- A
Set the CloudWatch Logs log group retention period to 90 days for the relevant log groups.
CloudWatch Logs storage charges are driven primarily by how much data you store and for how long. Reducing retention to the required 90 days decreases stored log volume over time.
- B
Disable VPC flow logs so the applications stop producing logs automatically.
Why wrong: VPC flow logs are a different log source than application logs. Disabling them would not reduce retention/storage for the application log groups that are driving the cost.
- C
Increase the logging level to DEBUG to reduce the number of log events by batching them.
Why wrong: Increasing verbosity to DEBUG typically increases the number of log events and volume, which generally increases CloudWatch Logs ingestion and storage costs rather than reducing them.
- D
Turn off CloudWatch alarms so logs stop being ingested into CloudWatch Logs.
Why wrong: CloudWatch alarms control monitoring and notifications. They do not stop log ingestion into CloudWatch Logs, and they do not control retention duration.
SAA-C03 Design Cost-Optimized Architectures Practice Question
This SAA-C03 practice question tests your understanding of design cost-optimized architectures. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A team stores application logs in Amazon CloudWatch Logs. They enabled long retention and detailed dashboards, resulting in higher-than-expected monthly spend. Compliance requires retaining logs for 90 days, but operations only needs aggregated views. Which change most directly reduces CloudWatch Logs cost while meeting the requirement?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Set the CloudWatch Logs log group retention period to 90 days for the relevant log groups.
Setting the CloudWatch Logs log group retention period to 90 days directly reduces storage costs by automatically expiring logs after the compliance-required duration. This eliminates the cost of storing logs beyond 90 days, which was the primary driver of the higher-than-expected spend, while still retaining the data for the mandated period and allowing aggregated views via dashboards.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Set the CloudWatch Logs log group retention period to 90 days for the relevant log groups.
Why this is correct
CloudWatch Logs storage charges are driven primarily by how much data you store and for how long. Reducing retention to the required 90 days decreases stored log volume over time.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Disable VPC flow logs so the applications stop producing logs automatically.
Why it's wrong here
VPC flow logs are a different log source than application logs. Disabling them would not reduce retention/storage for the application log groups that are driving the cost.
- ✗
Increase the logging level to DEBUG to reduce the number of log events by batching them.
Why it's wrong here
Increasing verbosity to DEBUG typically increases the number of log events and volume, which generally increases CloudWatch Logs ingestion and storage costs rather than reducing them.
- ✗
Turn off CloudWatch alarms so logs stop being ingested into CloudWatch Logs.
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch alarms control monitoring and notifications. They do not stop log ingestion into CloudWatch Logs, and they do not control retention duration.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse log retention settings with log ingestion controls, mistakenly thinking that disabling alarms or changing log levels will reduce costs, when in fact the most direct and compliant cost-saving measure is to adjust the retention period.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
CloudWatch Logs pricing includes charges for data ingestion (per GB) and storage (per GB/month). Retention policies are applied at the log group level and automatically delete log events older than the specified period, reducing storage costs. The default retention is 'Never Expire', which can lead to unbounded cost growth; setting a 90-day retention ensures compliance while minimizing storage spend. Aggregated views (e.g., CloudWatch Logs Insights queries or dashboards) still work on the retained data, as they query existing log events regardless of retention settings.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SAA-C03 question test?
Design Cost-Optimized Architectures — This question tests Design Cost-Optimized Architectures — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Set the CloudWatch Logs log group retention period to 90 days for the relevant log groups. — Setting the CloudWatch Logs log group retention period to 90 days directly reduces storage costs by automatically expiring logs after the compliance-required duration. This eliminates the cost of storing logs beyond 90 days, which was the primary driver of the higher-than-expected spend, while still retaining the data for the mandated period and allowing aggregated views via dashboards.
What should I do if I get this SAA-C03 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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