Can you imagine visiting a non-certified therapist? Likely, the answer is no. You wouldn’t want to put your life in the hands of a person who hasn’t got a stamp of approval from authority.
The same applies to Magento eCommerce. Before entrusting someone with an access to your store, all the orders, and hard-earned customers, you’d want to ensure you work with a certified expert.
To assess and recommend or just to tune and fix your eCommerce website, it’s best to work with a certified expert who holds a Magento developer certification.
Atwix is a certified Magento ecommerce development company operating for over 13 years on the market. We’ve been there through the collapse of Magento 1, the rise of Magento 2, and now as Adobe presented a new set of certifications.
Read on as we share our expertise on the types of Magento 2 / Adobe Certifications and why they matter once you set out to hire a professional developer.
Benefits of hiring a Magento certified developer:
- More efficient upgrades.
Following the best Magento code standards guarantees fewer errors and better compatibility during the upgrade process. - Better security.
A deeper understanding of Magento’s best practices ensures security guidance and compliance are met. - Deft architectural decisions.
Migrating, integrating, and configuring a tailored solution ensures the website architecture meets the business needs. - Swift delivery.
Knowledge of Magento components to identify possible affected functionality accelerates troubleshooting. - Fluid customization.
Advanced level knowledge of site customizations and its underlying features enhances website development and compliance all the while maintaining optimal performance.
Magento 2/Adobe Commerce Certifications
Ever since Magento became a part of Adobe in 2018, the company has rebranded everything including developer certifications.
Currently, there are 7 Adobe Commerce certifications spread across Professional, Expert, and Master levels. Six correspond to retired Magento 2 certifications, while one is new. Below, we will describe all certifications, providing old and new names to avoid confusion.
Magento 2 Certified Associate Developer (now AD0-E717 Adobe Certified Professional – Adobe Commerce Developer)
Adobe Commerce Developer AD0-E717 is created for beginner-level developers with a general knowledge of Magento development. With this Magento certification, a developer verifies skills such as a basic understanding of Adobe Commerce admin development, its architecture, EAV/database, layout/UI, checkout/sales, and catalog.
Developers should be familiar with Adobe Commerce Version 2.4, have excellent command of PHP and object-oriented programming expertise, understand MySQL, and be familiar with cloud architecture.
For a developer with less than two years of professional experience, the Adobe Commerce Developer certification is the first badge of honor. Any Magento-certified company with junior engineers on staff qualified to carry out a wide range of support and maintenance activities will typically have this basic badge.
The certification is valid for two years. Therefore, the newer exam version is preferable as it covers the latest product capabilities.
Price: $125 (global) / $95 (India)
Magento 2 Certified Professional Developer & Magento Certified Professional Cloud Developer (now AD0-E716 Adobe Certified Expert – Adobe Commerce Developer)
The Adobe Commerce Developer Expert AD0-E716 exam is taken by developers with at least 1.5 years of Magento Commerce experience.
They must have a strong knowledge of Magento fundamentals and customization practices. Magento 2 Certified Professional Developer and Magento Certified Professional Cloud Developer were merged into this certification. It is solid ground to ensure that a developer will deliver quality code for your website.
To pass this certification, a developer should be familiar with Adobe Commerce version 2.4, PHP, XDebug/PHP and browser debugging tools, Linting tools, Composer, SSH, Redis, Elasticsearch, SQL, Varnish, RabbitMQ Basic Linux, API validation tools, API clients (Postman), version control tools (like Git), and Cloud Architecture.
The Adobe Commerce Developer Expert certification’s audience includes lead developers, backend developers, technical leaders, and solutions architects.
Price: $225 (global) / $150 (India)
Magento 2 Certified Professional Developer Plus (now AD0-E718 Adobe Commerce Architect Master)
Adobe Commerce Architect Master AD0-E718 is a must-have for all senior Magento 2 developers and architects. These developers work on project planning together with clients and ensure the project’s architecture not only meets the business requirements but also follows the best Magento 2 coding practices. If the platform is correctly planned and set up, it saves hundreds of hours on performance improvement and compatibility issues.
Developers should have at least 3-5 years of experience managing Commerce development projects and have the skills to use Adobe Commerce and related technologies to create, integrate, implement, and communicate solutions to business problems.
They should also be well knowledgeable on the following pursuits and tools:
- Extending core features;
- Full Adobe Commerce configuration;
- Creating a full blueprint of how an extension should work;
- Understanding business requirements and features;
- Performance implications of solutions and extensions;
- Understanding the logic of service contracts;
- GraphQL;
- Utilizing Composer as a dependency tool;
- Setting up and configuring Adobe Commerce working instance from scratch;
- Admin dashboard customization with grids and forms;
- Cache and index management; custom index creation;
- New cache type creation;
- Debugging and troubleshooting various environmental issues;
- Managing and expanding the database schema;
- Proving secure installation and development extension;
- Performing server-based services like Redis and Varnish configuration management;
- Knowledge of best coding standard practices, Coding standards, PSR, and SOLID principles;
- Installing and using the Adobe Commerce Services Connector (and related services);
- Staging content management;
- Knowing the default settings for Adobe Commerce and their availability;
- Broad knowledge of all relevant Adobe Commerce domains;
- Design project architecture;
- Enhancing Adobe Commerce’s default performance;
- Creating and modifying B2B;
- AMQP protocol and adapter modification in Adobe Commerce (S3).
The certification is intended for associate technical architects, senior backend developers, senior backend software engineers, lead software/Adobe Commerce architects, technical architects, solution architects, technical leads, technical experts, and full-stack developers.
Price: $225 (global)/ $150 (India).
Magento 2 Certified Professional Front-End Developer(now AD0-E721 Adobe Commerce Front-End Developer Professional)
The certification of Adobe Commerce Front-end Developer Professional AD0-E721 ensures that a developer knows Magento frontend in and out. A deep understanding of theme components saves time when it comes to changes presented in Magento admin settings.
To get certified, developers should be able to deliver individual components using technological solutions and have 0–12 months of practical experience with Adobe Commerce front-end development.
They should also be familiar with the following technologies:
- Solid understanding of Adobe Commerce version 2.4.6;
- Basic knowledge of front-end layout and structure;
- Experience with HTML, CSS (including preprocessors), LESS, JavaScript and UI Components, jQuery, Underscore, Require.JS, PHP templates, DBs, and content management systems;
- Knowledge of the platform, the CMS Blocks, Widgets, CMS Pages, Category Pages, Product Pages, Cart and Checkout, and the Account Dashboard;
- Basic knowledge of admin configurations;
- Knowledge of overwriting and extending JS files, styles, and layouts;
- Parent themes and theme hierarchy expansion;
- Grunt and CLI command (setup: upgrade, indexers, and deployment mode);
- Understanding storage (Cookies, local storage), client-side browsers, and caching technologies;
- Knowledge of media queries and responsive design;
- Page builder/WYSIWYG;
- Comprehension of code packages;
- Implement translation;
- Experience working with email templates;
- Basic familiarity with XML;
- Basic knowledge of outside-the-box thinking strategies for SEO, optimization, and performance;
- Fundamental understanding of canonical links and combining JavaScript and CSS;
- Solid understanding of the Adobe Commerce cloud infrastructure.
Adobe Commerce Front-end Developer Professional certification is intended for front-end, full-stack, and PWA developers.
Price: $125 (global)/ $95 (India).
Magento 2 Professional JavaScript Developer (now AD0-E720 Adobe Commerce Front-End Developer Expert)
The Adobe Commerce Front-End Developer Expert AD0-E720 is an Expert-level certification requiring at least 1-3 years of practical experience with Adobe Commerce front-end development. Certified Front-End Developer Experts should be able to translate the needs outlined in the task requirements into a technical solution.
The applicants should feel comfortable utilizing the following technologies:
- Adobe Commerce version 2.4.6;
- Basic familiarity with front-end structure and layout;
- Knowledge of DBs and content management;
- Experience with HTML, CSS, LESS, JavaScript and UI Components, Underscore, Require.JS, jQuery, and Knockout;
- Knowledge of the platform, CMS Blocks, Widgets, CMS Pages, Category Pages, Product Pages, Cart and Checkout, and the Account Dashboard;
- Basic knowledge of admin configurations;
- Understanding of overwriting and extending JS files, styles, and layouts;
- Parent themes and theme hierarchy expansion;
- Client-side browser, understanding of storage (Cookies, local storage), and Caching technologies;
- CLI command (setup: upgrade, indexers, and deployment mode) and Grunt;
- Understanding media queries and responsive design;
- Web page builder/WYSIWYG;
- Understanding code packages;
- Implement translation;
- Experience working with email templates;
- Understanding Adobe Commerce Cloud infrastructure;
- Basic knowledge of the CLI command tool.
The certification is intended for developers, front-end developers, and tech leads.
Price: $225 (global)/ $150 (India).
Magento 2 Certified Solution Specialist (now AD0-E708 Adobe Commerce Business Practitioner Expert)
Adobe Commerce Business Practitioner Expert ADo-E708 verifies the knowledge of all native Magento functionality that can be used out of the box. An Adobe Commerce business practitioner expert also has deep eCommerce and general Magento 2 SEO understanding. This can save time and effort during project management when your team understands all the functionality that Magento offers.
To get certified, candidates should have approximately 1-3 years of hands-on commerce experience and a broad understanding of the eCommerce industry. They need to have a proven track record in:
- Digital marketing: SEO, CMS, cross-selling and up-selling strategies, knowledge of Google Analytics, and email templates;
- Security, compliance, and privacy laws, including PCI, GDPR, ADA, CAN-SPAM, and PSD2;
- Multichannel and omnichannel sales/marketing techniques;
- Knowledge of software development processes, requirements collecting, integration flows, general e-commerce rules, and project management;
- Experience in business, trade/e-trade, and logistics;
- Basic understanding of cloud computing, server infrastructure, and customized applications;
- Modern e-commerce terminology.
Additionally, the applicants should feel confident using the following technologies:
- Adobe Commerce version 2.4.6;
- Analytics and performance tools: tag management, SWAT, New Relic, Fastly, Google Analytics, and Google Lighthouse;
- Security tools: (PCI compliance, ADA, GDPR, etc.);
- Cloud or on-premise architecture.
Adobe Commerce Business Practitioner Expert certification targets business analysts, commerce strategists, consultants, technical project and account managers, application architects, solution architects, agency managers and consultants, and digital marketing directors and managers.
Price: $225 (global)/ $150 (India).
ADo-E712 Adobe Commerce Business Practitioner Professional
Adobe Commerce Business Practitioner Professional ADo-E712 certification is designed for candidates with a fundamental understanding of Adobe Commerce version 2.4.3 and at least 0–12 months of hands-on experience with Magento Open Source version 2.4.3 utilizing the LUMA or BLANK theme.
The candidates should also have an understanding of the eCommerce process and be familiar with the following concepts:
- Digital marketing: SEO, CMS, email marketing, upselling, and cross-selling strategies, as well as analytics, reporting, and monitoring;
- E-commerce terminology (sales/marketing tactics like omnichannel and multichannel);
- Pricing and marketing;
- Customer purchase journey;
- Order life cycle;
- Magento and third-party extensions and add-ons;
- Security and compliance (PCI DSS v3.2.1, PSD2, GDPR, and ADA).
The certification targets business analysts, Adobe Commerce strategists, product owners, project managers, consultants, e-commerce managers/admins/directors/consultants, solutions specialists, digital marketing directors/managers/developers, and technical account managers.
Price: $125 (global)/ $95 (India).
Note: Magento 2 Certified Order Management Developer (AD0-E707, Expert Magento Order Management) certification retired without replacement due to deprecation of Order Management.
What Does a Magento Certified Team Look Like?
The following checklist may help to gather a proper team for your website:
Website support:
- 1x Solution Specialist
- 1x Professional Developer
- 1x Professional Front End Developer
New website development from scratch:
- 1x Solution Specialist
- 2x Full Stack Developers: Professional Developer + Front End Developer + JavaScript Developer
High traffic website development/support:
- 1x Solution Specialist
- 1x Professional Developer
- 1x Professional Cloud Developer
Complex customizations to make your website experience unique:
- 1x Solution Specialist
- 1x Professional Developer Plus
- 1x Full Stack Developer
Website integration with MOM or another custom third-party platform:
- 1x Order Management Developer
Adobe knows how important it is to get partners in the ecosystem certified and well-trained with the latest and greatest Magento Commerce development practices, including project management skills.
Choosing the Right Magento Certification
There are seven different Magento/Adobe Commerce certifications, so it can take time to choose the right one. You can review certification journey pages and select the exam based on the following:
- Application (for example, Adobe Analytics);
- Role (for example, developer or business practitioner)
- Level (Professional, 0-12 months of experience; Expert, 1-3 years, or Master, 3–5 years).
Exam versions are renewed from time to time. You can find a note on the certification journey page if an exam is retiring. It indicates that this exam will soon be replaced with a newer version. Although using the most recent version is preferable, you can also use the retiring one. In any case, the certification will be valid for two years.
You should renew your certification if it is about to expire. Options for renewal ask fewer questions and are free of charge. These options cover the most modern application capabilities. You need to take the most recent certification exam to renew your certification.
How to Determine a Certified Magento Developer?
A certified developer possesses the skills and knowledge to tackle complex challenges, implement best practices, and ensure a seamless online shopping environment for customers. Here’s how you can determine whether a developer is genuinely certified in Magento:
Verify Credentials
Always request proof of certification from any developer you’re considering hiring. It could be a digital badge, a certificate, or a profile on the Magento certification directory. To ensure its authenticity, take the time to cross-reference the information provided with the official Magento certification database.
Assess the Skill Set
Certified Magento developers have deep knowledge of the aspects of Magento development covered by their certification. Discuss specific project scenarios or challenges the developer might encounter. You can be confident about their expertise if they provide informed solutions and strategies.
Inquire About Experience
Practical experience is just as important as certification. Inquire about the developer’s prior Magento projects, the challenges they encountered, and the outcomes they produced. A certified developer with practical experience will be well-versed in theory and know how to apply it to real-life cases effectively.
Request References
Feel free to ask for references from the developer’s previous clients or employers. You can personally speak with those who have collaborated with the developers to learn more about the developer’s work ethic, communication style, and capacity for meeting deadlines.
Keep Your Fingers on the Pulse of the Latest Magento Updates
Magento releases new versions and updates regularly. A certified developer should demonstrate a commitment to staying updated on the latest advancements within the platform. Check the date of their certification and inquire about their familiarity with the latest Magento version and their approach to adapting to changes.
Locate Top Magento Certified Developers with Atwix
In recent years, Magento has grown its partner training program significantly. Being one of the first Magento partners and a Gold Adobe Solution Partner, Atwix holds the greatest number of certifications among all the Professional Partners — 51.
Atwix also holds dual Adobe Commerce specialization – in Americas and in the EMEA region – which is yet another proof of a world-class eCommerce acumen.
Finding a trained and experienced partner is mission-critical to any project. Certified engineers will play an important role in shaping and defining the future of your business. Our hope in providing this background on professional certifications is to shed light on what goes into Magento training and how only the most worthy individuals get certified.
Make sure to check out Magento’s Partners Directory to discover partners and please reach out to us with questions or freely share and comment below.
FAQs
Do I need to take training courses before attempting a Magento certification exam?
Taking training courses before passing the Magento certification exams is not mandatory. However, it may significantly enhance your preparation for the exam.
How do I register for a Magento certification exam?
To register for a Magento certification exam, visit the official Magento website and follow the registration process outlined for your certification.
What can I expect from the Magento certification exam format?
Magento certification exams are online assessments, typically requiring camera access. They consist of multiple-choice questions. The exam duration varies from 100 to 154 minutes. A passing score is 64% or above.