What AWS project should I build after the SAA cert?

Build a small three-tier application, but treat the infrastructure as part of the project rather than a one-time deployment. Use Terraform for the network, permissions, compute, and data layer, then document the architecture and the tradeoffs you made. A working repo with clear setup and teardown steps tells a stronger story than a diagram alone.

I’d focus on the Terraform workflow employers actually need to maintain: reusable modules, separate environments, remote state, and a CI pipeline that runs formatting, validation, and a plan before changes are applied. Be clear about how state is bootstrapped and protected. You don’t need a huge application for this to be a worthwhile project.

Make something you’ll genuinely use, even if it’s modest. A resume site or a small serverless app can cover a static frontend, an API, storage, permissions, and basic monitoring. Add a budget alert before experimenting, and check the likely monthly cost of anything you leave running.

A VPC-focused project is a good way to show that you understand the less flashy fundamentals. Build subnets, routes, security boundaries, and useful tagging, then explain how traffic is supposed to move through the design. If you compare a managed NAT option with a lower-cost alternative, include the operational and security tradeoffs rather than presenting cost savings as a free win.

Pick a real workload and write down why you chose each service, what could fail, and what you’d monitor. That could be a simple app, a data pipeline, or a tool that solves a small problem. The particular idea matters less than a reproducible deployment, sensible access controls, cost awareness, and documentation someone else can follow.