Can I take CISSP instead of Security+?

Not as a starting point. CISSP assumes broad knowledge and needs five years of experience to fully certify. You can pass the exam first and become an Associate of ISC2, but that still expects significant background. Security+ is the entry-level credential; CISSP is a goal for later.

Will Security+ help me toward CISSP?

Yes, indirectly. Security+ builds the fundamentals and gets you into a role; the years of real work that follow are what actually prepare you for CISSP's breadth and meet its experience requirement.

Can I get CISSP without five years of experience?

You can sit and pass the exam, then become an Associate of ISC2 and have up to six years to earn the required five years. Full CISSP status is granted once you have the experience.

What should I take after Security+ but before CISSP?

If you are heading into analyst or SOC work, CySA+ is the natural next step. CISSP makes most sense once you are moving toward senior, architecture or management roles.

How long does it take to go from Security+ to CISSP?

Usually several years - not of study, but of work. Security+ can be earned in weeks; CISSP's value comes from the five years of experience it certifies, so the gap is a career stage, not a study plan.

Are both worth having?

Yes, at different times. Security+ early to get hired and cleared for baseline roles, CISSP later to move into senior and leadership positions. Many security careers hold both over time.

Head-to-head comparison

CISSP vs Security+: which cybersecurity certification fits you?

By The Exam Atlas Editorial Team · Verified 2026-05-31

Our verdict

These suit opposite career stages, so for most people it is a sequence, not a choice. Security+ is the entry-level baseline with no experience requirement. CISSP is a senior, management-leaning certification that needs five years of experience to fully certify. Start with Security+; aim for CISSP later.

Side by side

The numbers that decide it, lined up across every dimension that matters.

	CISSP	SY0-701
Career stage	Senior / leadership	Entry level
Experience required	5 years across 2+ of 8 domains (1 year waivable)	None (IT background helps)
Difficulty	Expert	Intermediate
Exam format	Adaptive (CAT), 100–150 questions, up to 3–4 hours	Max 90 questions + performance-based, 90 minutes
Cost (approx.)	$749	~$404
Body	ISC2	CompTIA
Validity	3 years (CPE credits + annual fee)	3 years (continuing education)
Typical roles	Security manager, architect, lead, CISO track, cleared roles	SOC analyst, security/IT support, junior analyst

Full exam pages: CISSP (ISC2) · CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701)

CISSP and CompTIA Security+ get compared constantly, but they sit at opposite ends of a security career. Here is the detailed comparison, beyond the table above.

The core difference

Security+ (CompTIA, SY0-701) is the entry-level baseline. It is vendor-neutral and covers the broad foundations across five domains: general security concepts, threats and vulnerabilities, architecture, operations (its heaviest domain), and program management. It has no experience requirement, so it certifies that you understand the fundamentals well enough to start.

CISSP (ISC2) is a senior, management-leaning certification covering eight broad domains from the perspective of someone who runs security rather than configures it. Its defining feature is the requirement of five years of relevant paid experience across two or more domains (one year waivable) to fully certify.

So this is not “which is better”. It is a question of career stage: Security+ to get in, CISSP to move up. For most people the answer is “both, in that order”.

Cost compared

The gap is large, as you would expect from the level difference:

Security+: a voucher of roughly US$404. Most study materials are free or cheap (Professor Messer is a well-known free option), and you renew through continuing education with a modest fee.
CISSP: a US$749 exam fee, plus an ISC2 annual maintenance fee of around US$135. Materials run from free outlines to paid courses.

Security+ is the affordable first step; CISSP costs roughly double on the exam alone and carries an ongoing fee. Confirm current fees with CompTIA and ISC2.

Difficulty and time

These are different exams for different stages:

Security+: up to 90 questions (including hands-on performance-based tasks) in 90 minutes, pass mark 750/900. CompTIA rates it intermediate. With some IT background, 40-60 hours over six to eight weeks is realistic; brand-new candidates need more.
CISSP: an adaptive test of 100-150 questions in up to 4 hours, pass mark 700/1000. ISC2 rates it expert. Most candidates study three to six months on top of years of real experience that give the material context.

The honest framing: Security+ is something you can study and pass on knowledge alone. CISSP is not something you “cram” early. It certifies experience you have already lived, and the management-level material is hard to absorb without that context.

Recognition and geography

Both are global and both are valid for three years through continuing education, but they appear in completely different postings:

Security+ is one of the most widely requested baseline credentials and meets the US DoD 8570/8140 baseline, which is why it shows up as a hard requirement for many government-adjacent entry roles.
CISSP is the most widely requested senior security certification and is frequently a hard requirement for security manager, architect, lead, CISO-track and cleared roles.

You rarely see CISSP demanded for a first job, or Security+ demanded for a CISO. Matching the certification to the level of role you are targeting matters far more than which name carries more prestige.

Career outcomes

Security+ maps to: junior SOC analyst, security administrator, and security-focused IT support. It is an early-career band, with US pay commonly around US$60k-95k. Its value is opening the door, not commanding a premium.
CISSP maps to: security architect, security manager, security consultant, GRC and risk roles, and the CISO path. It consistently ranks among the highest-paid security certifications, with US pay commonly around US$120k-190k.

The pay gap is real but it is a function of career stage, not of the certificates themselves. CISSP holders earn more because they are further along, not because the letters add a fixed bonus.

How to decide

For almost everyone the order is fixed:

Entering security from IT, helpdesk or a career change → Security+ now. It removes the experience barrier, gets you hired, and starts the clock on the very experience CISSP later requires.
Around five years in and moving toward senior, architecture or management work → CISSP, or whenever a specific job you want lists it.
Between the two, heading into analyst or SOC work → consider CySA+ as the step after Security+ and before CISSP.

The one mistake to avoid is reaching for CISSP before the experience that gives it meaning. There is no real “versus” here. It is a sequence.

Which should you choose?

Choose CISSP if

Experienced security professionals (around five years in) moving into senior, architecture or management and leadership roles, or jobs that list CISSP as a requirement.

Choose SY0-701 if

People entering cybersecurity from IT, helpdesk or a career change who need a recognised first credential to get past screening.

Our specialty · side by side

Related comparisons

Other like-for-like match-ups featuring CISSP or SY0-701.

VS AWS Cloud Practitioner vs CompTIA Security+: which first IT certification? Compare → VS CCSP vs CISSP: which ISC2 security certification should you take? Compare → VS CEH vs CompTIA Security+: offensive hacking or security foundations? Compare → VS CISSP vs CISA: which security certification should you choose? Compare → VS CISSP vs CISM: which security certification should you take? Compare → VS CompTIA Security+ vs CySA+: which should you take first? Compare → VS Security+ vs Network+: which CompTIA cert should you take first? Compare →

Where these exams lead

Career paths featuring these exams

See where CISSP and SY0-701 sit in a longer certification sequence.

How to become a penetration tester with certifications View path → How to become a network engineer with certifications View path → How to become a CISO with certifications View path → How to become a SOC analyst with certifications View path → How to become a cybersecurity analyst with certifications View path → How to become a security engineer: build defences, not just watch them View path →

FAQ

Can I take CISSP instead of Security+?: Not as a starting point. CISSP assumes broad knowledge and needs five years of experience to fully certify. You can pass the exam first and become an Associate of ISC2, but that still expects significant background. Security+ is the entry-level credential; CISSP is a goal for later.
Will Security+ help me toward CISSP?: Yes, indirectly. Security+ builds the fundamentals and gets you into a role; the years of real work that follow are what actually prepare you for CISSP's breadth and meet its experience requirement.
Can I get CISSP without five years of experience?: You can sit and pass the exam, then become an Associate of ISC2 and have up to six years to earn the required five years. Full CISSP status is granted once you have the experience.
What should I take after Security+ but before CISSP?: If you are heading into analyst or SOC work, CySA+ is the natural next step. CISSP makes most sense once you are moving toward senior, architecture or management roles.
How long does it take to go from Security+ to CISSP?: Usually several years - not of study, but of work. Security+ can be earned in weeks; CISSP's value comes from the five years of experience it certifies, so the gap is a career stage, not a study plan.
Are both worth having?: Yes, at different times. Security+ early to get hired and cleared for baseline roles, CISSP later to move into senior and leadership positions. Many security careers hold both over time.