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Is the ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity exam still free?

Not for new sign-ups. The One Million Certified in Cybersecurity program stopped accepting new participants on May 20, 2026. People who hold an exam code that has not expired can schedule and take the exam until December 31, 2026. Without a code, ISC2 lists the exam fee at $199, plus a $50 annual maintenance fee after you pass. Read from ISC2 on October 18, 2026.

What changed this week

  • Free exam codes end in 73 days,

Counted from the owner's own dates on , last read .

Is ISC2 CC still free?

The free route has closed to new people. ISC2 states that it stopped accepting new participants in the One Million Certified in Cybersecurity program on May 20, 2026. The program page now reads that the program has concluded. If you did not enroll before that date, the exam is a paid exam.

If you enrolled and still hold a code, the free exam is not gone yet. ISC2 states that participants with exam codes that have not expired may schedule and take the exam by December 31, 2026.

ISC2 CC free exam deadline: what the date means

  • ISC2 says all non-expired exam codes must be used to schedule and take an exam by December 31, 2026. That is the exam taken, not only a seat booked.
  • ISC2 does not say on the pages we read how long a single code lasts. Check the expiry that comes with your own code. A code that has expired is not covered by the December date.
  • A retake needs test-free days: 30 after a first attempt, 60 after a second and 90 after a third and later ones, counted from your most recent attempt, with at most 4 attempts in 12 months. The pages we read do not say whether a free code covers a second attempt, so do not assume it does.
  • Course access is separate. ISC2 says completing the course is not required to sit the exam, and participants with unexpired course access can still take it.

What does the ISC2 CC exam cost without a free code?

ISC2 lists the exam fee at US $199. After you pass, you complete the application form and pay an annual maintenance fee of US $50, which is the fee for people who hold only the CC. Fees and terms change, so confirm both on ISC2's own page before you pay.

What changed in the exam outline on September 1, 2026?

ISC2 lists an exam outline for Certified in Cybersecurity effective September 1, 2026, with these domain weights: Security Principles 24%, Security Governance 17.3%, Identity and Access Management Concepts 20%, Networking and Cloud Security Concepts 21.3%, and Security Operations and Incident Response 17.3%. The ISC2 pages we read do not describe what changed from the earlier outline, so we state no change beyond the weights above.

How the CC exam works

  • The exam is adaptive. ISC2 presents a minimum of 100 items and a maximum of 125, 25 of them unscored pretest items.
  • After 100 items, the exam ends when ISC2 can tell with 95% statistical confidence that your ability is above or below the passing standard, so the length varies by candidate and a short exam does not by itself mean a pass or a fail.
  • ISC2 lists the passing grade as 700 out of 1000.

What our practice questions cover

Our free Certified in Cybersecurity bank was written before the outline effective September 1, 2026, and its domain scores follow the earlier outline. A review against the new outline is on our plan and is not done as of October 18, 2026. Our mock is also a fixed set of 100 questions in 120 minutes, not adaptive like the real exam, so it cannot copy the real length or how the real exam decides pass or fail. The questions are AI-drafted and checked against primary sources by our process; no licensed professional has reviewed them.

A study plan fitted to your exam date

If you hold a free code, the date it works until is the plan. The full analysis ($39 once, with a full refund for 30 days) builds its weekly study plan from the exam date you save. Free practice stays free either way. None of this is advice, and none of it predicts a result. Verify every date on the owner's page before you book.

Start the free Certified in Cybersecurity practice questions, or read the ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity guide.

Sources

Each owner page below was opened and read by a person on . Owners change dates and rules without notice, so check the page itself before you rely on a date.

Tell me if the date or the rule changes

We will email you if ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC) publishes a new date, a retirement, a fee or a rule change that affects when you can sit the exam.

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Certified in Cybersecurity and CC are trademarks of ISC2. DecipherU is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by ISC2.

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