ACA Practice Test

The Adobe Certified Associate (ACA) exam, now part of the Adobe Certified Professional program, suits anyone who wants to show working skill in Adobe software. This page sets out the exam format, fee, passing score and retake rules from the official sources. It also gives you free practice sets by topic, worked examples and a study plan. Start the practice test when you are ready. Practice with the free Adobe Certified Associate​ practice test on PracticeTestGeeks (7 questions with answer explanations).

Free Adobe Certified Associate​ Study Tools

Interactive Adobe Certified Associate​ resources on PracticeTestGeeks, free to start:

• ACA Color Theory and Management 1 — 7 questions with answer explanations
• Adobe Certified Associate​ flashcards — review key terms and concepts card by card
• Adobe Certified Associate​ study guide — topic-by-topic overview of what the exam covers
• Adobe Certified Associate​ cheat sheet — one-page printable summary for last-minute review

ACA Exam at a Glance

What the ACA is and how it works

According to Adobe (Adobe Certified Professional program, formerly Adobe Certified Associate), delivered by Certiport, a Pearson VUE, “Each Adobe Certified Professional exam includes 30 questions.”^[1]

The Adobe Certified Associate exam sits inside the Adobe Certified Professional program. Adobe runs the program and Certiport delivers the exam. It tests whether you can work in Adobe software, so it combines a Questions section with a Tasks section that you complete live in the app.

The exam has 30 questions and a 50-minute time limit. You need 700 out of 1,000 to pass. You can sit it online through Certiport OnVUE, which is limited to English-language exams, or at a Certiport Authorized Testing Center.

There is no formal prerequisite. Adobe says reaching the needed level takes approximately 150 hours of hands-on experience and instruction, so use that as a guide to how much real practice to put in. In the US the fee is US$150 per exam when taken online. The price depends on your location and currency, so check the official FAQ for your country.

If you fail the 1st attempt, you wait 24 hours before retaking. After a 2nd fail the wait is 5 calendar days. Rules for later attempts are on the Certiport retake policy page, so read it before you book. Each certification is valid for 3 years from the date of issue.

ACA content outline and where to practise each area

The content areas below are copied from the official ACA content outline published by Adobe (Adobe Certified Professional program, formerly Adobe Certified Associate), delivered by Certiport, a Pearson VUE. The right-hand column shows which of our practice sets covers it.

Worked examples: how to reason through ACA questions

These are practice questions written for this site, not questions from the real exam. Each explanation shows why the right answer is right and why the others are wrong.

Example 1

Question: Which audio format is lossless and best suited for archiving high-quality audio masters in Adobe Audition?

1. WAV (PCM)
2. MP3 at 320 kbps
3. AAC at 256 kbps
4. OGG Vorbis

Answer: A. WAV (PCM)

Explanation:

WAV with PCM encoding stores audio uncompressed, so nothing is lost and the file is a faithful source copy for archiving. That is why it is the right choice. MP3 at 320 kbps is lossy: it discards audio data to shrink the file, and that loss cannot be undone. AAC at 256 kbps is also lossy, though efficient for delivery. OGG Vorbis is another lossy format, usually chosen for streaming or games. Rule to remember: archive and edit in an uncompressed or lossless format, and export lossy formats such as MP3 or AAC only as final delivery copies.

Example 2

Question: You are preparing for your Adobe Certified Associate exam and want to reset a built-in workspace, like 'Essentials', back to its original, default layout. What is the correct procedure to do this?

1. Go to Edit > Preferences > Reset All Warning Dialogs.
2. Go to Window > Workspace > Reset [Workspace Name].
3. Close the application without saving and reopen it.
4. Right-click on the workspace name in the top bar and select 'Restore Default'.

Answer: B. Go to Window > Workspace > Reset [Workspace Name].

Explanation:

Window > Workspace > Reset [Workspace Name] returns the active workspace to its saved layout, which for a built-in workspace like Essentials is the original default. Edit > Preferences > Reset All Warning Dialogs only makes hidden confirmation messages appear again; it does not touch panel layout. Closing the application without saving and reopening it is not a reset command, and the app may simply reopen with your changed layout. Right-clicking the workspace name and choosing 'Restore Default' is not the standard route, because the command lives in the Window menu. Rule to remember: workspace layout is managed from Window > Workspace, so look there to reset, save or delete one.

Example 3

Question: When you save a selection in Photoshop, where is it stored?

1. As a new layer in the Layers panel
2. As a channel in the Channels panel
3. As a path in the Paths panel
4. As a snapshot in the History panel

Answer: B. As a channel in the Channels panel

Explanation:

Photoshop stores a saved selection as an alpha channel, so the answer is the Channels panel. From there you can reload it later, edit it as a greyscale mask or combine it with another selection. A new layer holds pixels, not a selection, so it is the wrong place. The Paths panel holds vector outlines; a selection can be converted to a path, but saving a selection does not do that by default. A snapshot in the History panel records a state of the document for stepping back, not a reusable selection. Rule to remember: selections live in channels, vector shapes live in paths, and history is for undoing.

How to use these practice tests

Start by reading the official content areas listed above and marking the ones where you have little hands-on time. Adobe's own guidance is that proficiency comes from practice inside the software, so keep the application open while you study and repeat each technique rather than only reading about it.

Next, work through the practice sets that match your weakest areas. After each question, open the app and try the action yourself, then read the explanation and note the general rule behind the answer. Keep a short list of menu paths, panel names and file formats that you got wrong, and review that list at the start of every session.

Once your weak areas improve, move to the broader sets on workflow, industry practice and software proficiency, and mix topics so you are not relying on recent memory. Remember that the real exam includes a Tasks section done live in the app, so practise doing things quickly by hand, not just recognising the right answer. Our questions are written by us for practice and are not real exam questions. Before booking, check the current fee and retake rules on the official pages.

Sources & last verified

1. Adobe (Adobe Certified Professional program, formerly Adobe Certified Associate), delivered by Certiport, a Pearson VUE — number of questions, time limit, exam fee, passing score (official source). “Each Adobe Certified Professional exam includes 30 questions.” Verified Oct 21, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
2. certiport.com — retake policy (official source). “If a Candidate fails their first (1st) attempt to pass any Adobe Certified Associate (ACA) certification exam, there is one-day waiting period for retaking the…” Verified Oct 23, 2026 · source checked Oct 23, 2026.
3. Adobe (Adobe Certified Professional program, formerly Adobe Certified Associate), delivered by Certiport, a Pearson VUE — delivery (official source). “OnVUE delivery is currently limited to English-language exams.” Verified Oct 21, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
4. Adobe (Adobe Certified Professional program, formerly Adobe Certified Associate), delivered by Certiport, a Pearson VUE — other (official source). “adding content to a document” Verified Oct 21, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.

How we verify: editorial & fact-checking policy. Report an error: contact us.