CompTIA Security+
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Exam fee
$404
≈ 545 CAD · rolling-avg FX; verify with your bank before any payment
Exam code
SY0-701
Renewal
3yr
Active holders
265,992
The CompTIA Security+ is a cybersecurity certification from CompTIA with an exam fee of $404 and a 3-year renewal cycle. Approved under DoD 8570. Built from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and CompTIA's official exam requirements.
CompTIA is 'COMP-tee-uh', three syllables.
What changed this week
2 published dates, from Nov 17, 2026 to Jun 11, 2027.
- . Starts: SY0-801 launches, in 15 days
- . Retires: SY0-701 retires (English), in 221 days
- CompTIA Security+ V8 page, checked
- CompTIA Security+ V7 page, checked
Spacing on the line is proportional to the days between dates.
Counted from the owner's own dates on , last read . What the change means for your exam date.
Take SY0-701 if you can sit it before the SY0-801 launch date of November 17, 2026. If your date is later, CompTIA lists both versions until the SY0-701 retirement date of June 11, 2027 in English, so choose by readiness: finish on SY0-701 if you have already studied for it, and study the SY0-801 outline if you are starting fresh. Dates read from CompTIA on October 18, 2026.
Should I take SY0-701 or wait for SY0-801?
Your exam date decides it, then your readiness. CompTIA's pages do not say that either version is easier or harder, and neither do we. Both versions list the same format: a maximum of 90 questions, 90 minutes and a passing score of 750 on a scale of 100 to 900.
- Your date is before November 17, 2026. SY0-701 is the only version you can take, because SY0-801 does not exist before its launch date. Do not wait for it.
- Your date is between November 17, 2026 and June 11, 2027. CompTIA lists both versions across those dates. Pick the version you have prepared for. If you have spent weeks on SY0-701 material and can finish before June 11, 2027, switching restarts the outline. If you have not started, read both objective lists below and prepare for the version you will book. Confirm at booking that your version is offered on your date.
- Your date is after June 11, 2027. SY0-801 is the English exam. The Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish and Thai versions of SY0-701 retire on August 13, 2027.
- You might need a retake. CompTIA requires no wait before a second attempt and at least 14 calendar days before a third, and charges the full exam price on every attempt. A retired exam cannot be booked, so if you sit SY0-701 late, leave room for a retake before June 11, 2027.
SY0-701 vs SY0-801: what CompTIA lists as different
CompTIA does not publish a side-by-side comparison of the two versions. The differences below come from reading the two objective summaries on CompTIA's own pages. They are summaries, so the full objectives document from CompTIA is the authority.
| Domain | SY0-701 | SY0-801 |
|---|---|---|
| General Security Concepts | 12% | 16% |
| Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations (SY0-701) or Attacks (SY0-801) | 22% | 24% |
| Security Architecture | 18% | 19% |
| Security Operations | 28% | 27% |
| Security Program Management and Oversight | 20% | 14% |
- One domain is renamed. The third domain is called Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations in SY0-701 and Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Attacks in SY0-801.
- The SY0-801 summary lists an objective on the security risks of artificial intelligence: risks to AI systems, models, prompts, privacy and data exposure. The SY0-701 summary does not list one.
- Security Program Management and Oversight has the largest change: 20% in SY0-701 and 14% in SY0-801. General Security Concepts moves the other way, from 12% to 16%.
What this means for study
Spend study time in proportion to the weights of the version you will sit. Security Operations is the largest domain in both. If you are moving from SY0-701 material to SY0-801, the areas that need new attention are the AI risk objective and a larger share of general concepts. The area that shrinks is governance, risk and compliance.
Practice questions for this exam
DecipherU has no Security+ practice questions. CompTIA's written policy does not authorize AI-generated practice questions, and ours were drafted with AI, so we took them down on 2026-10-28. For this exam use CompTIA's published exam objectives for the version you will sit, and the study materials CompTIA sells or endorses. We cover the dates and changes on this page from CompTIA's own announcements. No licensed professional has checked this page.
About the CompTIA Security+
Security+ is the cybersecurity industry's most common first certification. It covers the foundational concepts a junior practitioner is expected to have on day one: threats and attacks, cryptography, identity, network security, and governance. Many job postings list it as a requirement, so candidates without it can be screened out even when they have the skills. The exam is vendor-neutral, DoD 8570 approved for IAT Level II roles, and renewed every three years through continuing education. It is the cheapest cybersecurity cert that actually opens doors.
Who should earn it
Career changers breaking into cybersecurity, IT support staff pivoting to security, and veterans using DoD benefits. The right first cert when you want the broadest employer recognition at the lowest cost.
Exam details
- Provider
- CompTIA
- Exam code
- SY0-701
- Questions
- 90
- Duration
- 90 minutes
- Passing score
- 750/900
- Exam fee
- $404 (verify with CompTIA)
- Renewal
- Every 3 years via CPE
- Experience level
- Entry
- DoD 8570/8140
- Approved
Prerequisites
Recommended: two years of IT administration experience with a security focus. Not enforced, but the exam assumes you have touched real networks and endpoints.
Key domains
- General Security Concepts
- Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations
- Security Architecture
- Security Operations
- Security Program Management and Oversight
Federal and DoD relevance
The CompTIA Security+ is approved under DoD Directive 8570.01-M (now 8140), so cybersecurity roles supporting US Department of Defense information systems can use it to satisfy the baseline certification requirement for their IAT, IAM, or CSSP workforce category. That matters for federal contractors, cleared facilities, and agencies where 8140 compliance is a hiring gate.
Pay
DecipherU has no sourced pay figure for what this certification adds. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by occupation, not by credential, so the roles below link to the BLS figures for their closest occupation.
Most relevant roles
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Certification details are sourced from official certifying body websites. Verify current pricing, exam format, and requirements directly with the certifying organization before making decisions. DecipherU is not affiliated with any certifying body.
Exam code SY0-701. CompTIA publishes 5 domains: General Security Concepts, Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations, Security Architecture, Security Operations, Security Program Management and Oversight. Practice questions on DecipherU are grouped by those domains.
Up to 90 questions in 90 minutes, with a passing score of 750/900, according to CompTIA. Formats and counts change between exam versions, so confirm on the CompTIA site before you book.
CompTIA lists the exam fee at $404 USD. Vouchers, bundles and regional pricing differ; the fee on the CompTIA site at checkout is the one that applies.
3 years, per CompTIA. Renewal is through continuing education credits or by passing a current exam; CompTIA sets the credit count and the deadline.
Recommended: two years of IT administration experience with a security focus. Not enforced, but the exam assumes you have touched real networks and endpoints.
Next step
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Sources
- CompTIA official website · Certification pricing, exam format, and renewal requirements
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bridge to Applied AI
AWS Certified AI Practitioner
Both are foundation-tier credentials. Security+ establishes cybersecurity baseline literacy; AWS AI Practitioner does the same for cloud AI services. Pairing them is common for early-career practitioners exploring the AI security frontier.
Read the AWS Certified AI Practitioner guide →Related Cybersecurity Resources
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DecipherU's career insights are drafted with AI assistance from the sources named on the page, under the method set by Julian Calvo, Ed.D. No named person has reviewed this page unless it says so. Career and compensation data come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, and industry compensation databases. Assessment frameworks are grounded in peer-reviewed psychometric research, learning sciences (University of Miami) and organizational learning (Barry University). AI is used as a research and drafting tool; the methodology, framework design, scoring and editorial standards are set by DecipherU.