Top 50+ Salesforce Admin Certification Course Interview Questions and Answer:

Salesforce Fundamentals

1. What is Salesforce and why is it widely used?

• Answer: Salesforce is a cloud-based CRM platform that helps manage customer data, sales processes, and business applications without heavy IT infrastructure.
• Example: “Our retail company used Salesforce to unify customer interactions from online, in-store, and call center, improving cross-sell opportunities by 20%.”

2. What are standard objects in Salesforce?

• Answer: Predefined objects provided by Salesforce like Accounts, Contacts, Leads, and Opportunities.
• Example: “We tracked client companies in Accounts, their employees in Contacts, and deals in Opportunities.”

3. What are custom objects?

• Answer: User-defined objects to store data unique to business needs.
• Example: “We created a ‘Project’ custom object to manage internal consulting projects with milestones.”

4. What is the difference between a record and an object?

• Answer: An object is the schema; a record is an instance of that schema.
• Example: “Account is the object; ‘Acme Corp’ is a record of that object.”

5. What is the difference between Salesforce Classic and Lightning?

• Answer: Classic is the legacy UI; Lightning has modern UI, component-based architecture, and better productivity features.
• Example: “We migrated to Lightning for inline editing in reports and Kanban view for Opportunities.”

6. What are tabs in Salesforce?

• Answer: Navigation elements for objects or pages.
• Example: “We created a custom tab for our ‘Support Tickets’ object to make it easily accessible.”

7. What is the AppExchange?

• Answer: Salesforce’s marketplace for third-party apps and components.
• Example: “We installed DocuSign from AppExchange to streamline e-signature workflows.”

8. What are Salesforce Editions?

• Answer: Different packages with features/limits: Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Unlimited.
• Example: “We upgraded from Professional to Enterprise for API access and automation.”

9. What are Governor Limits?

• Answer: Resource caps enforced to ensure platform stability in multi-tenant architecture.
• Example: “We optimized SOQL queries to avoid hitting the 50,000-row retrieval limit in a batch job.”

10. What is the recycle bin in Salesforce?

• Answer: Temporary storage for deleted records for up to 15 days is a concept often highlighted during Salesforce Admin Training.
• Example: “Recovered a mistakenly deleted Opportunity from the recycle bin within minutes.”

Data Model & Relationships

11. What are the different types of relationships in Salesforce?

• Answer: Lookup, Master-Detail, and Many-to-Many (via junction objects).
• Example: “We used Master-Detail between ‘Invoice’ and ‘Invoice Line Item’ so deleting an invoice deleted its line items.”

12. Difference between Lookup and Master-Detail relationship?

• Answer: Master-Detail has parent-child dependency and shares security; Lookup is loosely coupled.
• Example: “Contacts linked to Accounts via Lookup so they can exist independently.”

13. What is a junction object?

• Answer: A custom object with two Master-Detail relationships to link many-to-many.
• Example: “We linked ‘Students’ and ‘Courses’ via ‘Enrollment’ junction object.”

14. What are formula fields?

• Answer: Read-only fields whose values are calculated dynamically using formulas.
• Example: “Calculated deal margin using formula: Amount – Cost.”

15. What are roll-up summary fields?

• Answer: Aggregate child record values (SUM, MIN, MAX, COUNT) in parent record.
• Example: “Counted total open cases for each Account.”

16. Difference between standard and custom fields?

• Answer: Standard fields come with objects; custom fields are user-defined.
• Example: “Added ‘Customer Segment’ custom picklist to Account.”

17. What is a schema builder?

• Answer: Visual tool to create/edit objects, fields, and relationships.
• Example: “Designed our HR data model visually in Schema Builder.”

18. What is field dependency?

• Answer: Controls available picklist values in a field based on another field’s value.
• Example: “Country picklist filtered State picklist.”

19. What is a record type?

• Answer: Allows different business processes, picklist values, and layouts for the same object.
• Example: “Opportunity record types for ‘New Sale’ vs. ‘Renewal’.”

20. What are global picklists?

• Answer: Centralized picklists that can be reused across objects.
• Example: “Used one global picklist for ‘Industry’ across Leads, Accounts, and Opportunities.”

Security & Access Control 

21. What is a profile in Salesforce?

• Answer: Defines object permissions, field access, and other system rights.
• Example: “Created a ‘Support Agent’ profile with read-only access to Opportunities.”

22. What are permission sets?

• Answer: Grant additional permissions without changing profile.
• Example: “Gave API access via a permission set instead of creating a new profile.”

23. Difference between role and profile?

• Answer: Profile controls ‘what’ you can do; role controls ‘what’ records you see.
• Example: “Two sales reps have the same profile but different roles to see only their region’s data.”

24. What is field-level security?

• Answer: Controls visibility and editability of fields.
• Example: “Masked SSN field for non-HR users.”

25. What is OWD (Organization-Wide Defaults)?

• Answer: Baseline sharing settings for each object.
• Example: “Set OWD for Opportunities to ‘Private’ to enforce owner-based sharing.”

26. What are sharing rules?

• Answer: Open up access beyond OWD.
• Example: “Shared high-value Opportunities with the Finance team.”

27. What is manual sharing?

• Answer: Record owner grants specific record access manually.
• Example: “Shared a key account record with a new regional manager.”

28. What is the difference between authentication and authorization?

• Answer: Authentication = identity verification; Authorization = access rights.
• Example: “User logs in (authentication) then sees allowed objects (authorization).”

29. What is login IP range?

• Answer: Restricts login access by IP addresses.
• Example: “Allowed logins only from the corporate office network.”

30. What are login hours?

• Answer: Restricts when users can log in.
• Example: “Support team can only log in between 8 AM and 8 PM.”

Automation Tools 

31. What are Salesforce automation tools?

• Answer: Workflow Rules, Process Builder, Flow, Apex.
• Example: “Used Flow to auto-create a case from email.”

32. Difference between Workflow Rule and Process Builder?

• Answer: Workflow is simpler, limited to field updates/email; Process Builder is more powerful with multiple actions.
• Example: “Used Process Builder to create records and send notifications.”

33. What is a Flow in Salesforce?

• Answer: Declarative automation to collect data and perform actions.
• Example: “Screen Flow for onboarding new customers.”

34. Types of Flows?

• Answer: Screen Flow, Auto-launched Flow, Scheduled Flow, Record-Triggered Flow.
• Example: “Record-triggered Flow created renewal opportunities automatically.”

35. When to use Apex over declarative tools?

• Answer: For complex logic not possible with clicks.
• Example: “Apex batch job processed millions of records.”

36. What is a trigger in Salesforce?

• Answer: Apex code executed before/after record changes.
• Example: “Trigger updated related child records after parent status change.”

37. What is the order of execution in Salesforce?

• Answer: Validation rules → Before triggers → After triggers → Workflow/Process Builder → Commit.
• Example: “Debugged why workflow was overwriting trigger changes.”

38. What are governor limits in Apex?

• Answer: Limits on resources per transaction.
• Example: “Bulkified code to avoid SOQL-in-loop errors.”

39. What is bulkification?

• Answer: Writing code to handle multiple records efficiently.
• Example: “Used lists instead of single record DML calls.”

40. What are future methods in Apex?

• Answer: Asynchronous processing for long-running tasks.
• Example: “Send callouts asynchronously after record save.”

Reports & Dashboards 

41. What are the types of reports in Salesforce?

• Answer: Tabular, Summary, Matrix, Joined.
• Example: “Matrix report compared sales by region and product.”

42. What is a custom report type?

• Answer: Defines primary and related objects for reporting.
• Example: “Custom report type for Accounts with and without Opportunities.”

43. Difference between report and dashboard?

• Answer: Report = data; Dashboard = visual representation of reports.
• Example: “Used dashboard to monitor monthly pipeline trends.”

44. What are bucket fields?

• Answer: Group report data without creating new fields.
• Example: “Bucketed opportunity amounts into Small, Medium, Large.”

45. What is a joint report?

• Answer: Combines data from multiple report types.
• Example: “Joined Accounts and Cases to see support impact on sales.”

46. What are dashboard components?

• Answer: Visual elements like charts, gauges, tables.
• Example: “Gauge showed closed-won revenue against target.”

47. What is a dynamic dashboard?

• Answer: Shows data according to viewing user’s access.
• Example: “Sales reps see only their own pipeline.”

48. What is a report filter?

• Answer: Restricts data shown in a report.
• Example: “Filtered closed deals from last quarter.”

49. How do you schedule a report?

• Answer: Set report to run at intervals and email results.
• Example: “Weekly report emailed to regional managers.”

50. What are reporting snapshots?

• Answer: Store report results in a custom object for historical analysis.
• Example: “Tracked daily open case counts over months.”

Data Management

51. How do you import data into Salesforce?

• Answer: Data Import Wizard or Data Loader.
• Example: “Used Data Loader to insert 50k leads.”

52. Difference between Data Import Wizard and Data Loader?

• Answer: Wizard is simpler, web-based; Loader is advanced, supports more records and operations.
• Example: “Data Loader used for mass update of Opportunities.”

53. What is Data Export?

• Answer: Backup feature to download Salesforce data.
• Example: “Monthly exports stored in secure cloud for compliance.”

54. What is data skew?

• Answer: Performance issues from uneven ownership of many records.
• Example: “Balanced record ownership to fix sharing delays.”

55. What is deduplication?

• Answer: Prevents duplicate records using matching rules.
• Example: “Blocked creation of duplicate leads by email.”

56. What is a merge in Salesforce?

• Answer: Combines duplicate records into one.
• Example: “Merged three duplicate Accounts into one.”

57. What are validation rules?

• Answer: Enforce data quality by setting conditions for record save.
• Example: “Blocked Opportunity save if close date < today.”

58. How do you handle large data volumes?

• Answer: Use selective queries, indexed fields, batch processing.
• Example: “Indexed Account Name for faster SOQL queries.”

59. What is the Recycle Bin retention?

• Answer: 15 days for deleted records.
• Example: “Recovered deleted contacts within a week.”

60. What is data masking?

• Answer: Hide sensitive data in non-production.
• Example: “Masked customer emails in sandbox for testing.”

Integration & APIs 

61. What APIs does Salesforce offer?

• Answer: REST, SOAP, Bulk, Streaming, Metadata APIs.
• Example: “Used REST API for mobile app integration.”

62. Difference between REST and SOAP API?

• Answer: REST = lightweight, JSON/XML; SOAP = strict XML, WSDL.
• Example: “SOAP for ERP integration, REST for mobile.”

63. What is the Bulk API?

• Answer: Handles large data sets asynchronously.
• Example: “Loaded 1M records via Bulk API.”

64. What is Streaming API?

• Answer: Push notifications for real-time changes.
• Example: “Updated dashboard instantly when deal closed.”

65. What is Named Credential?

• Answer: Stores authentication settings for external callouts.
• Example: “Used Named Credential to connect to payment gateway.”

66. What is OAuth in Salesforce?

• Answer: Protocol for secure API access.
• Example: “Used OAuth 2.0 for single sign-on with Google.”

67. What is outbound messaging

• Answer: Sends SOAP messages to external systems on trigger.
• Example: “Send case updates to support tools via outbound message.”

68. What are callouts in Apex?

• Answer: External HTTP requests from Apex code.
• Example: “Fetched exchange rates from API during invoice creation.”

69. What are Platform Events?

• Answer: Event-driven architecture for pub/sub messaging.
• Example: “Triggered order shipment via platform event.”

70. How to handle API limits?

• Answer: Monitor usage, optimize calls, use Bulk API.
• Example: “Reduced API call by batching requests.”

App Customization & UI

71. What is a Lightning App?

• Answer: Custom workspace with tabs, branding, and navigation.
• Example: “Created Service App for support agents.”

72. What are Lightning Components?

• Answer: Reusable UI building blocks.
• Example: “Built custom component for quick case assignment.”

73. Difference between Aura and LWC?

• Answer: Aura is older; LWC is modern, faster, and uses web standards.
• Example: “Migrated dashboard widgets to LWC for better performance.”

74. What is a page layout?

• Answer: Controls fields, related lists, and sections on a record page.
• Example: “Added priority field to Case page layout.”

75. What are compact layouts?

• Answer: Controls fields shown in record highlights.
• Example: “Showed key contact info in highlights panel.”

76. What is a quick action?

• Answer: Shortcut for creating records or performing tasks.
• Example: “Quick action to log a call on Opportunity.”

77. What is a custom button or link?

• Answer: Adds clickable actions for records.
• Example: “Custom link opened Google Maps for Account address.”

78. What is App Builder?

• Answer: Drag-and-drop tool for creating Lightning Pages.
• Example: “Designed sales console with App Builder.”

79. What is the difference between a detailed page and related list?

• Answer: Detail page shows record fields; related list shows linked records.
• Example: “Account detail page lists its contacts in related list.”

80. What is a utility bar?

• Answer: Persistent footer for quick tools.
• Example: “Added notes and history to utility bar.”

Deployment & Change Management

81. What is a sandbox?

• Answer: Copy of production for testing.
• Example: “Used full sandbox for UAT before release.”

82. Types of sandboxes?

• Answer: Developer, Developer Pro, Partial Copy, Full.
• Example: “Partial Copy used for integration testing.”

83. Difference between change set and ANT migration tool?

• Answer: Change set = point-and-click; ANT = script-based for complex deployments.
• Example: “Used ANT for deploying 200 metadata components.”

84. What is a release cycle?

• Answer: Schedule for deploying changes.
• Example: “Monthly releases with regression testing.”

85. How do you handle deployment errors?

• Answer: Analyze logs, fix dependencies, validate before deploying.
• Example: “Fixed missing profile in change set to deploy Flow.”

86. What is source-driven development?

• Answer: Store metadata in version control.
• Example: “Used Git with Salesforce DX for team collaboration.”

87. What is Salesforce DX?

• Answer: Developer experience for CLI-based builds and source tracking.
• Example: “Used SFDX to spin up scratch orgs for dev.”

88. What is a scratch org?

• Answer: Temporary org for development/testing.
• Example: “Built feature in scratch org then pushed to Git.”

89. What is a rollback strategy?

• Answer: Plan to revert deployment if needed.
• Example: “Kept backup metadata to restore after failed release.”

90. What are deployment best practices?

• Answer: Test in lower environments, validate before deploying, backup data.
• Example: “Used Full sandbox for end-to-end tests before production deployment.”

Real-Time Scenarios & Troubleshooting 

91. How do you troubleshoot a Flow error?

• Answer: Check debug logs, flow interview logs, error emails.
• Example: “Found null variable causing flow to fail.”

92. How do you debug Apex code?

• Answer: Use debug logs, checkpoints, and unit tests.
• Example: “Identified SOQL-in-loop issue via logs.”

93. How to fix slow report performance?

• Answer: Filter data, summarize fields, index key columns.
• Example: “Added filter on date range to speed up report.”

94. What would you do if a user can’t see a field?

• Answer: Check field-level security, page layout, profile permissions.
• Example: “Enabled field in profile FLS to fix issue.”

95. How do you handle mass updates without data loss?

• Answer: Export backup, test in sandbox, run update in batches.
• Example: “Updated 30k cases with Data Loader after sandbox test.”

96. What to do if automation is running twice?

• Answer: Check duplicate triggers, recursion control.
• Example: “Added static variable in Apex to prevent recursion.”

97. How to fix a report showing incomplete data?

• Answer: Check filters, sharing settings, and report type.
• Example: “Report type excluded related records; changed to include all.”

98. How to recover deleted data beyond the recycle bin?

• Answer: Use data export backups or contact Salesforce support.
• Example: “Restored from last week’s full export.”

99. How to troubleshoot API integration failures?

• Answer: Check API limits, auth settings, endpoint logs.
• Example: “Fixed expired OAuth token in connected app.”

100. How do you prepare for a Salesforce release update?

• Answer: Review release notes, test in sandbox, update impacted features.
• Example: “Test