- Exam Format Snapshot for 2026
- Domain 1: MDG Overview and Architecture
- Domain 2: Change Request Process Implementation
- Domain 3: Data Quality and Analytics
- Domain 4: Consolidation and Mass Processing
- Domain 5: Replication, Key Mapping, and Custom Objects
- Sequencing the Domains Into a Study Plan
- Who Actually Hires for This Domain Mix
- Frequently Asked Questions
- C_MDG_2601 covers five content areas, from architecture to replication and custom objects.
- The exam is a 120-minute, open-book, scenario-based practical assessment, not multiple choice.
- Candidates get up to four attempts per 12 months, with a mandatory 24-hour wait between attempts.
- A single attempt is $230 USD; the $276 two-attempt package adds 10 hours of practice-system access.
Exam Format Snapshot for 2026
Before breaking down the five content areas, it's worth understanding what kind of exam you're actually preparing for. C_MDG_2601 is administered by SAP SE through SAP Certification as a 120-minute scenario-based practical assessment. This is a meaningful departure from the retired multiple-choice C_MDG_1909 exam that many older study materials still reference - if you find prep content built around single-answer, multiple-choice question banks, treat it with caution.
The current assessment is open book and unproctored, and it may involve an AI-guided virtual interview or a recorded response that an SAP evaluator reviews afterward. Microphone access is required; a camera is optional. That means your preparation needs to go beyond memorizing terminology - you need to be able to explain your reasoning through scenarios in Master Data Governance, not just select the right letter on a multiple-choice screen.
For the full mechanics of registration, attempt limits, and the Stay Certified renewal path, see our C_MDG_2601 Requirements guide. This article focuses specifically on what's actually tested - the five domains - and how to sequence your preparation around them.
Domain 1: MDG Overview and Architecture
This domain establishes the conceptual foundation everything else builds on. Before you can reason through change requests or replication scenarios in the practical assessment, you need a solid mental model of how SAP Master Data Governance fits into the broader SAP landscape.
MDG Overview and Architecture
Candidates must understand how MDG is deployed, how it relates to central governance versus consolidation use cases, and how the underlying data model connects to business object types.
- Core MDG deployment options and where governance processes physically run
- The relationship between business objects, entity types, and the MDG data model
- How MDG's architecture differs across governance scenarios (central governance, consolidation, mass processing)
- Foundational terminology that recurs throughout every other domain
Because this domain sets vocabulary and structural understanding used everywhere else, weak preparation here compounds into confusion in later domains. Candidates frequently underestimate architecture-focused content because it feels "theoretical" - but in a scenario-based exam, you'll be asked to identify why a particular architecture choice matters for a described business problem, not just define terms.
Domain 2: Change Request Process Implementation
This is one of the most operationally dense domains, since change requests are the mechanism through which governed master data actually gets created, changed, or deleted in MDG.
Change Request Process Implementation
Expect scenarios describing a data change scenario where you must identify the correct change request configuration, workflow step, or processing behavior.
- Change request types and how they map to business processes
- Workflow configuration and approval routing logic
- Status management and how it affects data visibility and edit rights
- Validation and derivation steps embedded within the change request lifecycle
Key Takeaway
Study change requests as an end-to-end process, not a list of configuration screens. The exam rewards candidates who can trace a request from creation through approval to activation.
Because this domain determines how governed data moves through its lifecycle, it pairs naturally with data quality concepts - if a change request lacks proper validation, downstream data quality suffers. Keep that connection in mind as you move to Domain 3.
Domain 3: Data Quality and Analytics
This domain shifts focus from process mechanics to outcomes: how do you know the governed data is actually good, and how do you measure it?
Data Quality and Analytics
Candidates should be comfortable interpreting data quality metrics and analytics outputs tied to governed master data, and connecting quality issues back to root causes in the governance process.
- Data quality rules, validation checks, and how they surface issues
- Analytics and reporting mechanisms for monitoring governed data over time
- How data quality findings feed back into change request design or consolidation activities
- Distinguishing symptoms of poor data quality from their structural causes
This is a domain where scenario-based testing genuinely shines: rather than asking you to define a metric, the assessment is more likely to describe a data quality problem and ask what governance step should have prevented it. If you're unsure how deep this domain typically goes, our C_MDG_2601 Study Guide walks through prioritization strategies in more detail.
Domain 4: Consolidation and Mass Processing
Consolidation and mass processing address a different problem than change requests: instead of governing one record at a time, this domain covers how MDG handles large volumes of master data - often during migrations, cleanups, or periodic bulk updates.
Consolidation and Mass Processing
Understand how MDG identifies, matches, and merges duplicate or overlapping records, and how mass changes are executed without bypassing governance controls.
- Consolidation process steps: import, match, merge, and review
- Mass processing tools and when they're appropriate versus single-object change requests
- Handling duplicate detection and resolution at scale
- Governance guardrails that still apply during bulk operations
Candidates coming from a pure "single-record governance" mindset often struggle here because mass processing introduces a scale dimension the earlier domains don't emphasize. Expect scenarios that test whether you know when consolidation tools are the right tool versus when a standard change request process should be used instead.
Domain 5: Replication, Key Mapping, and Custom Objects
The final domain closes the loop between MDG and the rest of the SAP (and non-SAP) landscape. Governed master data is only useful if it reaches the systems that consume it, and this domain covers exactly that mechanism.
Replication, Key Mapping, and Custom Objects
Candidates must be able to describe how governed data is distributed to target systems, how key mapping resolves identifier differences across systems, and how custom objects extend MDG beyond standard business object types.
- Replication models and how governed data reaches downstream systems
- Key mapping concepts for reconciling different identifiers across connected systems
- Extending MDG with custom business objects for non-standard master data
- Troubleshooting scenarios where replication or key mapping produces mismatches
Sequencing the Domains Into a Study Plan
Generic study techniques - spaced repetition, timed practice blocks, active recall - do work for exam prep in general, but they only matter if you apply them to the right material at the right time. For C_MDG_2601 specifically, the five domains build on each other in a fairly logical order, and your study calendar should reflect that.
Foundations
- Master MDG Overview and Architecture terminology and deployment models
- Build the mental map you'll reuse in every other domain
Process Mechanics
- Work through Change Request Process Implementation end-to-end
- Practice tracing a request from creation to activation
Quality and Scale
- Study Data Quality and Analytics alongside Consolidation and Mass Processing
- Connect quality findings to consolidation and bulk-update scenarios
Integration and Review
- Focus on Replication, Key Mapping, and Custom Objects
- Run full scenario practice across all five domains before scheduling
If four weeks feels tight given the open-book, scenario-based format, extend the timeline rather than compressing it - the assessment rewards applied understanding over speed-memorization. For a deeper breakdown of pacing and difficulty expectations, see How Hard Is the C_MDG_2601 Exam? and the companion C_MDG_2601 Cheat Sheet for a condensed review pass in your final week.
Who Actually Hires for This Domain Mix
The five domains together describe a fairly specific role profile: someone who can configure governance processes, keep data quality visible through analytics, run consolidation projects at scale, and manage how governed data moves across system landscapes. In practice, that maps to organizations running SAP as a system of record for core master data - customer, vendor, material, or finance master data - that need a dedicated governance layer rather than ad hoc data fixes.
Roles hiring against this skill set typically sit inside data governance teams, SAP functional/technical consulting groups, or master data management centers of excellence. If you're evaluating whether the credential is worth pursuing relative to your career goals, our ROI analysis and salary guide go deeper into that comparison, and C_MDG_2601 Jobs outlines the kinds of postings that reference this certification directly.
Pricing is straightforward but easy to get wrong if you're comparing against outdated information: a single attempt costs $230 USD before tax, while the $276 two-attempt package bundles in 10 hours of certification-relevant practice-system access - useful if you want hands-on time inside the domains covered above before you sit the assessment. Full pricing scenarios are broken down in our Certification Cost guide.
| Domain | Primary Focus | Best Paired With |
|---|---|---|
| 1. MDG Overview and Architecture | Foundational structure and deployment models | Study first - sets vocabulary for all others |
| 2. Change Request Process Implementation | Workflow, approval, and status logic | Domain 3 (quality outcomes of the process) |
| 3. Data Quality and Analytics | Metrics, validation, root-cause analysis | Domain 4 (quality at scale) |
| 4. Consolidation and Mass Processing | Bulk matching, merging, and mass updates | Domain 2 (governance guardrails) |
| 5. Replication, Key Mapping, and Custom Objects | System integration and extensibility | Study last - ties all domains together |
Once you've mapped your own strengths against these five areas, it's worth running a full practice pass on our practice test platform to see which domains need the most attention before you commit to a registration date. You can also cross-check your target score expectations against the Passing Score guide and confirm testing availability through the Exam Dates guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
SAP does not publish specific domain weighting percentages for this assessment. Rather than guessing at weights, prepare each of the five domains - MDG Overview and Architecture, Change Request Process Implementation, Data Quality and Analytics, Consolidation and Mass Processing, and Replication, Key Mapping, and Custom Objects - thoroughly enough to handle scenario questions from any of them.
No. The current C_MDG_2601 is a 120-minute scenario-based practical assessment, distinct from the retired multiple-choice C_MDG_1909 exam. It is open book and unproctored, and may involve an AI-guided virtual interview or a recorded response reviewed by an SAP evaluator.
Microphone access is required for the assessment, but camera use is optional. This matters when setting up your testing environment ahead of your scheduled attempt.
You can make up to four separate attempts per certification within a 12-month period, with a mandatory 24-hour wait between attempts. After four unsuccessful attempts, a 12-month wait applies before you can try again.
Yes. The digital badge is valid for 12 months. You can extend it through the annual Stay Certified assessment if you hold an active SAP Learning Hub subscription, or you can retake the full certification exam instead.