The Marketo Certified Associate exam, run by Adobe, is taken by people who build and run campaigns in Marketo. This page gives you free practice sets by topic, worked explanations of sample questions, a map of the official content areas, a study plan, and answers to common questions about fees, scoring and retakes.
The MCA has 50 questions and costs $125[1] (Adobe, verified Oct 28, 2026).
Numbers in brackets link to the official sources listed under Sources & last verified. Dates that have passed are removed automatically.
| Item | Detail | Source · Verified |
|---|---|---|
| Number of questions | 50 questions[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Passing score | 31 out of 50[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Exam fee | $125 per attempt ($95 in India)[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Retake policy | Wait 24 hours after 1st attempt; wait 15 calendar days after 2nd/subsequent attempts[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Validity | 2 years[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Renewal | Free renewal for 2 years via two 15-minute courses[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Delivery | Online proctored (camera required)[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
| Score release | Provisional immediate; final within 72 hours[1] | Adobe · Oct 28, 2026 |
The MCA credential is issued by Adobe and covers day-to-day work in Marketo: running campaigns, keeping the database clean, reporting on results and administering the platform. It suits marketing operations staff, campaign managers and anyone who needs to show working knowledge of the tool.
The exam is delivered online with a proctor, and a camera is required. It has 50 questions, and the passing score is 31 out of 50. The fee is $125 per attempt globally, or $95 in India.
When you finish, you see a provisional pass or fail straight away. The final score can take up to 72 hours to appear.
If you fail, you must wait 24 hours before your next attempt. After a later failed attempt, the wait is 15 calendar days. Each attempt is charged at the full fee, so it is worth being ready before you book.
The certification is valid for 2 years. Renewal is free: you pass two short courses of about 15 minutes each, and the certification is renewed for another 2 years.
Adobe does not publish every detail on this page, and rules can change. Check the official Adobe certification page for current eligibility, scheduling and policy before you pay for an attempt. The questions on this site are written by us and are not real exam questions.
The content areas below are copied from the official MCA content outline published by Adobe, with the share of the exam each area carries. The right-hand column shows which of our practice sets covers it.
| Official content area | Weight | Practice on this site |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Reporting[1] | 8% | MCA Analytics and Reporting Practise reading email and program performance reports and knowing which report answers which question. |
| Campaign Execution[1] | 36% | MCA Campaign Automation Practise how smart campaigns, triggers, filters, flow steps and tokens work together when a campaign runs. |
| Database Management/Review[1] | 24% | MCA Lead Management Practise segmentation, smart lists, lead fields and the habits that keep records accurate and de-duplicated. |
| Platform Administration[1] | 32% | MCA CRM Integration Practise how Marketo connects to a CRM, how syncing behaves, and what settings and permissions administrators control. |
Prepare for the MCA - Marketo Certified Associate exam with our free practice test modules. Each quiz covers key topics to help you pass on your first try.
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.
Question: What is customer segmentation?
Answer: A. Dividing customers into groups based on shared characteristics
Explanation:
The correct answer is that customer segmentation divides customers into groups based on shared characteristics. Those characteristics can be demographics, behaviour or needs, and the point is to send each group a message that fits it.
Removing customers from a database is list cleaning or deletion, which is a different task. Rating customer satisfaction is measurement through surveys or scores, and it does not group anyone. Counting total customers gives you a single total and says nothing about how customers differ from each other.
The rule to remember: segmentation is about splitting an audience by what its members have in common so that targeting can be specific. If an option describes deleting, scoring satisfaction or counting, it is not segmentation.
Question: Which of the following is NOT a standard Smart List filter category available in Marketo?
Answer: C. Real-time company financial data such as stock price and quarterly revenue
Explanation:
The correct answer is real-time company financial data such as stock price and quarterly revenue. Marketo does not offer built-in filters for live external financial information.
Person attributes such as Job Title and Country are standard filters because they are fields stored on the person record. Behavioural filters such as Visited Web Page and Clicked Link are standard because Marketo records those activities. Program membership such as Member of Program is standard because Marketo tracks which programs a person belongs to.
The rule to remember: Smart List filters draw on data Marketo holds itself, meaning record fields, logged activity and program or list membership. If a filter depends on outside data that nobody has loaded into Marketo, it is not a standard category.
Question: Which Marketo token type pulls data directly from a lead's record fields into email content?
Answer: C. Lead Tokens ({{lead.Field Name}})
Explanation:
The correct answer is Lead Tokens, written as {{lead.Field Name}}. This token type reads a value from the lead's own record and inserts it into the email, so each recipient sees their own data.
My Tokens are values that you define yourself at the program or folder level, so they are not read from a lead field. System Tokens supply built-in values such as company or date information, not a field from an individual lead record. Program Tokens belong to a program and hold program-level values, which are the same for every recipient.
The rule to remember: if the content changes per person based on a record field, use a lead token. If it is a stored value shared across a program or folder, it is a different token type.
Start with the official Adobe exam page and read the list of content areas. Then take a short practice set from each topic below without looking anything up, and note which areas feel weakest.
Spend most of your time where the official weighting is highest. Campaign Execution and Platform Administration carry the most weight, so work through MCA Campaign Automation, MCA Email Marketing and MCA CRM Integration carefully. Then cover Database Management with MCA Lead Management and MCA Smart Lists and Segmentation, and finish with MCA Analytics and Reporting.
After every wrong answer, read the explanation and write a one-line rule in your own words, such as which token type reads a lead field. If you can, repeat the same task in a Marketo instance you have access to, because hands-on practice fixes the rule in memory.
Close the plan with the full practice test under timed conditions, in a quiet room, with your camera set up the way the proctored exam requires. Review every miss, revisit the matching topic set, and only then book your attempt.
The exam has 50 questions, and the passing score is 31 out of 50. You see a provisional pass or fail as soon as you finish. Your final score can take up to 72 hours to appear, so keep that in mind before you share results.
The fee is $125 per attempt globally, or $95 in India. Because each attempt is charged, it makes sense to finish your practice sets and score well on a full practice test before you book. Check Adobe's certification page for the current price.
It is delivered online with a proctor, and a camera is required. Plan a quiet space, test your camera in advance, and read Adobe's technical requirements before the day. Adobe's certification page is the place to confirm current scheduling steps.
After a failed attempt you must wait at least 24 hours before retaking. After a later failed attempt, the waiting period is 15 calendar days. Use the gap to go back to the topic sets where you made the most mistakes.
The certification is valid for 2 years. Renewal is free: you pass two short courses of about 15 minutes each, and the certification is renewed for 2 years. You must renew before it expires, so set a reminder well ahead.
How we verify: editorial & fact-checking policy. Report an error: contact us.