Salesforce PD1 study guide · 2026

The 4 Salesforce PD1 domains, explained

4 domains and 21 official objectives. Process Automation and Logic carries the most weight at 28%. Each guide explains what the domain covers, how its questions are framed and where candidates lose marks.

Start with Domain 2 See all domains
Questions
60 scored multiple-choice (plus up to 5 unscored)
Time
105 minutes
Passing score
68%
Outline
Salesforce Certified Platform Developer Exam Guide, Summer '25 release (current as of October 2026)

Exam blueprint

Bar widths follow the official weights. Weight ranges are drawn at their midpoint.

  1. 1 27%
  2. 2 28%
  3. 3 25%
  4. 4 20%
  1. 1 Developer Fundamentals
  2. 2 Process Automation and Logic
  3. 3 User Interface
  4. 4 Testing, Debugging, and Deployment

All 4 domains

21 official objectives 105–140 hrs suggested study

  1. Domain 01 27%

    Developer Fundamentals

    Developer Fundamentals tests whether you know when code is the right tool at all: multi-tenant limits, declarative-first design, the data model your Apex will query, and what Agentforce for Developers can and cannot do for you.

    Inside this domain

    • Understand multi-tenant concepts and design frameworks, such as MVC architecture and Lightning Component Framework.
    • Given a scenario, identify common use cases and best practices for declarative versus programmatic customizations, including governor limits, formula fields, and roll-up summaries.
    • Given a scenario, determine, create, and access the appropriate data model including objects, fields, relationships, and external IDs.
    • Understand use cases and limitations of using Agentforce for Developers.

    Watch for Code first

    Objectives
    4
    Questions est.
    ~16
    Study time est.
    30–35 hrs
  2. Domain 02 28%

    Process Automation and Logic

    The heaviest section of the exam and the core of Apex: what Flow can do, how Apex declares and executes logic, what SOQL, SOSL and DML return, and how triggers behave inside one transaction's limits and order of execution.

    Inside this domain

    • Identify the capabilities of the declarative process automation features.
    • Understand how to declare variables, constants, methods, modifiers, Apex interfaces, and the appropriate use cases for each.
    • Given a scenario, assess how Apex control flow statements will execute and when to apply different control flow statements.
    • Given a scenario, write SOSL, SOQL, and DML statements in Apex, and assess what they will return.
    • and 5 more objectives

    Watch for Catch the limit

    Objectives
    9
    Questions est.
    ~17
    Study time est.
    30–40 hrs
  3. Domain 03 25%

    User Interface

    User Interface tests how Apex meets the screen: keeping pages and queries secure, choosing between Lightning components, Flow and Visualforce, using Lightning Web Components correctly, and exposing Apex to components, flows and Agentforce.

    Inside this domain

    • Given a scenario, prevent user interface and data access security vulnerabilities.
    • Given a scenario, display and use custom user interface components, including Lightning components, Flow, and Visualforce.
    • Describe the use cases and best practices for Lightning Web Components, including the framework, benefits, and events.
    • Given a scenario, implement Apex to work with various types of page components, including Lightning components, Flow, and Agentforce.

    Watch for Sharing equals security

    Objectives
    4
    Questions est.
    ~15
    Study time est.
    25–35 hrs
  4. Domain 04 20%

    Testing, Debugging, and Deployment

    The smallest section, but the one that decides whether code ever reaches production: writing Apex and flow tests with the right test data, using Salesforce DX, the CLI and Developer Console, debugging logs and async jobs, and deploying through the right environments.

    Inside this domain

    • Write and execute tests for triggers, controllers, classes, and flows using various sources of test data.
    • Given a scenario, know how and when to use the Salesforce Developer tools such as Salesforce DX, Salesforce CLI, and Developer Console.
    • Describe how to approach debugging system issues and monitoring flows, performance, asynchronous, and batch jobs.
    • Describe the environments, requirements, and process for deploying code and associated configurations.

    Watch for Turn on SeeAllData

    Objectives
    4
    Questions est.
    ~12
    Study time est.
    20–30 hrs

Study the heaviest domains first

Marks follow weight. This order puts the most marks behind you first, across about 105–140 hrs of study.

  1. 2 Process Automation and Logic 28% · 30–40 hrs
  2. 1 Developer Fundamentals 27% · 30–35 hrs
  3. 3 User Interface 25% · 25–35 hrs
  4. 4 Testing, Debugging, and Deployment 20% · 20–30 hrs

Try one

Practice questionDomain 2: Process Automation and Logic

A trigger contains this line: Account acct = [SELECT Id, Name FROM Account WHERE AccountNumber = :num]; The trigger then checks whether acct is null. What happens when no Account has that number?

One trap from every domain

The answer that looks right, and the clue that gives it away.

  • Domain 1

    Code first

    Clue Phrases such as 'most efficient', 'least maintenance' or 'without writing code', and a requirement simple enough for a standard feature.

  • Domain 2

    Catch the limit

    Clue The scenario mentions bulk volumes, data loads or 'Too many SOQL queries'.

  • Domain 3

    Sharing equals security

    Clue The problem is a field the user should not see, not a record.

  • Domain 4

    Turn on SeeAllData

    Clue The test queries records it never created.

Other CRM & Business Applications certifications

Study guides for exams that overlap with Salesforce PD1.

Practise what you read

Salesforce PD1 domains: common questions

How many domains are in the Salesforce PD1 exam?

Salesforce PD1 has 4 domains with 21 official objectives between them: Developer Fundamentals, Process Automation and Logic, User Interface and Testing, Debugging, and Deployment.

Which Salesforce PD1 domain carries the most weight?

Process Automation and Logic is the heaviest at 28%, followed by Developer Fundamentals (27%). The lightest is Testing, Debugging, and Deployment (20%). Weights come from Salesforce's official outline.

What is the Salesforce PD1 exam format?

Questions: 60 scored multiple-choice (plus up to 5 unscored). Time allowed: 105 minutes. Passing score: 68%.

How long should I study for Salesforce PD1?

Our planning estimate is 105–140 hrs across all domains, split by weight. It is an editorial estimate, not an official figure, so adjust it to your experience and to how you score on practice questions.

Where should I start?

Start with Process Automation and Logic, because it carries the most marks, then work down by weight. Use the checklist on each domain page to confirm you can do what the domain asks before moving on.

Which outline is this guide based on?

This guide follows Salesforce Certified Platform Developer Exam Guide, Summer '25 release (current as of October 2026), published by Salesforce. It was last reviewed in October 2026.

Domain names, weights and objectives come from Salesforce's official outline (Salesforce Certified Platform Developer Exam Guide, Summer '25 release (current as of October 2026)). Question counts and study hours are editorial planning estimates, not official figures. Last reviewed October 2026.