I have seen the passing score given as 63%. Which figure is correct?

The current official exam guide (SU '26 release edition) states 73%. The 63% figure comes from an earlier edition and has since been updated. Many third-party sites and older study materials still carry 63%, so check the official exam guide before you book.

Do I need the Platform Administrator credential first?

There are no prerequisites. That said, the official exam guide lists "experienced Salesforce Platform Administrator" first among its intended audiences, and the assumed background is six months to one year of building applications on Customer 360.

Can I pass without being able to write Apex?

The exam centers on declarative (clicks) customization. However, the boundary of declarative customization — and recognizing when a programmatic approach is the right choice — is in scope, as are the considerations for embedding custom Lightning components in an app. You do not need to write code, but you are asked where the line falls.

What happens if I leave the certification alone after passing?

You must complete the Trailhead maintenance badge three times a year, and the certification expires if you miss the deadline. This is different from a credential such as Platform Foundations, which has no maintenance requirement.

Which section carries the most weight?

Business Logic and Process Automation, at 32%. It names building and configuring flows in Flow Builder, choosing flow types, maintaining and monitoring flows, formula fields, roll-up summary fields, and validation rules as specific exam items. Data Modeling and Management is next at 20%.

Salesforce, Inc. (Salesforce Certification Program)

Salesforce Certified Platform App Builder

The Salesforce Certified Platform App Builder exam tests whether you can design, build, and deploy business applications on Salesforce without writing code. The scope covers designing objects and their relationships, expressing business logic through validation rules and formulas, automating processes with Flow, laying out pages and adapting them for mobile, and managing releases with sandboxes, change sets, and packages. The audience Salesforce describes in the official exam guide is someone with roughly six months to one year of experience building applications on the Customer 360 platform. The exam is 60 questions in 105 minutes, and the passing score is 73%. Business Logic and Process Automation carries the heaviest weight at 32%, followed by Data Modeling and Management at 20%. There are no prerequisites, and the exam can be taken in Japanese as well as English. The credential has no expiry date of its own, but holders must complete a Trailhead maintenance badge three times a year to keep it active; miss the deadline and the certification expires.

Official page

Who takes it

Administrators who handle Salesforce configuration and want a structured grasp of what declarative customization actually covers
People who work with Flow, formulas, and validation rules every day but know they picked it all up ad hoc
Business analysts whose job is turning requirements into screens and automation
Product owners who build apps for packaged distribution, such as on AppExchange
People on the path to becoming a Salesforce architect who want to articulate where declarative features stop

What it lets you do

Demonstrates, against Salesforce's own standard, the ability to design, build, and deploy business applications using declarative configuration alone
Named in the official exam guides as a recommended (not required) credential for the Agentforce Specialist and Agentforce Revenue Management Consultant exams
The exam sections — data model, sharing settings, Flow, release management — map directly onto everyday configuration work
The three-times-a-year maintenance badge builds the habit of keeping up with new features release by release
Available in Japanese, with a Japanese exam guide and an official Trailmix

The exam

As published by Salesforce, Inc. (Salesforce Certification Program). Anything we could not confirm is left out. Check the official page before you apply.

Questions: 60 multiple-choice / multiple-select questions (plus up to 5 unscored questions)
Time: 105 minutes
Pass mark: 73% (as stated in the official exam guide, SU '26 release edition)
Fee: JPY 30,000 (excluding tax) / USD 200 (excluding tax). Retake fee: JPY 15,000 (excluding tax) / USD 100 (excluding tax)
Format: Proctored at a Pearson VUE test center, or online with a remote proctor (Pearson OnVUE). No hard-copy or online reference materials may be used during the exam. No prerequisites.
Languages: English, Japanese, French, Spanish
When it runs: No fixed exam dates. Sign in to Trailhead Academy, choose the exam, and book a date and time whenever you like.
Validity and renewal: The certification itself carries no expiry date, but you must complete the Trailhead maintenance badge three times a year. If you miss the deadline, the certification expires.

How hard it is

Pass rate: not published by the exam body. Salesforce does not release pass rates for its certifications. The audience described in the official exam guide is someone with six months to one year of experience building applications on the Customer 360 platform or comparable technology. The passing score is 73%, a higher bar than the company's entry-level exam (Platform Foundations, 62%).

How long people study

Not published by the exam body. Salesforce gives no estimated study time; the official exam guide goes no further than recommending a combination of hands-on experience and self-study. The one official figure to work from is the intended audience: six months to one year of experience building applications.

Syllabus

Salesforce Fundamentals18%
Data Modeling and Management20%
Business Logic and Process Automation32%
User Interface17%
App Deployment13%

Our apps and books for this exam

SFDC Nintei Application Builder Shikaku Shiken Taisaku
Japanese only
Salesforce Certified Platform App Builder exam preparation
This app's interface and questions are in Japanese.
SFDC Platform App Builder Prep
SFDC Platform App Builder

Questions people ask

I have seen the passing score given as 63%. Which figure is correct?: The current official exam guide (SU '26 release edition) states 73%. The 63% figure comes from an earlier edition and has since been updated. Many third-party sites and older study materials still carry 63%, so check the official exam guide before you book.
Do I need the Platform Administrator credential first?: There are no prerequisites. That said, the official exam guide lists "experienced Salesforce Platform Administrator" first among its intended audiences, and the assumed background is six months to one year of building applications on Customer 360.
Can I pass without being able to write Apex?: The exam centers on declarative (clicks) customization. However, the boundary of declarative customization — and recognizing when a programmatic approach is the right choice — is in scope, as are the considerations for embedding custom Lightning components in an app. You do not need to write code, but you are asked where the line falls.
What happens if I leave the certification alone after passing?: You must complete the Trailhead maintenance badge three times a year, and the certification expires if you miss the deadline. This is different from a credential such as Platform Foundations, which has no maintenance requirement.
Which section carries the most weight?: Business Logic and Process Automation, at 32%. It names building and configuring flows in Flow Builder, choosing flow types, maintaining and monitoring flows, formula fields, roll-up summary fields, and validation rules as specific exam items. Data Modeling and Management is next at 20%.

Sources

These are the pages the figures came from. Some are published in Japanese only, and are marked as such — we keep the original titles rather than translating them, so you can match what you find on the official site. Exam rules change; check the official page before you apply.

Salesforce Certified Platform App Builder Exam Guidehelp.salesforce.com
Salesforce 認定 Platform アプリケーションビルダーtrailheadacademy.salesforce.com · in Japanese
Certification - Salesforce Certified Platform App Builder（Trailhead 資格ページ）trailhead.salesforce.com · in Japanese
Schedule a Salesforce Certification Examhelp.salesforce.com

Related certifications

Back to all exam prep apps →