SC-300 Practice Test

SC-300 Exam Cost 2026

The SC-300 exam costs $165 USD in 2026. This is the standard Microsoft Associate-level certification price. Pricing varies by country — approximately ₹4,800 INR in India, £113 GBP in the UK, and roughly €165 EUR in most European markets. Always confirm the current price on the official Microsoft Learn scheduling page for your region.

There are no formal prerequisites, though Microsoft strongly recommends hands-on Microsoft Entra ID experience and prior completion of SC-900 fundamentals. SC-300 expires annually — renewal is free via a shorter online assessment on Microsoft Learn. Microsoft Ignite, Enterprise Skills Initiative (ESI), and Microsoft Learn Cloud Skills Challenges occasionally offer free vouchers.

SC-300 vs AZ-500: Identity Depth vs Azure Security Breadth

The two most-confused security-adjacent certifications. Both are Associate-level and $165, but they test different roles and overlap only on Microsoft Entra ID.

Take SC-300 if your role is identity administration. Take AZ-500 if your role is Azure security engineering. Cloud security engineers often earn both, since identity is roughly 25% of AZ-500.

SC-300 vs SC-200 vs SC-900: The Security Track

All three are Microsoft security certifications targeting different roles. Use this table to pick the right one.

Most candidates take SC-900 first to validate fundamentals, then choose SC-300 for identity administration or SC-200 for security operations. Senior security engineers often earn both SC-300 and SC-200 — together they signal you span identity configuration and threat operations, which is highly valued.

What Happened to SC-400?

SC-400 (Microsoft Information Protection Administrator) was retired by Microsoft in 2023. The SC-400 content was redistributed across multiple certifications: data protection and DLP topics moved into MS-102 (Microsoft 365 Administrator) and SC-200 (Security Operations Analyst), while identity governance topics moved into SC-300. If you searched for SC-400, the most direct replacement depends on your role — SC-300 if you focus on identity and access, SC-200 if you focus on threat detection and DLP operations, or MS-102 if you focus on broader M365 administration including Purview compliance.

SC-300 Salary and Career Outlook (2026)

SC-300-certified Identity and Access Administrators in the US earn the following reported salaries in 2026:

• • Entry-level identity administrator (1–3 yrs): $75,000–$95,000 USD
• • Identity administrator (3–5 yrs): $95,000–$120,000 USD
• • Senior identity engineer / IAM architect: $120,000–$160,000 USD
• • SC-300 + SC-200 (Security + Identity combo): $115,000–$155,000 USD
• • SC-300 + AZ-500 (Cloud security combo): $120,000–$165,000 USD

Identity is the cornerstone of zero-trust architecture, which makes SC-300 one of the most strategically valuable Microsoft Associate certifications. As organizations expand Conditional Access programs and adopt PIM for privileged access management, demand for SC-300-certified administrators continues to grow well above the IT average.

SC-300 Exam Topics 2026: Domain Breakdown

SC-300 covers four domains. Microsoft refines wording periodically but the weights remain stable. Always verify the latest objectives on the official Microsoft Learn SC-300 page.

SC-300 Study Plan: 8-Week Schedule

Most candidates pass SC-300 with 6–10 weeks of preparation. This 8-week plan assumes you have basic Microsoft Entra admin portal familiarity (SC-900 or hands-on M365 experience):

• Week 1: Entra ID identities — users, groups, external identities (B2B), hybrid identity with Entra Connect, administrative units. Build a free Entra developer tenant if needed.
• Week 2–3: Authentication and Conditional Access — MFA, authentication methods, Conditional Access policy design (signals, conditions, grants, sessions). Build at least 5 realistic Conditional Access policies.
• Week 4: Identity Protection — user risk policies, sign-in risk policies, risky users and sign-ins workflows. Single sign-on configurations and named locations.
• Week 5: Workload identities — app registrations, service principals, managed identities, API permissions and consent flows, workload identity federation.
• Week 6: Identity governance — PIM role configuration (eligible vs. active, approval workflows, justification), access reviews, Entitlement Management access packages.
• Week 7: Take 40 free practice questions to find weak areas. Re-study the weakest two topics. Focus on case studies — SC-300 case studies often combine Conditional Access + PIM + Identity Protection.
• Week 8: Two full timed mock exams. Review every wrong answer. Target consistent 80%+ before booking. Budget 12–15 minutes per case study.