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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 · professional
SSCP (ISC)2 Systems Security Certified Practitioner
The SSCP is ISC2's entry-level certification below the CISSP and targets technically active security professionals with initial work experience. Since October 2025, the exam uses Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT), which customizes the exam experience individually and increases integrity. The SSCP covers seven technical domains, from access control through cryptography to network security, and positions itself as practical proof of operational security competence. It is less well-known than Security+ or GSEC, but benefits from ISC2's strong brand and serves well as an intermediate step toward the CISSP. The effort for annual certification maintenance (AMF + CPEs) is moderate.
Official page CompTIA · entry
Security+ CompTIA Security+
Broad entry-level knowledge across threats, ops, IAM, network, and crypto basics.
Official page Comparing
ISC2 SSCP
CompTIA Security+
› Cost Annual maintenance fee
SSCP $125/yr
Security+ $50/yr
Annual maintenance fee
$125/yr
$50/yr
3-year cost of ownership
$624
$542
› Exam mechanics Pass mark
SSCP 700/1000 (scaled)
Security+ 750/900 (~83%)
Pass mark
700/1000 (scaled)
750/900 (~83%)
Retake policy
SSCP $599 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
Security+ $404 fee · 0d wait
Retake policy
$599 fee · 30d wait · 4/yr cap
$404 fee · 0d wait
Study time
SSCP 60–150 hrs
Security+ 40–100 hrs
Study time
60–150 hrs
40–100 hrs
CPE / yr
SSCP 20 CPEs
Security+ 17 CPEs
Delivery
SSCP test center
Security+ test center
Delivery
test center
test center
› Salary signal (US base) Range
SSCP $75K – $115K
Security+ $65K – $95K
Range
$75K – $115K
$65K – $95K
Median
SSCP $92,000
Security+ $78,000
Role context
SSCP SOC analyst / hands-on security operator, US, 1-3 years experience required for cert.
Security+ Entry security analyst / junior IT generalist, US, 0–3 years.
Role context
SOC analyst / hands-on security operator, US, 1-3 years experience required for cert.
Entry security analyst / junior IT generalist, US, 0–3 years.
› Quality (4-axis rubric · 0–10) › Recognition & lifecycle Recognition
SSCP Global
Security+ Global · US · EU · UK
Recognition
Global
Global · US · EU · UK
Holders worldwide
SSCP 10,000
Security+ 700,000
Holders worldwide
10,000
700,000
Current version
SSCP 2024 CBK refresh (2024-04)
Security+ SY0-701 (2023-11)
Current version
2024 CBK refresh (2024-04)
SY0-701 (2023-11)
› Domain coverage A1 Governance, Risk & Compliance
A1 Governance, Risk & Compliance
·
○ touched
A10 Security Operations
SSCP ● core
Security+ ● core
A10 Security Operations
● core
● core
A11 Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
A11 Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting
·
○ touched
A15 Cryptography
SSCP ● core
Security+ ● core
A15 Cryptography
● core
● core
A2 Network Security
SSCP ● core
Security+ ● core
A2 Network Security
● core
● core
A21 Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
A21 Malware Analysis & Reverse Engineering
·
⚠ gap
A4 Application Security
·
○ touched
A5 Cloud Security
·
○ touched
A6 Identity & Access Management
SSCP ● core
Security+ ● core
A6 Identity & Access Management
● core
● core
A9 Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
A9 Penetration Testing & Red Teaming
·
⚠ gap
B1 AI-Powered Threat Detection
B1 AI-Powered Threat Detection
·
⚠ gap
C1 Adversarial Machine Learning
C1 Adversarial Machine Learning
·
⚠ gap
D2 Post-Quantum Cryptography
D2 Post-Quantum Cryptography
·
⚠ gap
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