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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 pageCompTIA · entry
Security+CompTIA Security+
Broad entry-level knowledge across threats, ops, IAM, network, and crypto basics.
Official pageComparing
CompTIACySA+
CompTIASecurity+
› Cost
Exam fee
CySA+$404
Security+$392
Exam fee
$404
$392
Annual maintenance fee
CySA+$50/yr
Security+$50/yr
Annual maintenance fee
$50/yr
$50/yr
3-year cost of ownership
CySA+$554
Security+$542
3-year cost of ownership
$554
$542
› Exam mechanics
Pass mark
CySA+750/900 (~83%)
Security+750/900 (~83%)
Pass mark
750/900 (~83%)
750/900 (~83%)
Retake policy
CySA+$404 fee · 0d wait
Security+$404 fee · 0d wait
Retake policy
$404 fee · 0d wait
$404 fee · 0d wait
Study time
CySA+60–120 hrs
Security+40–100 hrs
Study time
60–120 hrs
40–100 hrs
Validity
CySA+3 yrs
Security+3 yrs
Validity
3 yrs
3 yrs
CPE / yr
CySA+20 CPEs
Security+17 CPEs
CPE / yr
20 CPEs
17 CPEs
Delivery
CySA+test center
Security+test center
Delivery
test center
test center
› Salary signal (US base)
Range
CySA+$75K – $110K
Security+$65K – $95K
Range
$75K – $110K
$65K – $95K
Median
CySA+$92,000
Security+$78,000
Median
$92,000
$78,000
Premium %
CySA+—
Security+—
Premium %
—
—
Role context
CySA+SOC analyst tier 2 / threat hunter, US, 2–5 years.
Security+Entry security analyst / junior IT generalist, US, 0–3 years.
Role context
SOC analyst tier 2 / threat hunter, US, 2–5 years.
Entry security analyst / junior IT generalist, US, 0–3 years.
› Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10)
Schema quality
CySA+7.0
Security+7.5
Schema quality
7.0
7.5
Practice evidence
CySA+5.0
Security+4.0
Practice evidence
5.0
4.0
Maintenance
CySA+7.0
Security+7.5
Maintenance
7.0
7.5
Market recognition
CySA+8.0
Security+9.5
Market recognition
8.0
9.5
Average
CySA+6.8
Security+7.1
Average
6.8
7.1
› Recognition & lifecycle
Recognition
CySA+Global · US · EU · UK
Security+Global · US · EU · UK
Recognition
Global · US · EU · UK
Global · US · EU · UK
ISO 17024 accredited
CySA+✓
Security+✓
ISO 17024 accredited
✓
✓
DoD 8140 baseline
CySA+✓
Security+✓
DoD 8140 baseline
✓
✓
Holders worldwide
CySA+50,000
Security+700,000
Holders worldwide
50,000
700,000
Current version
CySA+CS0-003 (2023-06)
Security+SY0-701 (2023-11)
Current version
CS0-003 (2023-06)
SY0-701 (2023-11)
› Domain coverage
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
CySA+·
Security+○ touched
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
·
○ touched
A10Security Operations
CySA+● core
Security+● core
A10Security Operations
● core
● core
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
CySA+● core
Security+○ touched
A11Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
● core
○ touched
A14OT/ICS Security
CySA+·
Security+⚠ gap
A14OT/ICS Security
·
⚠ gap
A15Cryptography
CySA+·
Security+● core
A15Cryptography
·
● core
A2Network Security
CySA+·
Security+● core
A2Network Security
·
● core
A21Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
CySA+·
Security+⚠ gap
A21Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
·
⚠ gap
A24Exposure Management & Attack Surface
CySA+○ touched
Security+·
A24Exposure Management & Attack Surface
○ touched
·
A4Application Security
CySA+·
Security+○ touched
A4Application Security
·
○ touched
A5Cloud Security
CySA+·
Security+○ touched
A5Cloud Security
·
○ touched
A6Identity & Access Management
CySA+·
Security+● core
A6Identity & Access Management
·
● core
A7Incident Response & Forensics
CySA+○ touched
Security+·
A7Incident Response & Forensics
○ touched
·
A8Threat Intelligence
CySA+● core
Security+·
A8Threat Intelligence
● core
·
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
CySA+·
Security+⚠ gap
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
·
⚠ gap
B1AI-Powered Threat Detection
CySA+·
Security+⚠ gap
B1AI-Powered Threat Detection
·
⚠ gap
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
CySA+·
Security+⚠ gap
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
·
⚠ gap
D2Post-Quantum Cryptography
CySA+·
Security+⚠ gap
D2Post-Quantum Cryptography
·
⚠ gap
Browse the full catalog or open any one of these on its detail page for full study materials, peer comparisons, and lifecycle notes.