Short answer: AgileBA Foundation is a quick, closed-book check that you know one agile business analysis framework. IIBA-AAC is a longer, scenario-based exam that tests agile analysis judgement against IIBA's Agile Extension to the BABOK Guide, and it has to be renewed every year. AgileBA Foundation is 50 multiple-choice questions in 40 minutes with a 50% pass mark, developed with the Agile Business Consortium and examined by APMG. The IIBA-AAC is 85 scenario questions in 2 hours, taken online, for $405 including a first year of IIBA membership. Choose AgileBA if your organisation uses the Agile Business Consortium's frameworks (AgilePM, DSDM) or you want an entry-level credential. Choose AAC if you already do analysis in agile teams and want a vendor-neutral credential from the publisher of the BABOK Guide. Every figure below was checked on apmg-international.com, agilebusiness.org and iiba.org on 21 October 2026.
Side by side
| AgileBA Foundation (v3) | IIBA-AAC | |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Agile Business Consortium, examined by APMG International | IIBA (International Institute of Business Analysis) |
| Questions | 50 multiple choice | 85 multiple-choice, scenario-based |
| Time | 40 minutes | 2 hours |
| Book policy | Closed book | Live online exam with webcam and microphone (PSI remote proctoring) |
| Pass mark | 50% (25 of 50) | Not published |
| Entry requirements | None | None required; 2-3 years of agile analysis work recommended |
| Price | Set by training organisation or country (APMG Public Exam Portal) | $405 with first-year membership, $250 for members |
| Renewal | None - Foundation does not expire | Every year: 20 CDUs + $30 / $50 fee |
| Based on | AgileBA Reference Book (v3) | Agile Extension to the BABOK Guide, version 2 |
| Next level | AgileBA Practitioner | None - AAC is a single specialty exam |
Sources: APMG AgileBA page, Agile Business Consortium AgileBA page, IIBA-AAC page, IIBA certification fees, IIBA recertification, IIBA certification FAQ.
Neither publisher reports a pass rate, so you will not find one here.
The real difference: a framework vs a standard
The two certificates look alike on a CV, but they answer different questions.
AgileBA asks: do you know this framework? AgileBA comes from the Agile Business Consortium, which was the DSDM Consortium until it rebranded in 2016 and which also owns DSDM, AgilePM and AgilePgM. The exam tests the AgileBA view of the business analyst role: how the analyst works with the business and the team, how requirements are prioritised and evolved, and how value is tracked. If your company runs projects with AgilePM or DSDM, AgileBA gives you the same vocabulary as your project managers.
AAC asks: can you make good agile analysis decisions? IIBA builds the AAC on the Agile Extension to the BABOK Guide, version 2, which is not tied to any one method. The exam is split into four domains with published weights:
| AAC domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| Agile Mindset | 30% |
| Strategy Horizon | 10% |
| Initiative Horizon | 25% |
| Delivery Horizon | 35% |
The three horizons are levels of planning: the organisation's strategy, a single initiative, and the day-to-day delivery of a product. Questions describe a situation and ask what an analyst should do. Knowing a definition is not enough; you have to pick the action that fits the mindset. Our AAC exam format page explains each domain.
Same family, different pace
The time per question tells you a lot about each exam:
- AgileBA Foundation: 40 minutes for 50 questions = 48 seconds per question.
- IIBA-AAC: 120 minutes for 85 questions = about 85 seconds per question.
AgileBA Foundation is a recall exam under time pressure. You either know the term or you do not, and there is no time to reason it out. AAC gives you almost twice as long per question because you need it: a scenario takes time to read, and two of the four options usually look sensible. Practise AAC under a clock from your first week.
A closer match for AAC is AgileBA Practitioner, the second level. In v3 it is four complex multiple-choice questions worth 15 marks each (60 in total) in 2 hours, open book with the AgileBA Reference Book only, with a 50% pass mark (30 of 60), according to APMG. That is where AgileBA tests applied judgement in the way AAC does.
AgileBA v2 or v3: the 2026 change
AgileBA is in the middle of a version change, and it affects what you should buy.
- v3 is the current version. The Agile Business Consortium describes it as redesigned around "value over volume", product thinking, the link between strategy and delivery, and AI-enabled analysis: how to use AI tools without giving up judgement, accountability or the evidence trail.
- v2 is withdrawn on 31 March 2027, according to APMG.
- The levels do not mix. The Consortium states: "You must hold the AgileBA v3 Foundation certificate to take the v3 Practitioner exam. A v2 Foundation certificate does not meet this requirement."
- The Foundation format is the same in both versions: 50 questions, 40 minutes, 25 marks to pass. The Practitioner exam changed: v2 was four questions worth 20 marks each (80 in total) in 2.5 hours, while v3 is 60 marks in 2 hours.
- Language: APMG lists v3 Foundation in English only, with Polish "to follow later in 2026". The v2 Foundation is available in English and Polish. Practitioner is in English only in both versions.
If you start now and plan to go on to Practitioner, start with v3. A v2 Foundation passed in 2026 is still valid (Foundation does not expire), but it does not open the v3 Practitioner exam.
What each one really costs
| AgileBA | IIBA-AAC | |
|---|---|---|
| Exam | Through an accredited training organisation, or exam-only via APMG's Public Exam Portal; price varies by country | $405 incl. first year of IIBA membership, $250 for members |
| Application fee | None | None |
| Retake | Set by the provider | $195 members, $350 non-members |
| Study material | AgileBA handbook (v2): £24 ebook, £42 paperback in the APMG store | Agile Extension to the BABOK Guide v2 |
| Course | Optional; the Consortium lists courses from £1,600 to £3,475 + VAT, depending on level and provider | Optional; IIBA requires no course |
| Renewal | None for Foundation | $30 members, $50 non-members, every year |
Prices from the IIBA fee table, the APMG store and the Agile Business Consortium, checked 21 October 2026. APMG publishes no single exam price for AgileBA, so we do not quote one. Check the Public Exam Portal for your country, or ask a training organisation for an exam-only price.
Count the renewal. AAC is the only one of the two with an annual cost. IIBA's recertification page asks for at least 20 Continuing Development Units every year from your certification date, with a four-month grace period. Over three years that is 60 CDUs and three fees. AgileBA Foundation, by APMG's wording, "is not valid for a defined period and will not expire". AgileBA Practitioner is different: APMG gives Registered Practitioner status for five years and asks for a re-registration exam in years three to five. Our AAC cost page and AgileBA cost page keep the fees in one place.
Who should choose which
Choose AgileBA if:
- your organisation uses AgilePM, DSDM or other Agile Business Consortium frameworks;
- you are new to agile business analysis and want an entry-level certificate with a clear pass mark;
- you want a certificate that does not need yearly renewal;
- you plan to go on to a scenario-based Practitioner exam later.
Choose IIBA-AAC if:
- you already work as an analyst in agile teams, ideally for two years or more;
- you want a method-neutral credential from the publisher of the BABOK Guide;
- you hold, or plan to take, CCBA or CBAP and want your agile skills recognised by the same body;
- you are fine with earning 20 CDUs a year to keep it.
Not sure? Read ten job ads for the role you want in the country where you want it, and count which certificate names appear. If they name AgilePM or other APMG certificates, AgileBA fits; if they name CCBA or CBAP, AAC sits on the same ladder. For the IIBA path, see ECBA vs CCBA vs CBAP and Is the CCBA worth it?. For other entry-level options, compare BCS Foundation in Business Analysis vs ECBA, or use our certification finder.
How to prepare
AgileBA Foundation. The Consortium lists v3 Foundation courses as two days, and you can self-study for the exam-only route. Our working estimate for self-study is in the AgileBA exam format page; APMG publishes no official study time. Learn the vocabulary first, because 48 seconds per question does not leave time to reason. Then practise with our free AgileBA practice questions and check the eligibility page before you book.
IIBA-AAC. Read the Agile Extension to the BABOK Guide v2 with the four domain weights in front of you: Delivery Horizon and Agile Mindset are 65% of the exam together. IIBA publishes no official study time; our working range is on the AAC exam format page. Use our AAC practice questions to train scenario reading under the clock, and the AAC eligibility page to confirm there is nothing to submit before you book.
Verdict
These are not two versions of the same certificate. AgileBA Foundation proves you know one agile business analysis framework, quickly and for life. IIBA-AAC proves you can apply agile analysis thinking across strategy, initiative and delivery, and asks you to keep proving it every year. If you work in an Agile Business Consortium environment or are just starting out, take AgileBA, and take v3. If you are an experienced analyst in agile teams who wants a vendor-neutral credential, take AAC.
AgileBA exam formats (Foundation and Practitioner, v2 and v3), pass marks, book policy, languages, v2 withdrawal date, Foundation validity and Practitioner re-registration verified on apmg-international.com on 21 October 2026; v3 content, the Practitioner prerequisite and course prices on agilebusiness.org, and handbook prices in the APMG store, on the same day. IIBA-AAC format, domains and weights, fees, eligibility, delivery and annual recertification verified on iiba.org (AAC page, certification fees, recertification, certification FAQ) on the same day. Neither publisher publishes a pass rate, and IIBA publishes no AAC pass mark or official study time, so we give none of those as fact.