Certification Guide

CKA Certification Complete Guide

Everything you need to pass the Certified Kubernetes Administrator exam. Exam domains, study resources, and tips from engineers who train CKA candidates with an 87% first-attempt pass rate.

2 hours

Exam Duration

66%

Passing Score

$395 USD

Exam Cost

3 years

Certification Validity

Overview

What is the CKA Certification?

The Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) certification is a performance-based exam developed by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) in partnership with the Linux Foundation. Unlike traditional multiple-choice certifications, the CKA requires you to complete real tasks on live Kubernetes clusters, demonstrating practical competency in cluster administration.

The CKA validates your ability to install, configure, and manage production-grade Kubernetes clusters. It covers cluster architecture, workload scheduling, networking, storage, and troubleshooting — the core competencies every Kubernetes administrator needs.

THNKBIG offers CKA certification prep as part of our Kubernetes training programs. Our instructor-led courses achieve an 87% first-attempt pass rate, compared to the industry average of 60-65%. We train teams across Austin, Houston, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and nationwide.

Exam Curriculum

CKA Exam Domains & Weights

The CKA exam covers five domains. Troubleshooting carries the highest weight at 30%, so prioritize your study time accordingly.

1

Cluster Architecture, Installation & Configuration

25%

Topics Covered

  • Manage role-based access control (RBAC)
  • Use kubeadm to install a basic cluster
  • Manage a highly-available Kubernetes cluster
  • Provision underlying infrastructure for cluster deployment
  • Perform a version upgrade on a Kubernetes cluster
  • Implement etcd backup and restore

Study Tip

This domain tests your ability to build and maintain clusters from scratch. Practice kubeadm installations repeatedly until you can do them without documentation.

2

Workloads & Scheduling

15%

Topics Covered

  • Understand deployments and rolling updates
  • Use ConfigMaps and Secrets to configure applications
  • Know how to scale applications
  • Understand primitives for self-healing applications
  • Understand resource limits and pod scheduling

Study Tip

Focus on imperative commands (kubectl create, kubectl run) for speed. Know how to quickly create deployments, scale them, and troubleshoot rolling updates.

3

Services & Networking

20%

Topics Covered

  • Understand connectivity between pods
  • Define and enforce network policies
  • Use ClusterIP, NodePort, LoadBalancer services
  • Know Ingress resources and controllers
  • Configure and use CoreDNS
  • Choose appropriate container network interface (CNI) plugin

Study Tip

Network policies are frequently tested. Practice creating deny-all policies and then selectively allowing traffic. Understand how DNS works within the cluster.

4

Storage

10%

Topics Covered

  • Understand storage classes and persistent volumes
  • Know how to configure applications with persistent storage
  • Understand volume modes, access modes, reclaim policies
  • Know how to configure persistent volume claims

Study Tip

Storage questions are straightforward but time-consuming. Know the YAML structure for PVs and PVCs cold. Practice creating storage classes and binding volumes.

5

Troubleshooting

30%

Topics Covered

  • Evaluate cluster and node logging
  • Understand how to monitor applications
  • Manage container stdout and stderr logs
  • Troubleshoot application failures
  • Troubleshoot cluster component failures
  • Troubleshoot networking issues

Study Tip

This is the largest domain. Practice systematic debugging: check pod status, describe resources, view logs, exec into containers. Know where kubelet and control plane logs live.

Resources

CKA Study Resources

The best CKA preparation combines hands-on practice with targeted study. Focus 70% of your time on labs and 30% on documentation review.

Official Resources

  • Kubernetes Documentation

    FREE

    The official docs are allowed during the exam. Learn to navigate them quickly.

  • CKA Exam Curriculum

    FREE

    CNCF's official curriculum with exact exam objectives.

  • Kubernetes The Hard Way

    FREE

    Kelsey Hightower's guide to installing Kubernetes manually. Essential for understanding cluster components.

Practice Labs

  • Killer.sh CKA Simulator

    Included with exam registration. Two sessions that closely mirror the real exam.

  • KodeKloud CKA Course

    Hands-on labs with integrated practice environments.

  • Play with Kubernetes

    FREE

    Free temporary Kubernetes clusters for practice.

Video Courses

  • CKA with Practice Tests (Udemy)

    Mumshad Mannambeth's course is the most popular CKA prep.

  • Linux Foundation Training

    Official CNCF training courses for CKA preparation.

Pro Tips

CKA Exam Tips from Certified Engineers

These tips come from our training instructors who are all CKA-certified and have helped hundreds of engineers pass the exam.

1

Master kubectl imperative commands

Creating resources from YAML is slow. Use `kubectl run`, `kubectl create`, and `kubectl expose` to generate resources quickly. Learn the --dry-run=client -o yaml pattern to generate YAML templates.

2

Set up aliases and autocomplete

The exam allows bash customization. Set up `alias k=kubectl`, enable kubectl autocomplete, and export EDITOR=vim. This saves minutes over a 2-hour exam.

3

Bookmark key documentation pages

You can use the Kubernetes docs during the exam. Pre-bookmark pages for PV/PVC YAML, network policies, RBAC, and kubeadm commands. Navigation speed matters.

4

Practice time management

You have ~6-8 minutes per task. If you're stuck for more than 10 minutes, flag the question and move on. Partial credit is awarded, so attempt every question.

5

Use the right context

Each question specifies a cluster context. Always run `kubectl config use-context <context>` first. Wrong context = zero points for that question.

6

Verify your work

After completing each task, verify it works. Run `kubectl get`, `kubectl describe`, or test connectivity. Don't assume your YAML is correct.

7

Know your editors

You'll edit YAML in the terminal. Be proficient in vim or nano. Know how to search, copy lines, and indent blocks. Editor fumbling costs time.

8

Understand cluster component locations

Know where to find kubelet configs, static pod manifests (/etc/kubernetes/manifests), etcd data, and control plane component logs. Troubleshooting questions require this knowledge.

FAQ

CKA Certification FAQ

The Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) is a performance-based certification from the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) that validates your ability to install, configure, and manage production Kubernetes clusters. It's designed for system administrators, DevOps engineers, and platform engineers who operate Kubernetes infrastructure. The CKA is one of the most respected certifications in the cloud-native ecosystem and is often required for Kubernetes-focused roles.
The CKA is considered moderately difficult, with an industry pass rate of approximately 60-65% on the first attempt. The exam is entirely hands-on — there are no multiple-choice questions. You must complete real tasks on live Kubernetes clusters under time pressure. Most candidates find the time constraint (2 hours for 15-20 tasks) more challenging than the technical content itself. With proper preparation (40-80 hours of study), most experienced practitioners pass on their first attempt.
Study time varies based on your existing Kubernetes experience. For someone already working with Kubernetes daily, 2-4 weeks of focused preparation is typically sufficient. For those newer to Kubernetes, plan for 6-10 weeks. Most successful candidates report 40-80 hours of total study time, with heavy emphasis on hands-on practice rather than watching videos or reading documentation.
Yes. You are allowed to access the official Kubernetes documentation (kubernetes.io/docs), the Kubernetes GitHub repo, and the Kubernetes blog during the exam. However, you cannot use personal notes, bookmarks to external sites, or any other resources. Learning to navigate the official docs quickly is an essential exam skill.
CKA (Certified Kubernetes Administrator) focuses on cluster operations: installation, configuration, maintenance, and troubleshooting. CKAD (Certified Kubernetes Application Developer) focuses on deploying and managing applications on Kubernetes. CKS (Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist) focuses on securing Kubernetes clusters and workloads. CKA is typically taken first, as it provides the foundational knowledge needed for CKAD and CKS.
Your exam registration includes one free retake. You can schedule your retake after a 24-hour waiting period. If you fail the retake, you'll need to purchase a new exam voucher ($395). Most candidates who fail their first attempt pass on the retake after additional practice with the killer.sh simulator and focused study on their weak areas.
The CKA exam is updated regularly to reflect new Kubernetes versions. The exam typically runs on a Kubernetes version that's 1-2 releases behind the latest stable release. CNCF publishes the exam curriculum on GitHub, and changes are announced in advance. The core competencies (cluster management, troubleshooting, networking) remain consistent, but specific features and commands may change.
For roles that involve Kubernetes administration, the CKA is highly valuable. It's frequently listed as a requirement or strong preference in job postings for DevOps engineers, platform engineers, and SREs. The certification demonstrates practical, hands-on competency rather than theoretical knowledge. Many organizations, especially in regulated industries, require CKA certification for engineers working on production Kubernetes clusters.
CKA Training

Get CKA-Ready with Expert Training

Our instructor-led CKA prep courses combine hands-on labs with exam-specific drills. We've trained over 2,000 engineers with an 87% first-attempt pass rate — well above the industry average of 60-65%.

Explore Training Programs
Related

Related Resources

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Instructor-led CKA prep courses with 87% first-attempt pass rate.

Kubernetes Security Hub

Security best practices covered in CKA troubleshooting domains.

Kubernetes STIG Guide

Compliance hardening for CKA-certified administrators in federal environments.

Kubernetes Consulting Services

Expert consulting for organizations building Kubernetes platforms.

Zero-Trust Kubernetes

Network policy fundamentals tested in the CKA Services & Networking domain.

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