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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.
CompTIA · associate
CySA+CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst+
SOC analyst skills: triage, log analysis, vulnerability management basics.
Official pageGIAC / SANS · professional
GCIHGIAC Certified Incident Handler
Incident handling methodology and lifecycle.
Official pageComparing
CompTIACySA+
GIAC / SANSGCIH
› Cost
Exam fee
CySA+$404
GCIH$979
Exam fee
$404
$979
Annual maintenance fee
CySA+$50/yr
GCIH—
Annual maintenance fee
$50/yr
—
3-year cost of ownership
CySA+$554
GCIH$979
3-year cost of ownership
$554
$979
› Exam mechanics
Pass mark
CySA+750/900 (~83%)
GCIH73% (scaled per attempt)
Pass mark
750/900 (~83%)
73% (scaled per attempt)
Retake policy
CySA+$404 fee · 0d wait
GCIH$999 fee · 30d wait
Retake policy
$404 fee · 0d wait
$999 fee · 30d wait
Study time
CySA+60–120 hrs
GCIH80–150 hrs
Study time
60–120 hrs
80–150 hrs
Validity
CySA+3 yrs
GCIH4 yrs
Validity
3 yrs
4 yrs
CPE / yr
CySA+20 CPEs
GCIH9 CPEs
CPE / yr
20 CPEs
9 CPEs
Delivery
CySA+test center
GCIHonline proctored
Delivery
test center
online proctored
› Salary signal (US base)
Range
CySA+$75K – $110K
GCIH$100K – $150K
Range
$75K – $110K
$100K – $150K
Median
CySA+$92,000
GCIH$120,000
Median
$92,000
$120,000
Premium %
CySA+—
GCIH—
Premium %
—
—
Role context
CySA+SOC analyst tier 2 / threat hunter, US, 2–5 years.
GCIHIncident responder / blue team analyst, US, 3–5 years.
Role context
SOC analyst tier 2 / threat hunter, US, 2–5 years.
Incident responder / blue team analyst, US, 3–5 years.
› Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10)
Schema quality
CySA+7.0
GCIH8.5
Schema quality
7.0
8.5
Practice evidence
CySA+5.0
GCIH5.5
Practice evidence
5.0
5.5
Maintenance
CySA+7.0
GCIH7.0
Maintenance
7.0
7.0
Market recognition
CySA+8.0
GCIH8.5
Market recognition
8.0
8.5
Average
CySA+6.8
GCIH7.4
Average
6.8
7.4
› Recognition & lifecycle
Recognition
CySA+Global · US · EU · UK
GCIHGlobal · US · EU · UK
Recognition
Global · US · EU · UK
Global · US · EU · UK
ISO 17024 accredited
CySA+✓
GCIH✓
ISO 17024 accredited
✓
✓
DoD 8140 baseline
CySA+✓
GCIH✓
DoD 8140 baseline
✓
✓
Holders worldwide
CySA+50,000
GCIH25,000
Holders worldwide
50,000
25,000
Current version
CySA+CS0-003 (2023-06)
GCIH2024 SEC504 refresh (2024-04)
Current version
CS0-003 (2023-06)
2024 SEC504 refresh (2024-04)
› Domain coverage
A10Security Operations
CySA+● core
GCIH● core
A10Security Operations
● core
● core
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
CySA+● core
GCIH○ touched
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
● core
○ touched
A21Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
CySA+·
GCIH○ touched
A21Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
·
○ touched
A24Exposure Management & Attack Surface
CySA+○ touched
GCIH·
A24Exposure Management & Attack Surface
○ touched
·
A7Incident Response & Forensics
CySA+○ touched
GCIH● core
A7Incident Response & Forensics
○ touched
● core
A8Threat Intelligence
CySA+● core
GCIH·
A8Threat Intelligence
● core
·
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