Posted on September 30, 2025 by audra

CNCF projects highlighted in this post

If you’ve been working with ArgoCD or exploring GitOps, you’ve probably come across the Certified Argo Project Associate (CAPA) exam. I recently passed it, and in this post, I want to share:

• Why I took the exam
• How I prepared (including all the resources I used)
• What the experience was like
• Whether I’d recommend it

This isn’t a sales pitch. It’s a real-world guide to help you prepare — and understand whether this certification is right for you.

👩‍💻 My Background with Argo

I’ve been working with ArgoCD for over a year now as a senior cloud engineer. I’ve had first-hand experience managing real-world GitOps workflows, and designing deployment strategies using ArgoCD.

However, the CAPA exam doesn’t just focus on ArgoCD. It covers four Argo projects:

• Argo Workflows
• Argo CD
• Argo Rollouts
• Argo Events

While I had a solid foundation in GitOps and ArgoCD (which makes up 34% of the exam), I had little to no hands-on experience with Workflows, Rollouts, or Events — and that’s where most of my preparation efforts went.

📚 My Study Strategy (1-Month Plan)

I prepared for the exam over the course of 1 month — with a focused, hands-on approach. Here’s the breakdown of how I studied and what resources I used:

🎓 1. Linux Foundation Course (LFS256)

As a CNCF Ambassador, I had the opportunity to get the exam for free, and I also opted to purchase the “DevOps and Workflow Management with Argo (LFS256)” training course.

• Pros: Great introduction to the overall Argo ecosystem
• Cons: A bit high-level — not deep enough for actual exam configs or edge cases
• Verdict: Good as a first stop, but not sufficient alone

🧪 2. Practice Repos, Examples, and Real Configs

Once I understood the basics, I needed to go deeper. These resources helped me get hands-on with the kind of configurations and scenarios that appear in the exam:

📘 CNCF Exams GitLab Repository

👉 Certified Argo Project Associate CAPA

• Contains sample YAMLs, key resource definitions, and config settings you need to know
• The practice exam section is very close in difficulty to the actual test:Practice Exam Link

✍️ Study Guides from the Community

These two blog posts were absolute gold. Both authors shared their notes while preparing, and their attention to detail helped me immensely:

• Paulyu.dev CAPA Study Guide
• Al-Hussein Hameed Jasim’s GitHub Notes

They covered corner-case configurations, lesser-known CLI behaviors, and practical tips that often go unmentioned in the official documentation.

📝 3. Udemy Mock Exams

I also bought the CAPA Mock Exams Course on Udemy.

• Useful to get a feel for question formats
• However, the difficulty level was lower than the real exam
• Great for confidence building, but Don’t rely on it alone

🧠 Exam Format & Experience

Here’s what the actual exam looked like:

• 90 minutes
• 60 multiple-choice questions
• You need 70% to pass
• You get 1 free retake if you fail

The majority of questions were scenario-based. You won’t get by with just theory. You really need to understand YAML configuration, resource relationships, and use-case trade-offs.

💡 My Favorite Part of the Journey

The most fun part for me? Whenever I encountered a tricky ArgoCD config question, my mind immediately went to:

“Wait… could this solve that issue in our current project?”

Studying for the CAPA exam gave me new perspectives on how to use ArgoCD better in production. It wasn’t just about passing — it was about learning practical skills I could apply the next day at work.

✅ Would I Recommend It?

Absolutely — if you’re already working with GitOps, or planning to adopt Argo tools in your team. It’s not an “easy pass” cert, but with 1–2 months of focused prep, you’ll gain:

• Cross-project knowledge (CD, Rollouts, Workflows, Events)
• Hands-on YAML and config skills
• A stronger grasp of GitOps principles in action
• And a shiny CNCF-backed credential to show for it 🎉

📎 TL;DR — My Tips

• Start with the LFS256 course
• Move on to the CNCF GitLab repo and hands-on YAMLs
• Use Paulyu’s guide and Al-Hussein’s repo to go deep
• Practice with Udemy mocks, but don’t rely on them
• Learn actively — apply what you learn to your real-world projects