Cost breakdown
ISSEPHow much does ISC2 ISSEP cost?
The ISSEP 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 ISSEP’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 ISSEPCost breakdown
| Item | Cost | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Exam voucher | $599 | The published US list price for one attempt at ISSEP. |
| 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.
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 operates a three-year certification cycle with automatic recertification once CPE credit and annual maintenance fee requirements are met. Holders who also have a CISSP must earn 20 Group A CPE credits annually, 60 over the cycle, directly related to the ISSEP; holders without a CISSP are listed at 47 annually and 140 over the cycle. A single annual maintenance fee of U.S. $135 applies regardless of how many ISC2 certifications are held.
Typical preparation budget
Preparation for ISSEP 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 ISSEP 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
- ISSEP exam overview
The format, the domain weights and the renewal terms, sourced line by line.
- ISSEP passing score
The exact cut score, what kind of number it is, and the retake terms.
- How hard is ISSEP?
An honest difficulty read from the format, the clock and the weights.