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Compare certifications
Pick up to 3 certifications and compare them side-by-side on cost, exam format, recertification, salary signal, quality, and domain coverage.
ISC2 · expert
CISSP-ISSAPCISSP Information Systems Security Architecture Professional
Architecture concentration on top of CISSP — trust boundaries, identity / crypto / network composition, defense-in-depth design.
Official pageISC2 · professional
CCSPCertified Cloud Security Professional
Cloud security architecture: shared responsibility, identity, data protection, crypto, and cloud-native detection.
Official pageComparing
ISC2CISSP-ISSAP
ISC2CCSP
› Cost
Exam fee
CISSP-ISSAP$599
CCSP$599
Exam fee
$599
$599
Annual maintenance fee
CISSP-ISSAP—
CCSP$135/yr
Annual maintenance fee
—
$135/yr
3-year cost of ownership
CISSP-ISSAP$599
CCSP$1,004
3-year cost of ownership
$599
$1,004
› Exam mechanics
Pass mark
CISSP-ISSAP700/1000 (scaled)
CCSP700/1000 (scaled)
Pass mark
700/1000 (scaled)
700/1000 (scaled)
Retake policy
CISSP-ISSAP$599 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
CCSP$599 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
Retake policy
$599 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
$599 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
Study time
CISSP-ISSAP150–300 hrs
CCSP100–180 hrs
Study time
150–300 hrs
100–180 hrs
Validity
CISSP-ISSAP3 yrs
CCSP3 yrs
Validity
3 yrs
3 yrs
CPE / yr
CISSP-ISSAP30 CPEs
CCSP30 CPEs
CPE / yr
30 CPEs
30 CPEs
Delivery
CISSP-ISSAPtest center
CCSPtest center
Delivery
test center
test center
› Salary signal (US base)
Range
CISSP-ISSAP$145K – $210K
CCSP$130K – $190K
Range
$145K – $210K
$130K – $190K
Median
CISSP-ISSAP$170,000
CCSP$155,000
Median
$170,000
$155,000
Premium %
CISSP-ISSAP—
CCSP—
Premium %
—
—
Role context
CISSP-ISSAPSecurity architect, US, 7+ years. Requires active CISSP.
CCSPCloud security engineer / architect, US, 4+ years.
Role context
Security architect, US, 7+ years. Requires active CISSP.
Cloud security engineer / architect, US, 4+ years.
› Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10)
Schema quality
CISSP-ISSAP8.5
CCSP8.5
Schema quality
8.5
8.5
Practice evidence
CISSP-ISSAP1.5
CCSP2.5
Practice evidence
1.5
2.5
Maintenance
CISSP-ISSAP6.5
CCSP8.5
Maintenance
6.5
8.5
Market recognition
CISSP-ISSAP5.5
CCSP8.5
Market recognition
5.5
8.5
Average
CISSP-ISSAP5.5
CCSP7.0
Average
5.5
7.0
› Recognition & lifecycle
Recognition
CISSP-ISSAPGlobal · US · EU · UK
CCSPGlobal · US · EU · UK · DACH
Recognition
Global · US · EU · UK
Global · US · EU · UK · DACH
ISO 17024 accredited
CISSP-ISSAP✓
CCSP✓
ISO 17024 accredited
✓
✓
DoD 8140 baseline
CISSP-ISSAP✓
CCSP—
DoD 8140 baseline
✓
—
Holders worldwide
CISSP-ISSAP3,000
CCSP30,000
Holders worldwide
3,000
30,000
Current version
CISSP-ISSAP2017 CBK (2017-04)
CCSP2022 CBK refresh (2022-08)
Current version
2017 CBK (2017-04)
2022 CBK refresh (2022-08)
› Domain coverage
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP·
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
● core
·
A10Security Operations
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP○ touched
A10Security Operations
·
○ touched
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP○ touched
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
·
○ touched
A12Data Security, Privacy & Protection
CISSP-ISSAP○ touched
CCSP● core
A12Data Security, Privacy & Protection
○ touched
● core
A13Supply Chain Security
CISSP-ISSAP○ touched
CCSP○ touched
A13Supply Chain Security
○ touched
○ touched
A14OT/ICS Security
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP⚠ gap
A14OT/ICS Security
·
⚠ gap
A15Cryptography
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP● core
A15Cryptography
● core
● core
A2Network Security
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP·
A2Network Security
● core
·
A23Recovery, Resilience & Cyber Recovery
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP● core
A23Recovery, Resilience & Cyber Recovery
·
● core
A25Security Architecture & Engineering
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP● core
A25Security Architecture & Engineering
● core
● core
A3Zero Trust Architecture
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP○ touched
A3Zero Trust Architecture
● core
○ touched
A4Application Security
CISSP-ISSAP○ touched
CCSP·
A4Application Security
○ touched
·
A5Cloud Security
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP● core
A5Cloud Security
● core
● core
A6Identity & Access Management
CISSP-ISSAP● core
CCSP● core
A6Identity & Access Management
● core
● core
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP⚠ gap
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
·
⚠ gap
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP⚠ gap
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
·
⚠ gap
C6AI Infrastructure Security
CISSP-ISSAP·
CCSP⚠ gap
C6AI Infrastructure Security
·
⚠ gap
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