Alibaba Cloud Academy vs Digital Cloud Training

Alibaba Cloud Academy is Alibaba Cloud’s training and certification division for clients, partners, and developers. Programs include Clouder, Specialty, and short video courses, with certification routes across Associate, Certified, Expert, Professional, Capability and Competency, Clouder, and developer credentials. The listed Academy Membership costs $19.90 a year and includes unlimited access to 130+ online training courses, free Apsara Clouder certifications, and up to four attempts for each Apsara Clouder and Specialty certification. Other courses, specialties, credentials, vouchers, and subscriptions may require payment. Academy activities require a main Alibaba Cloud account; RAM accounts are unsupported. Pearson VUE exams can be taken at test centers or online, except online-proctored exams are unavailable in the Chinese mainland. Professional certifications last two years, and status can be verified through a one-step process. Badges can be shared on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, but not through Credly.

Digital Cloud Training is a web-based learning service offering self-paced cloud courses, practice exams, study resources, challenge labs, and bootcamps. Its catalog covers AWS, Microsoft Azure, Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform, Python on AWS, and other cloud subjects. On-demand videos pair theory with guided practical exercises, while subscribers receive new courses and updates. Practice exams provide training and simulation modes with topic-specific knowledge reviews. Downloadable PDF notes support offline study. Challenge Labs are scored, scenario-based exercises in hosted environments such as preconfigured AWS or Azure accounts. The All Challenge Labs plan includes over 1,000 labs, 365 days of access, and three attempts per challenge. Free AWS materials include videos, practice questions, cheat sheets, study plans, articles, and tutorials. Content ranges from beginner to advanced, and customized programs are available for teams and enterprises. A free plan is available; paid plans start at $24.99 per user per month.