How much does CompTIA Security+ cost?

The single largest reduction available is not a discount code, it is not failing. A retake doubles the exam line to $850, which is more than every other cost on this page combined. Practising until your mock scores are consistently above the pass line is the cheapest thing you can do.

After that, the order of savings is: get an employer to pay, use academic pricing if you are a student, use DoD COOL or GI Bill funding if you are eligible, and buy the voucher alone rather than a bundle. CompTIA prices voucher plus training bundles well above the voucher, and the free material for Security+ is unusually good.

Watch out for one trap. Vouchers expire, usually twelve months from purchase. Buying early during a sale and then not being ready is a common way to pay $425 for nothing.

CompTIA charges full price for a retake: another $425. There is no discount and no partial credit for the domains you passed.

The waiting rules are more forgiving than the price. You can sit the second attempt immediately, with no waiting period. From the third attempt onward CompTIA requires 14 days between tries.

That immediate second attempt is a trap worth naming. Failing usually means a domain-shaped gap, and a gap does not close overnight. Read your score report, which breaks results down by domain, drill the weak domain properly, and rebook when your mocks say you are ready.

Security+ is valid for three years. Renewal costs either time or money, and you get to choose which.

The time route is 50 continuing education units across the cycle, plus CompTIA's continuing education fee. CEUs come from things many people in this field do anyway: higher certifications, relevant training, conference attendance, published writing, and documented work experience. If you go on to take any higher CompTIA or industry certification, that alone can cover the requirement.

The money route is passing the current version of Security+ again at full price. Over three years, the CEU route is nearly always cheaper, and it is the one to plan for from the day you pass rather than the month before you expire.

Preparation for Security+ can genuinely cost nothing. The realistic range people spend is $0 to $400, and the top of that range buys convenience rather than a better chance of passing.

Our questions, explanations, and cheat sheets are free, and the explanation is never paywalled. That is the part of a paid practice set you are actually buying, so it is the part we do not charge for.