential earnedHashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate Associate level certification Renewal and maintenance
HashiCorp certifications are valid for two years. To recertify, pass an exam for the same product at the same level or higher. You can take your recertification exam up to 6 months before your certification expires. Stay current with the latest technologies and maintain your certification.
Learn more about renewal requirements Lifecycle status
This certification is currently active and available. HashiCorp maintains this certification to validate current skills and industry relevance.
Exam status: ActiveMaintained by HashiCorp
Exam registration
Register for the exam through HashiCorp Certification Exam Portal, HashiCorp’s authorized testing partner.
Schedule your examVisit the official HashiCorp certification page for exam policies and requirements.
View the official pageYour coach
And when you are serious, your coach Pip takes over
Your coach in the app reads what you have answered with the book closed and tells you one thing to do tonight. It will not count an answer you gave with the page open, and it will tell you when you are not ready.
See how the coach worksBefore you book
Questions people ask
How does the 004 exam differ from the 003 exam?
The 004 exam adds four new topics: depends_on and create_before_destroy lifecycle rules, validating configuration with custom conditions, ephemeral values and write-only arguments, and describing how to organize and use HCP Terraform workspaces and projects. It also tests on Terraform version 1.12 and includes HCP Terraform content.
Do I need to earn the Terraform Associate certification before taking the Professional exam?
The Terraform Associate certification is strongly recommended, or equivalent experience is required, before taking the Terraform Authoring and Operations Professional exam. It is not a mandatory prerequisite for the Associate exam itself.
How do I schedule or reschedule my exam?
You can register for the exam through the HashiCorp Certification Exam Portal. Use the same GitHub account every time you access the portal to ensure your appointments and results are accessible.
What are the online proctoring requirements?
All HashiCorp certification exams are taken online with a live proctor. During your appointment, the proctor verifies your identity, explains the rules, and monitors your exam session. You are responsible for following the rules and requirements for taking exams, and failure to do so may result in losing your exam fees.
Is there a free retake included with the Terraform Associate exam?
No, the Terraform Associate exam does not include a free retake. The exam price is $70.50 USD, plus locally applicable taxes and fees.
What job roles does the Terraform Associate credential map to?
The Terraform Associate certification is designed for cloud engineers with foundational Terraform knowledge and skills, who can identify Terraform Enterprise features and distinguish them from the Community edition.
Can I recertify by passing a different HashiCorp exam?
Yes, you can recertify by passing the Terraform Authoring and Operations Professional exam, which extends your Associate credentials' expiration date and earns you a new professional-level badge and certificate.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2025-01-01 Up to date
Practice free questions 889 questions, free, no account needed.
The curriculum
The whole exam, mapped and written
Every domain, every objective, and every concept HashiCorp measures — each one written out.
8domains
37objectives
286concepts
193free pages
The domains, and what sits inside them
Every objective below is a page you can open and practise now, without an account.
The official HashiCorp exam outline · checked 1 January 2025 · See the source
1Infrastructure as Code (IaC) with Terraform75 questions
2Terraform fundamentals108 questions
3Core Terraform workflow174 questions
3a Describe the Terraform workflow5 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →3b Initialize a Terraform working directory10 concepts · 8 pagesOpen →3c Validate a Terraform configuration4 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →3d Generate and review an execution plan for Terraform10 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →3e Apply changes to infrastructure with Terraform10 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →3f Destroy Terraform-managed infrastructure9 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →3g Apply formatting and style adjustments to a configuration4 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →
4Terraform configuration199 questions
4a Use and differentiate resource and data blocks6 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →4b Refer to resource attributes and create cross-resource references4 concepts · 2 pagesOpen →4c Use variables and outputs12 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →4d Understand and use complex types9 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →4e Write dynamic configuration using expressions and functions6 concepts · 2 pagesOpen →4f Define resource dependencies in configuration5 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →4g Validate configuration using custom conditions9 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →4h Understand best practices for managing sensitive data, including secrets management with Vault36 concepts · 16 pagesOpen →
5Terraform modules75 questions
6Terraform state management86 questions
7Maintain infrastructure with Terraform58 questions
8HCP Terraform114 questions
8a Use HCP Terraform to create infrastructure8 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →8b Describe HCP Terraform collaboration and governance features6 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →8c Describe how to organize and use HCP Terraform workspaces and projects8 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →8d Configure and use HCP Terraform integration8 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →
Not a table of contents
Every line on this map already opens
In front of every objective the practice pages are already there, free and without an account. This is one objective, opened.
1a Explain what IaC is6 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
28 questions on this objective, five to a page. Every range above is a real page, open now, with no account.
Reading the map is not the same as knowing the ground
The curriculum tells you what is on the exam. Proving you know it is a different job — and it is the one the closed-book run does.
Free questions
889 questions. No account, no card.
The whole bank is open. 5 questions to a page, every answer explained, and a discussion thread on each one.
889questions
193pages
37objectives
Freealways
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
1Infrastructure as Code (IaC) with Terraform75 questions
2Terraform fundamentals108 questions
3Core Terraform workflow174 questions
4Terraform configuration199 questions
5Terraform modules75 questions
6Terraform state management86 questions
7Maintain infrastructure with Terraform58 questions
What a practice page gives you
1Five to a page
Short enough to finish, long enough to matter.
2Every answer explained
Not only which one is right — why the others are wrong.
3A discussion on each
Ask, answer, and vote. Every question has its own thread.
A question, and the idea behind it
Every question comes from a concept
These are not trivia. Each one is written against a concept in the book, so when you get one wrong there is somewhere to go and find out why.
The visual book
See it once. Carry it into the exam.
The pages shown here come from our AI-900 book — an example of how each concept is written in plain language and, where the idea needs one, drawn as a full page you can take in at a glance.
286concepts
889free questions
Why a picture, and not another paragraph
Three reasons, and each one is a real finding rather than a slogan.
You can see it againThe whole idea at onceWhere it starts, what happens in the middle, what comes out, and the mistake to avoid.
Multimedia principle · MayerThe look-alikes sit togetherThe pairs the exam tests are drawn side by side, so the difference is seen, not told.
Dual coding · PaivioWhat one page is made of
You are never asked to read a poster here — only to see how one is built. After that, every other page is legible at a glance.
1A numbered strip on top
The idea as a sequence, followed with a finger before a word is read.
2Panels for the parts
What it is, how the machine learns it, when it is the right tool.
3The trap, framed
The distinction the exam tests, given its own box instead of buried in prose.
4One line at the bottom
The sentence to carry into the exam room.
Open book, on purpose
Answer it with the picture beside you
This is the part that teaches. The illustration and the written explanation stay where they are while you work, so a scenario stops being a memory test and becomes something you can simply look at.
It teaches · it does not count
A smartphone uses AI to unlock when the owner looks at the camera. Which AI capability is being used?
AImage classification
BFacial recognition
COptical character recognition
DObject detection
Look at the five steps. Detect finds a face, align straightens it, encode turns it into numbers, search compares it with a stored face, and decide answers one question: is this the same person? Classification would only say “a face”. Detection would only draw a box. Neither decides whose.
Then the page shuts, and it starts counting
The same questions come back with the book closed — that run is the one that counts. After it, your coach picks one thing for tonight, sized to the time you have, and brings pages back before you lose them.
Testing effect · Roediger & Karpicke 2006 · spacing effect · Cepeda et al. 2006
Official resources
Straight from HashiCorp
Where the exam is defined, scheduled and scored.
4official links
286concepts mapped
The source
HashiCorp’s own pages
We link to them rather than repeat them, so nothing here goes stale behind them.
Checked against the source
Every objective on the official HashiCorp outline already has questions here
We build from the official skills outline, not from a summary of it — 37 objectives, 286 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When HashiCorp changes the outline, this page changes with it.
37objectives on the outline→286concepts written→889free questions
An official page tells you what will be asked. It cannot tell you what you will get right.
That is the only question worth answering the night before, and no link answers it. You answer it by taking the questions with the book closed, and seeing what comes back.