Amazon Q Developer Getting Started
AWS Skill Builder
Last updated February 23, 2026
Amazon Q Developer Getting Started is a free, one-hour introduction to Amazon Q Developer, AWS's generative-AI coding assistant for understanding, building, extending, and operating applications across the software development lifecycle. It first covers the service itself — its benefits, features, typical use cases, technical concepts, and cost — and the architecture behind using it in both interactive and asynchronous workflows. The hands-on portion is the substance: a guided tutorial has you set up an IDE that uses Amazon Q Developer, then use it to optimize code, transform a project from Java 8 to Java 17, and implement a new feature. You work in a real IDE with real code throughout.
What you'll learn
- What Q Developer is and how it works
- Benefits, use cases, cost
- Interactive vs asynchronous workflow architecture
- Setting up an IDE (e.g. VS Code) to use it
- Optimizing code and transforming Java 8 → 17
- Implementing a new feature with the assistant
Frequently asked questions about Amazon Q Developer Getting Started
Who is Amazon Q Developer Getting Started for?
Developers comfortable in an IDE with Python or Java who want a hands-on first look at AI-assisted coding with Amazon Q Developer.
Is Amazon Q Developer Getting Started free?
Yes — Amazon Q Developer Getting Started is completely free to take.
What are the prerequisites for Amazon Q Developer Getting Started?
AWS Technical Essentials plus experience using an IDE such as VS Code with Python or Java. An AWS account and a working IDE are needed for the hands-on portion.
Do you need to code for Amazon Q Developer Getting Started?
Yes — Amazon Q Developer Getting Started involves hands-on coding.
Why we suggest this course
It goes past describing an AI coding assistant to putting you in an IDE with it — setting up the environment, then optimizing code, running a Java 8-to-17 transformation, and adding a feature, which is where the value of a tool like this becomes concrete. One thing to know: this is an introduction to a single AWS service, so it is vendor-specific by design — you are learning Amazon Q Developer in particular, not AI-assisted coding in general, though the workflow ideas carry across to other assistants.