Pass your exam or get a full refund

Complete the roadmap I build for you, sit the exam in the supported window, and if you don't pass, ClaudeLab refunds you in full. That's the deal in one sentence. The longer version has five measurable conditions sitting underneath, all checked by the database, none judged by a human. But the practical user action is simple: do the work I assign, all the way to the end, and you're protected. Start the diagnostic at claudelab.me.

TL;DR

• Finish the full ARIA roadmap, sit the exam within 60 days, fail the exam, get a full credit refund.
• "Finish the roadmap" is checked against five database conditions, not a vibe (the companion piece breaks down each one).
• Eligibility flips automatically. Support doesn't judge it. The data does.
• Refund is for the credits you spent on that certification, not the exam fee.
• If you skip phases, sit the exam outside the window, or sit it without the green light, the guarantee doesn't apply.

The offer in one paragraph

Buy a roadmap, run the diagnostic, work the milestones ARIA assigns you. When the dashboard shows the exam-ready indicator, book the test, sit it within 60 days, and if you don't pass, email support with your official score report. ClaudeLab refunds the credits you spent on that certification in full, processed by Paddle, usually within 5 to 10 business days of approval. No claim form. The decision was already made by the data before you walked into the testing centre.

What "complete the roadmap" actually means

The phrase is honest, but I want to be specific about what it covers, because "I finished" can mean different things to different people.

Completing the roadmap means three things in plain English. First, you've worked through every milestone ARIA put in front of you, including any she restructured. Second, you've drained the error backlog enough that the readiness score sits at 80 or above. Third, you've cleared the proof points: two mock exams passed at the certification's official passing score, and one gauntlet at 80% accuracy or higher. When all of that is true at once, the dashboard flips the exam-ready flag.

That's the buyer-facing summary. The mechanical version is five database checks, every one of which has to be true at the same instant for check_guarantee_eligibility() to return true. If you want the full breakdown of why each check exists and what it catches, the technical companion is the five readiness conditions, in plain English. The short version: each condition catches a failure mode the others miss, and the combination is what the pass guarantee policy actually rests on.

The practical version, which is the one you live in: open the app, do today's task, repeat. ARIA decides what's next based on what you got wrong yesterday and what you haven't seen in a week. The five conditions take care of themselves as a side effect of doing the work I put in front of you. You don't need to track them. The dashboard does.

Why I can stand behind it

A guarantee is only honest if the measurement underneath it is honest. Three pieces have to hold up.

The diagnostic has to be real. The CAT evaluation is a Computerized Adaptive Test, 15 to 25 questions, that converges on your domain-by-domain skill estimate. It outputs a vector, not a vibe. If the estimate is wrong, the roadmap I build on top of it targets the wrong gaps and the guarantee bankrupts the company.

The roadmap has to be personalized. Three to five phases, milestones sized to your weakest domains, sequenced worst-to-best. If a milestone fails twice, I restructure rather than repeat, because repeating something that didn't work isn't a plan.

The readiness score has to be calibrated. It's a 0-to-100 composite of domain coverage, session frequency, error trend, mock-test average, and a retention factor that decays when you go quiet. When the number says 80, the probability of passing is high. When it says 60, it isn't. If the number lied, I'd be paying refunds on people the system told me were ready, so the calibration is the whole game.

If those three pieces are honest, the guarantee can be too.

What's NOT covered

A guarantee with no exclusions isn't a guarantee, it's a press release. Here's what doesn't qualify, lifted directly from the refund policy and pass-guarantee page.

• You sat the exam outside the 60-day window. The window starts the day guarantee_eligible first flips to true. If you let it lapse, the flag clears and the next sit is on you.
• You took the exam version we don't support. The exam has to be the one named on your roadmap, same provider, same code. Sitting a different version isn't covered.
• You didn't actually do the roadmap. If guarantee_eligible is false on exam day, you've taken the test without the system telling you you're ready. That's a choice you made, and it's outside the contract.
• You sat the exam more than once before claiming. The refund is on a single supported attempt. If you've already passed a re-sit, there's nothing to refund.
• The refund covers ClaudeLab credits, not the certifying body's exam fee. AWS, PMI, Microsoft (and the rest) bill you separately, and ClaudeLab has no relationship with them. I refund what you paid me.

These aren't negotiation surface. The point of writing them down is so nobody is surprised either way. If you're inside the lines, the refund is yours and the process is mechanical. If you're outside, you know that on exam day, not on refund-claim day.

How to claim the refund

If you sat the exam, didn't pass, and guarantee_eligible was true on exam day, the path is short.

1. Email support@claudelab.me from the email address on your ClaudeLab account.
2. Attach your official score report (the PDF or the screenshot) showing the date, the certification, and the result.
3. Include your Paddle transaction IDs for the credits you want refunded (visible on your Paddle receipt).

I respond within 2 business days. Once eligibility is confirmed (which usually means a glance at the flag history on your roadmap), Paddle issues the refund. The funds typically reach your card or PayPal within 5 to 10 business days of approval, in the original currency, to the original payment method.

You don't fill in a claim form. You don't justify why you deserve it. The hard work was finishing the roadmap. The refund is the easy part.

Why most other prep tools don't offer this

A real guarantee requires a real measurement. That's the constraint, and it's why most prep tools can't make this offer.

A content library with a thousand practice questions doesn't know whether you're ready. It knows whether you finished the questions. Without a calibrated readiness signal, the vendor can't tell who would pass and who wouldn't, so they can't bet on the outcome. They'd either be refunding everyone who failed regardless of how much work they did, or writing the guarantee in a way that excludes everyone (the "satisfaction" guarantee that means nothing).

The cheapest version of a "guarantee" you'll see in this market is "pass on the first try or your next month free." That's not a refund, it's a retention mechanic. The honest test of any guarantee is whether the company writes you a cheque. ClaudeLab does, on the conditions written down here.

Common questions

How soon do I get the refund?

Email support@claudelab.me with your official score report and Paddle transaction ID. I respond within 2 business days. Once eligibility is confirmed, Paddle issues the refund and the money typically lands on your card or PayPal within 5 to 10 business days of approval.

What if I sat the exam early without ARIA's green light?

The guarantee doesn't cover that case. The whole point of the eligibility flag is that it tells you whether the data says you're ready before you book the seat. If you sit while guarantee_eligible is false, you've informed yourself that the conditions weren't met. The roadmap is still there for you to finish, and you can re-enroll for the next attempt.

Does the refund cover my exam fee or just the ClaudeLab subscription?

Just the ClaudeLab credits you spent on that certification, refunded at the price you originally paid. The exam fee goes to the certifying body (AWS, PMI, Microsoft, and so on), and ClaudeLab has no relationship with them. I refund what you paid me, in full. The exam fee is between you and the certifying body.

Can I take the cert again with a fresh ClaudeLab roadmap?

Yes. A refunded attempt doesn't bar you from re-enrolling. Many people do, with a clearer picture of where the first attempt fell short. The new roadmap starts from a fresh CAT evaluation, so it will reflect what you've learned since.

Do international refunds work the same way?

Yes. Paddle is the merchant of record for ClaudeLab worldwide, and refunds go back to whatever payment method the original purchase used, in the original currency. Exchange-rate movement between purchase and refund is set by Paddle, not me.

What if my readiness drops below 80 between exam booking and exam day?

Then the eligibility flag flips back to false and the 60-day window pauses. You can either reschedule the exam and bring readiness back above 80 first (a few consecutive days of roadmap sessions usually does it, see readiness and decay for the mechanics), or sit the exam anyway and accept that the guarantee doesn't apply. The flag state on exam day is what counts.

Start your roadmap

The guarantee is only useful if you finish the roadmap. The measurement starts with a five-minute diagnostic. Run it, work the milestones I assign, watch the conditions flip green one at a time. If you do the work and the exam still goes against you, ClaudeLab pays you back. Start at claudelab.me.