The Salesforce Platform Developer I Credential is intended for individuals who have knowledge, skills, and experience in building custom applications on the Lightning Platform.
This credential encompasses the fundamental programmatic capabilities of the Lightning Platform to develop custom business logic and interfaces to extend Salesforce using Apex, Visualforce, and Lightning components. To achieve this credential, a candidate must successfully pass the Salesforce Platform Developer I exam. This exam is also a prerequisite to the Salesforce Platform Developer II Multiple Choice exam.
Prerequisites
The Salesforce Platform Developer I Exam is intended for an individual who has experience developing and deploying basic business logic and user interfaces using the programmatic capabilities of the Lightning Platform, including practical application of the skills and concepts noted in the exam objectives below.
The Salesforce Platform Developer I generally has one to two years of experience as a developer and at least six months of experience on the Lightning Platform and has invested time in studying the resources listed in this exam guide.
The Salesforce Platform Developer I candidate has the experience, skills, and knowledge outlined below.
- Has experience with data-driven applications and relational databases
- Has experience with object-oriented languages such as Apex, JavaScript, Java, C#, and Ruby
- Is familiar with governor limits and their implications
- Has experience with Model View Controller (MVC) and component-based architectures
- Knows the capabilities of the core objects in the Salesforce schema
- Knows the capabilities and use cases for formula fields and roll-up summary fields
- Knows when to use declarative vs. programmatic methods to solve business requirements
- Can leverage relevant declarative capabilities of the platform, where appropriate
- Knows the Apex programming language and can use Apex best practices to customize Salesforce
- Can extend the Lightning Platform using Apex, basic Lightning components, and Visualforce
- Can use fundamental programmatic capabilities of the Lightning Platform to develop custom interfaces to extend Salesforce capabilities and develop custom business logic
- Is familiar with testing, debugging, and deploying code and knows the available environments
- A candidate for this exam is not expected to administer any standard Salesforce applications, develop mobile apps, develop and publish managed products on the AppExchange, perform tuning, or design integrations such as callouts, APIs, and email services.
Recommended training for this certification
Exams
All proctored Salesforce certification exams can be scheduled as an onsite or online exam.
Quick facts about the exam:
- Content: 60 multiple-choice/multiple-select questions and up to five non-scored questions
- Time allotted to complete the exam: 105 minutes
- Passing score: 68%
- Version: Exam questions align to the Winter '25 release
- Registration fee: US$200, plus applicable taxes as required per local law
- Retake fee: $100, plus applicable taxes as required per local law
- Delivery options: Proctored exam delivered onsite at a testing center or in an online proctored environment; click here for information on scheduling an exam.
- References: No hard-copy or online materials may be referenced during the exam.
- Prerequisite: None; course attendance highly recommended
Note: Exam takers now have the opportunity to provide comments and feedback for individual questions on the Platform Developer I Exam.