Difficulty
220-1201How hard is A+ Core 1?
CompTIA classifies A+ Core 1 at the beginner level. It is multiple choice and performance-based, sat in 90 minutes. No invented pass rates anywhere on this page.
The short answer
CompTIA A+ Core 1 is an entry-level exam. It assumes no prior certification.
If you work with computers day to day, even outside a formal IT role, most of the material will connect to things you have seen. The challenge is vocabulary and breadth, not depth: the exam touches many topics lightly rather than a few deeply.
What actually makes it hard
The items are not all multiple choice.
Multiple choice, multiple response, and performance-based questions. The performance-based items drop you into a simulated console, network diagram, or configuration screen and score what you actually do. They take longer than a multiple-choice question, and you have to perform the task rather than recognize an answer.
Breadth across domains.
The blueprint spans 5 domains and the exam samples all of them. The heaviest, Hardware and Network Troubleshooting, is 28 percent of the exam; the lightest, Virtualization and Cloud Computing, 11 percent.
The clock.
Maximum of 90 questions in 90 minutes is about one minute each, including the time to read the stem and the options. Reading about the exam does not rehearse that pace; a full-length sitting against the clock does.
Where the weight sits
Difficulty is not spread evenly. CompTIA publishes the domain weightings, and they tell you where your study time buys the most points:
- Hardware and Network Troubleshooting28%
- Hardware25%
- Networking23%
- Mobile Devices13%
- Virtualization and Cloud Computing11%
Weightings from the official objectives. CompTIA exam page ↗
How to find out where you stand
The fastest honest read on difficulty is not an opinion page, ours included. Answer real A+ Core 1 questions and see which domains push back. Five questions from across every practice exam, with the full explanation on each.
Keep reading
- A+ Core 1 practice questions
Free sample questions with the full explanation on every answer.
- Free A+ Core 1 practice test
10 original questions, playable now. No account, no card.
- A+ Core 1 exam objectives
The full official blueprint, with practice pages on covered objectives.
- A+ Core 1 exam format
How many questions, how long, what the items look like, and how long it stays valid.
- A+ Core 1 passing score
The exact cut score, what kind of number it is, and the retake terms.
- What A+ Core 1 costs
The voucher price, the retake, and what renewal costs across the cycle.
- A+ Core 1 guide
Who it is for, study plans by experience level, and whether it is worth it.
Cheat sheets
Printable reference tables, free.
Practice A+ Core 1 for free while you decide
Original questions written from the published objectives, with the concept, the reasoning, and a note on every wrong option. No account needed to start.
Start free A+ Core 1 questions