XcellAcademy|Microsoft 365 Certifications
The current Microsoft 365 exams. Who takes which.
0 Microsoft 365, security, Copilot and AI credentials for our team — Fundamentals, Associate, Expert and Applied Skills — with exam code, level, validity, cost, prerequisites and what each counts toward. Checked on learn.microsoft.com on 10 November 2026, including this year's retirements: MS-900 is gone and the MS-102 exam retires on 30 November 2026.
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Three levels, plus Applied Skills, in one ladder.
Microsoft Learn credentials start with Fundamentals (no expiry), move to role-based Associate certifications and finish at Expert, which needs a qualifying associate first. Applied Skills are shorter lab assessments for one task. Associate and Expert certifications expire yearly and renew free online.
“MICROSOFT” above is plain text in our own font, not a logo. Vendor names and marks belong to their owners; official Microsoft digital badges are issued through Microsoft Learn.
Every certification, checked at the source.
Filter by track, level or the partner designation it counts toward, or search for an exam code. Each card shows format, duration, validity, cost, prerequisites, status and the Microsoft page it came from. Anything Microsoft does not state is marked confirm.
Try an exam code such as MD-102, or clear the filters.
Sources read 10 Nov 2026 on learn.microsoft.com: certification and exam pages for AB-900, AB-650, AB-730, AB-731, MS-102, MS-700, SC-100 and Azure AI Fundamentals; study guides for MD-102, MS-721, SC-200, SC-300, SC-401, SC-500 and SC-900; the Applied Skills hub and the credential retirement list (4 Nov 2026); the renewal page; Partner Center Modern Work and Security designation pages (23 Oct 2026). India exam prices are figures reported from Microsoft's exam page in July 2025 on Microsoft Q&A — the live exam page shows the current price for India.
Which exam, in which order, for each role.
XcellHost's suggested internal paths. They skip the retiring MS-102 and lean on certifications that also count toward our Modern Work and Security skilling. Mandatory means mandatory in our suggested plan; Recommended is optional.
All paths are XcellHost suggestions, not Microsoft requirements. Only the Expert certifications have formal prerequisites, shown on their cards.
One shield per certification, matched to the product.
Matching certification artwork is used where available; remaining products use the same Microsoft-style shield system. 0 shown.
Decorative certification artwork for this learning page — not proof that a certification has been earned. Use the credential issued through Microsoft Learn for LinkedIn and customer-facing verification.
What changed in 2026, and what to sit instead.
Microsoft retired or replaced several Microsoft 365 and security credentials this year. The right-hand column is XcellHost's suggestion unless it says Microsoft named the replacement.
| Credential | Change | Sit this now |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft 365 Fundamentals (MS-900) | Retired 31 Mar 2026 · counts for Modern Work to 31 Mar 2027 | AB-900 Copilot and Agent Administration Fundamentals — also Modern Work intermediate |
| Microsoft 365 Administrator Expert (MS-102) | Exam retires 30 Nov 2026 · counts for Modern Work to 30 Nov 2027 | AB-650 Microsoft 365 and AI Services Administrator (beta) — also Modern Work advanced |
| Azure Security Engineer (AZ-500) | Retired 31 Aug 2026 · Security step 1 to 31 Aug 2027 | SC-500 Cloud and AI Security Engineer — now an SC-100 prerequisite option |
| Information Protection and Compliance Admin (SC-400) | Retired · no longer counts for Security | SC-401 Information Security Administrator |
| Azure AI Fundamentals exam (AI-900) | Exam replaced; certification name unchanged | AI-901 — Microsoft's current exam for the same certification |
| Teams Meetings and Meeting Rooms Technical Assessment | Retired 15 Jun 2026 · Modern Work advanced to 15 Jun 2027 | MS-721 for Teams voice and rooms skills |
| Applied Skill: security and compliance for Microsoft 365 Copilot | Retired 30 Jun 2026 | AB-900 covers data protection for Copilot |
| Applied Skills: Copilot Studio agents · declarative agents | Retired 8 Jul and 15 Apr 2026 | No replacement named on the pages read — confirm |
*Reported from Microsoft's India exam page in July 2025 (Microsoft Q&A) — confirm on the exam page before booking; Microsoft says prices exclude taxes, change without notice and may be lower for partner programme members. Renewal rules: learn.microsoft.com renewal page. Retirement dates: Microsoft Learn credential retirement list (4 Nov 2026), MS-102 exam page and Partner Center designation pages.
Which certifications our designations need.
Microsoft 365 work counts toward two Solutions Partner designations. Each needs a capability score of 70 out of 100 with more than zero points in every metric; skilling is the part our certified people control.
| Designation | Performance | Skilling | Customer success | Certifications that count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modern Work | 20 | 25 10 + 15 | 55 30 + 25 | Intermediate: MS-700 · SC-300 · MS-721 · MD-102 · AB-900 (MS-900 to Mar 2027) · adv: AB-650 · MS-102 (to Nov 2027) |
| Security | 20 | 20 intermediate only | 60 20 + 20 + 20 | Step 1 SC-500 (or AZ-500) → step 2 SC-200 → step 3 SC-100 · SC-300 · SC-401 |
Points from Partner Center (23 Oct 2026). Modern Work skilling: 4 certified people intermediate and 2 advanced for full points on the Enterprise track; 2 and 1 on SMB. A full catalogue of partner credentials is on the Microsoft CSP Partner Credentials page.
Skilling score simulator
Counts certified people from the staff tracker below. Change any number to try a what-if. Indicative only — Partner Center decides.
What we claim, and what we are confirming.
This page states only what XcellHost has published about itself. The rest is marked confirm* until enablement checks Microsoft Learn and Partner Center.
Microsoft Gold Partner
XcellHost's stated credential, from Microsoft's former competency programme. Microsoft retired Gold and Silver competencies on 30 September 2022 in favour of Solutions Partner designations.
Certified staff headcount
How many XcellHost staff hold each certification today. Not claimed here — the tracker below builds the list.
Modern Work and Security designations
Whether XcellHost currently holds either designation, and our skilling points. Not claimed here.
Exam vouchers and discounts
Microsoft says partner programme members may get reduced exam pricing. Ask enablement what applies to XcellHost.
*Need a confirmed count for a tender or a customer?
Ask enablement. They will check the team's Microsoft Learn transcripts and reply with what can be stated.
Who holds what, and what renews next.
Add a colleague and mark the certifications they have earned, with the date and their Microsoft Learn credential link. The tracker works out the 12-month expiry, flags the free six-month renewal window, records renewals, follows each role path and feeds the simulator. It starts empty.
Data stays in this browser. Nothing is uploaded. Use Export to share a copy with your team lead, and Import to load it on another machine. Browser storage is unavailable, so data lasts until you close this tab — export it first.
Microsoft 365 certifications, answered.
No. Microsoft 365 Fundamentals retired on 31 March 2026. If you already hold it, you keep it, because fundamentals certifications do not expire, and it counts toward Modern Work skilling until 31 March 2027. New joiners should take AB-900, Copilot and Agent Administration Fundamentals, which also counts.
Only if you can sit it before the exam retires on 30 November 2026 at 11:59 PM Central time. It needs MD-102, MS-700 or SC-300 first. Earned before then, it counts toward Modern Work advanced skilling until 30 November 2027. For new plans we suggest AB-650, the Microsoft 365 and AI Services Administrator Associate, which Microsoft already lists in the same advanced metric.
Microsoft sets the price by the country where you sit the exam. Figures reported from the India exam page in July 2025 were ₹3,691 for a fundamentals exam and ₹4,865 for an associate exam, plus taxes. Check the exam page before booking, and ask enablement about partner vouchers or discounts.
Associate, Expert and Specialty certifications expire every year. Renewal is free: in the six months before expiry, pass a short, unproctored, open-book assessment on Microsoft Learn — as many attempts as you need before the expiry date — and the certification is extended by one year. Fundamentals do not expire.
SC-401, Information Security Administrator, is the current Purview certification; SC-400 no longer counts toward the Security designation. AZ-500 retired on 31 August 2026; SC-500, Cloud and AI Security Engineer Associate, is now a prerequisite option for SC-100 and the step-1 option for the Security designation.
AB-900 (Copilot and Agent Administration Fundamentals) for admins, AB-650 (Microsoft 365 and AI Services Administrator, beta) for senior admins, AB-730 (AI Business Professional) for business users, and AB-731 (AI Transformation Leader) for business leaders. There is also an Applied Skill for streamlining business workflows with AI chat.
Short, lab-based assessments that prove one practical task, with retakes allowed. Several Copilot-related Applied Skills retired in 2026, so check the date on the card. Microsoft's pages we read do not state their cost or validity, so both are marked confirm.
Modern Work counts MS-700, SC-300, MS-721, MD-102 and AB-900 as intermediate, and AB-650 and MS-102 as advanced. Security needs SC-500 (or AZ-500) and SC-200, then scores SC-100, SC-300 and SC-401. The simulator on this page shows the skilling points from the tracker.
Tracker data stays in this browser only; export JSON or CSV to share it. This page uses decorative certification artwork and matching generated shields for products without supplied artwork. Use the credential issued through Microsoft Learn for LinkedIn and customer-facing verification.