If you work in tech, you have probably noticed that “DevOps” is not just a buzzword anymore — it’s the heartbeat of modern software delivery. Companies are no longer satisfied with slow, siloed development cycles. They want faster releases, higher quality, and tighter collaboration between development and operations teams. That’s why DevOps professionals are in such high demand, and why a well-chosen certification in 2025 can give your career a serious boost.
But here’s the thing: DevOps is a broad field. It spans automation, CI/CD pipelines, cloud infrastructure, security, monitoring, and culture. Picking the right certification isn’t about collecting badges; it’s about validating the exact skills that employers are hunting for this year. And in 2025, those skills are evolving — think AI-assisted automation, multi-cloud orchestration, security-as-code, and cost-optimized delivery pipelines.
In this guide, we will walk through the top five DevOps certifications that matter most right now, why they are valuable, what skills they prove, and how they can position you for the next step in your career, whether that’s a promotion, a salary bump, or breaking into DevOps for the first time.
Nowadays, most companies think of DevOps as an entire culture, rather than just a buzzword. With the increase in demand for rapid developmental strategies and constant application deployments, the need for skilled DevOps professionals is only going to increase in the coming years. However, as the field keeps evolving, it’s not always easy for DevOps experts to showcase their skills. Getting a DevOps certification is a method for job seekers and employees to verify and showcase their abilities. This gives them an advantage over other candidates competing for similar roles.
Therefore, in this article, we have put together some of the top DevOps certifications that are currently in demand. These DevOps certifications can surely help you improve your likelihood of bonuses, promotions, or pay bumps. So, without wasting any minute, let’s begin.
Why consider DevOps Certification?
DevOps certification is not only beneficial for securing a new position, but also for advancing a current one. IT certifications are believed to play a significant role in the hiring process, and such certifications are reliable predictors of future employee success.
So, if you are looking to pivot into a new role or technology, a DevOps certification can help provide better job opportunities. That being said, let’s give a bird’s eye view to the benefits of DevOps certification
- One of the obvious reasons to consider DevOps is improved skills and knowledge. The information you gain from the DevOps certification program will enhance your current capabilities.
- Gaining proficiency in DevOps enables candidates to prove and showcase their skills. Moreover, it provides them with a competitive advantage, opening up better opportunities.
- DevOps roles are consistently among the highest-paid jobs in the industry, particularly those connected to cloud technology. By earning sought-after certifications, you not only boost your prospects for securing these positions but also stand to earn impressive salaries.
Top DevOps Certifications 2025
Since DevOps is not just a single tool but an entire practice that combines with other tools and technology, therefore, there is no one certification that will cover it all. Moreover, there is a wide variety of certifications proven to be beneficial for DevOps practitioners based on market needs and industry trends.
For your convenience, we have outlined the top DevOps certifications to boost up your resume and gather relevant skills and credentials that will help you establish yourself as a DevOps engineering professional.
1. Docker Certified Associate
The Docker Certified Associate (DCA) certification is created for those who already have experience using Docker and DevOps tools. It’s meant to confirm your skills through real-world challenges crafted by seasoned Docker experts.
Basic Details
- Prerequisite: A minimum of 6 months of experience as a Docker Practitioner
- Exam Fee: USD 195
- Duration: 90 minutes
- Question Type: 55 MCQs
Course Outline
- Firstly, Orchestration
- Secondly, Security
- After that, Networking
- Subsequently, Installation and configuration
- Also, Image creation
- In addition, Management
- Then, Registry
- Moreover, Storage
- Further, Volumes
Kubernetes Certification
Kubernetes is an open-source system for managing containers. It’s a partnership between the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) and the Linux Foundation. Kubernetes handles the task of deploying and managing applications made up of multiple containers, especially at a large scale. It’s a key DevOps tool, enabling DevOps teams to match the demands of software development. This makes Kubernetes a significant player in the realm of DevOps certifications.
Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) and Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) are the two certification options one can choose from.
2. CKA Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
The CKA program evaluates the skills, knowledge, and proficiency that a Kubernetes Administrator should possess. The exam is an online exam comprising a performance-based set of problems that the candidate has to solve in a time period of 3 hours. The users exhibit their competence in a hands-on, command-line environment in this program. Moreover, the CKA program is designed to ensure that CKAs possess the understanding, abilities, and capability needed to carry out the duties of Kubernetes administrators.
Basic Details
- Exam Fee: $300
- Duration: 3 hours
- Question Type: Problem Solving
Course Outline
- Application Lifecycle Management 8%
- Installation, Configuration & Validation 12%
- Core Concepts 19%
- Networking 11%
- Scheduling 5%
- Security 12%
- Cluster Maintenance 11%
- Logging / Monitoring 5%
- Storage 7%
- Troubleshooting 10%
3. CKAD Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)
CKAD certification is intended for professionals who execute core practices of the Kubernetes ecosystem. Candidates are assessed based on their proficiency in creating, constructing, revealing, and setting up cloud-native apps specifically for Kubernetes. Additionally, those taking the CKAD exam should understand cloud-native application concepts, OCI-compliant container Runtime, and programming languages like Go, Python, or Java for infrastructure purposes.
Basic Details
- Prerequisites: Application expertise, and familiarity with the Kubernetes environment.
- Exam Fee: USD 300
- Duration: 2 hours
- Question Type: Problem Solving
Course Outline
- Core Concepts: 13%
- Configuration: 18%
- Multi-Container Pods:10%
- Observability-18%
- Pod Design-20%
- Services & Networking:13%
- State Persistence: 8%
3. AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional Exam
AWS provides multiple certifications for individuals to take on different roles and tasks within the AWS cloud. The AWS DevOps Engineer Professional certification exam assesses candidates’ technical abilities and knowledge in handling and overseeing distributed systems and applications on the AWS platform.
Additionally, the exam demands that candidates be well-versed in development and operations methods. They should also have substantial hands-on experience in managing operating systems and creating automated infrastructures. There are various resources like documentation, books, online courses, practice tests, and discussion forums that can aid in preparing for the AWS DevOps Engineer Professional exam. The exam is offered in English, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese languages.
Basic Details
- Cost: $300
- Duration: 170 minutes
- Question Type: 40-65 MCQs
Course Outline
- Firstly, SDLC automation
- Subsequently, Configuration management and Infrastructure as Code
- Alo, High availability, disaster recovery, and fault tolerance
- Further, Incident and event response
- Additionally, Monitoring and logging
- Moreover, Policies and standards automation
4. Azure DevOps Solution Certification Exam
Microsoft Azure is a cloud service, much like AWS and Google Cloud Platform. It’s known for its diverse range of offerings, like web servers, email servers, databases, file storage, virtual machines, user directories, and more. Combining Azure with DevOps leads to quicker and dependable deployments, making the whole DevOps process easier and faster.
Among the various Azure certifications, the Azure DevOps Engineer Expert certification highlights the capabilities of Azure DevOps experts. Ideally, these Azure professionals are already functioning as DevOps engineers, creating and implementing top-notch DevOps methods for version control, builds, releases, compliance, testing, and infrastructure as code, all with the use of Azure technologies.
Basic Exam Details
- Prerequisite: Azure Administrator Associate and Azure Developer Associate
- Cost: $165
- Duration: 170 minutes
- Question Type: 40-60 MCQs
Course Outline
- Firstly, designing a DevOps strategy
- Secondly, implementing DevOps development processes
- After that, Continuous integration
- Further, Continuous delivery
- In addition, the Application infrastructure
- Moreover, Dependency management
- Lastly, Continuous feedback
5. Puppet Professional Certification
The popularity of Puppet is no longer a secret. Yes, you heard it right, there are more than 35,000 organizations worldwide that use Puppet, 206 – System Administration Using Puppet Exam. As a result, the demand for engineers, developers, administrators, managers, and architects with Puppet experience has taken a significant rise. The Puppet Certified Professional evaluates the potential aspirants on the macro-level knowledge of Puppet IT automation software.
Once you pass the exam, you’ll have the ability to manage system infrastructure with Puppet. You’ll also get the chance to explore modules such as data separation and external data sources. For effective preparation, rely on Puppet documentation, accepted practices, and the Puppet Language Style Guide.
Basic Exam Details
- Prerequisite: None
- Cost: $200
- Duration: 90 minutes
- Question Type: 60 MCQs
Course Outline
- Resource abstraction
- Idempotence
- Puppet facts
- Puppet agent lifecycle
Practical operational knowledge of:
- Puppet language
- Data service capabilities of Hiera
- Applications of Puppet DB data,
- Tricks for defining dependencies in Puppet code.
Final Words
Certifications alone won’t make you a DevOps expert, but the right ones can open doors, spark conversations with hiring managers, and validate the skills you’ve worked hard to build. The key is choosing a certification that matches your current skill set, aligns with your career goals, and reflects where the industry is headed. In 2025, DevOps is less about tools in isolation and more about how you integrate, automate, and secure entire delivery pipelines across cloud and on-prem environments. Employers are looking for professionals who can blend technical skills with business awareness — people who can speed up delivery without sacrificing quality, security, or cost efficiency.
If you’re just starting out, pick a certification that builds strong fundamentals and gets you hands-on with popular DevOps platforms. If you’re more experienced, aim for advanced or niche certifications that sharpen your leadership, architecture, or multi-cloud deployment skills. And no matter where you are in your journey, keep experimenting, learning, and contributing to real projects, because that’s where certifications truly pay off.
To sum up, by obtaining one of these valuable DevOps certifications, individuals ensure not only that they remain competitive in their field but that they remain ahead of the entire curve. Apart from this, it is crucial to gain significant real-time hands-on experience with the DevOps tool for which you aspire to achieve certification.
