Cost breakdown
CSSLPHow much does ISC2 CSSLP cost?
The CSSLP voucher is $599, and a retake is another $599. Every figure on this page links to the vendor page it came from.
This cost page is built from the registry, not written yet.
Everything below comes from CSSLP’s published exam data, and every figure links to the vendor page it came from. The researched version, with study plans and the parts nobody publishes, is still being written. This page is not submitted to search engines until it is.
See everything published on CSSLPCost breakdown
| Item | Cost | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Exam voucher | $599 | The published US list price for one attempt at CSSLP. |
| Retake | $599 | A second attempt costs the same as the first. |
| Annual maintenance fee | $135 | One fee for the account, not one per certification, so a second ISC2 certification adds nothing here. |
Exam pricing from ISC2, exam pricing ↗.
Ways to bring the cost down
ISC2 Candidate membership
Joining as an ISC2 Candidate is free and includes study material access and a reduced first-year maintenance fee.
Associate of ISC2
Passing without the required experience makes you an Associate at a lower annual maintenance fee while you accrue it.
For a good share of candidates somebody else pays this fee. The GI Bill, DoD and employer routes, with the rules each one publishes.
What a retake costs
A retake costs another $599, the same as the first attempt. That single line is larger than every other avoidable cost on this page combined, which is why practising until your mock scores clear the pass line is the cheapest thing you can do.
Check ISC2's current retake policy for the waiting period between attempts before you rebook.
Retake pricing from ISC2, exam pricing ↗.
What renewal costs across the full cycle
ISC2 runs a three-year cycle. Renewal is CPE credits plus the annual maintenance fee, and the fee covers every ISC2 certification you hold.
Cycle length: 3 years. ISC2 runs a three-year certification cycle. CSSLP holders must earn a required three-year total of 90 CPE credits (60 of them Group A), which ISC2 lists as 30 suggested annually, and pay the U.S. $135 annual maintenance fee on each anniversary of the certification date.
Typical preparation budget
Preparation for CSSLP can genuinely cost nothing. The realistic range people spend is $0 to $500, and the top of that range buys convenience rather than a better chance of passing.
We have not written CSSLP practice questions yet, so there is nothing on this page to sell you. It exists for the numbers, and every one of them links to the ISC2 page it came from.
Keep reading
- CSSLP exam overview
The format, the domain weights and the renewal terms, sourced line by line.
- CSSLP passing score
The exact cut score, what kind of number it is, and the retake terms.
- How hard is CSSLP?
An honest difficulty read from the format, the clock and the weights.