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Pick up to 3 certifications and compare them side-by-side on cost, exam format, recertification, salary signal, quality, and domain coverage.
ISACA · leadership
CISMCertified Information Security Manager
Security program management, risk, governance, and incident governance. The manager / CISO-track signal.
Official pageComparing
ISACACISM
› Cost
Exam fee
CISM$760
Exam fee
$760
Annual maintenance fee
CISM$45/yr
Annual maintenance fee
$45/yr
3-year cost of ownership
CISM$895
3-year cost of ownership
$895
› Exam mechanics
Pass mark
CISM450/800 (scaled)
Pass mark
450/800 (scaled)
Retake policy
CISM$575 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
Retake policy
$575 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
Study time
CISM100–200 hrs
Study time
100–200 hrs
Validity
CISM3 yrs
Validity
3 yrs
CPE / yr
CISM40 CPEs
CPE / yr
40 CPEs
Delivery
CISMtest center
Delivery
test center
› Salary signal (US base)
Range
CISM$130K – $190K
Range
$130K – $190K
Median
CISM$155,000
Median
$155,000
Premium %
CISM+11%
Premium %
+11%
Role context
CISMInformation security manager / director, US, 5+ years.
Role context
Information security manager / director, US, 5+ years.
› Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10)
Schema quality
CISM9.0
Schema quality
9.0
Practice evidence
CISM1.0
Practice evidence
1.0
Maintenance
CISM8.5
Maintenance
8.5
Market recognition
CISM9.0
Market recognition
9.0
Average
CISM6.9
Average
6.9
› Recognition & lifecycle
Recognition
CISMGlobal · US · EU · UK · DACH
Recognition
Global · US · EU · UK · DACH
ISO 17024 accredited
CISM✓
ISO 17024 accredited
✓
DoD 8140 baseline
CISM✓
DoD 8140 baseline
✓
Holders worldwide
CISM70,000
Holders worldwide
70,000
Current version
CISM2022 job-practice analysis (2022-06)
Current version
2022 job-practice analysis (2022-06)
› Domain coverage
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
CISM● core
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
● core
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
CISM⚠ gap
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
⚠ gap
A12Data Security, Privacy & Protection
CISM○ touched
A12Data Security, Privacy & Protection
○ touched
A13Supply Chain Security
CISM○ touched
A13Supply Chain Security
○ touched
A18Security Leadership
CISM● core
A18Security Leadership
● core
A25Security Architecture & Engineering
CISM○ touched
A25Security Architecture & Engineering
○ touched
A4Application Security
CISM⚠ gap
A4Application Security
⚠ gap
A5Cloud Security
CISM⚠ gap
A5Cloud Security
⚠ gap
A7Incident Response & Forensics
CISM● core
A7Incident Response & Forensics
● core
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
CISM⚠ gap
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
⚠ gap
B1AI-Powered Threat Detection
CISM⚠ gap
B1AI-Powered Threat Detection
⚠ gap
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
CISM⚠ gap
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
⚠ gap
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