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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.
OffSec · professional
OSCPOffensive Security Certified Professional
Hands-on penetration testing — exploitation, privilege escalation, AD attacks.
Official pageEC-Council · associate
CEHCertified Ethical Hacker
Offensive-concepts breadth; light on hands-on rigor compared to OSCP.
Official pageComparing
OffSecOSCP
EC-CouncilCEH
› Cost
Exam fee
OSCP$1,649
CEH$1,199
Exam fee
$1,649
$1,199
Annual maintenance fee
OSCP—
CEH—
Annual maintenance fee
—
—
3-year cost of ownership
OSCP$1,649
CEH$1,199
3-year cost of ownership
$1,649
$1,199
› Exam mechanics
Pass mark
OSCP70 / 100 points across the 24-hour exam
CEHVariable cut score 60-85% depending on form difficulty
Pass mark
70 / 100 points across the 24-hour exam
Variable cut score 60-85% depending on form difficulty
Retake policy
OSCP$249 fee · 0d wait
CEH$1,199 fee · 0d wait
Retake policy
$249 fee · 0d wait
$1,199 fee · 0d wait
Study time
OSCP300–600 hrs
CEH60–120 hrs
Study time
300–600 hrs
60–120 hrs
Validity
OSCP3 yrs
CEH3 yrs
Validity
3 yrs
3 yrs
CPE / yr
OSCP30 CPEs
CEH40 CPEs
CPE / yr
30 CPEs
40 CPEs
Delivery
OSCPpractical lab
CEHonline proctored
Delivery
practical lab
online proctored
› Salary signal (US base)
Range
OSCP$110K – $170K
CEH$75K – $115K
Range
$110K – $170K
$75K – $115K
Median
OSCP$135,000
CEH$92,000
Median
$135,000
$92,000
Premium %
OSCP—
CEH—
Premium %
—
—
Role context
OSCPPenetration tester / red team operator, US, 3–5 years.
CEHJunior penetration tester / security analyst, US, 1–4 years.
Role context
Penetration tester / red team operator, US, 3–5 years.
Junior penetration tester / security analyst, US, 1–4 years.
› Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10)
Schema quality
OSCP8.5
CEH3.5
Schema quality
8.5
3.5
Practice evidence
OSCP9.5
CEH2.5
Practice evidence
9.5
2.5
Maintenance
OSCP7.0
CEH6.0
Maintenance
7.0
6.0
Market recognition
OSCP9.5
CEH7.5
Market recognition
9.5
7.5
Average
OSCP8.6
CEH4.9
Average
8.6
4.9
› Recognition & lifecycle
Recognition
OSCPGlobal · US · EU · UK
CEHGlobal · US · DACH
Recognition
Global · US · EU · UK
Global · US · DACH
ISO 17024 accredited
OSCP—
CEH✓
ISO 17024 accredited
—
✓
DoD 8140 baseline
OSCP—
CEH✓
DoD 8140 baseline
—
✓
Holders worldwide
OSCP30,000
CEH250,000
Holders worldwide
30,000
250,000
Current version
OSCPPEN-200 (2024) (2024-03)
CEHv13 (AI-augmented) (2024-09)
Current version
PEN-200 (2024) (2024-03)
v13 (AI-augmented) (2024-09)
› Domain coverage
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
OSCP⚠ gap
CEH·
A1Governance, Risk & Compliance
⚠ gap
·
A12Data Security, Privacy & Protection
OSCP⚠ gap
CEH·
A12Data Security, Privacy & Protection
⚠ gap
·
A2Network Security
OSCP● core
CEH● core
A2Network Security
● core
● core
A21Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
OSCP○ touched
CEH·
A21Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
○ touched
·
A24Exposure Management & Attack Surface
OSCP○ touched
CEH○ touched
A24Exposure Management & Attack Surface
○ touched
○ touched
A4Application Security
OSCP● core
CEH● core
A4Application Security
● core
● core
A6Identity & Access Management
OSCP● core
CEH·
A6Identity & Access Management
● core
·
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
OSCP● core
CEH● core
A9Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
● core
● core
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
OSCP⚠ gap
CEH·
C1Adversarial Machine Learning
⚠ gap
·
C2LLM-Specific Attacks
OSCP⚠ gap
CEH·
C2LLM-Specific Attacks
⚠ gap
·
Browse the full catalog or open any one of these on its detail page for full study materials, peer comparisons, and lifecycle notes.