CompTIA Security+ vs Network+: Which Should You Choose?

Security+ or Network+ first? Compare cost, difficulty, career fit and exam order so you can pick the right CompTIA certification for your goals.

Liam Anderson10 May 2026 · 7 min read

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Signpost illustration with a network-switch arm and a padlock arm, representing the choice between CompTIA Network+ and Security+.

Short answer: choose by destination, not difficulty. If you are heading for a security role — SOC analyst, security administrator, or any job with "security" in the title — go for CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701); it is the credential those employers screen for. If you are heading for network administration, infrastructure or general IT support beyond the helpdesk, take CompTIA Network+ (N10-009) first; it certifies the plumbing every other discipline stands on. And if you want both eventually, the natural order is Network+ then Security+, because CompTIA builds Security+'s recommended background on Network+-level knowledge.

Neither exam requires the other — no CompTIA certification has enforced prerequisites — so this is a genuine choice, and the rest of this article is about making it well for your situation rather than crowning one exam "better".

Security+ vs Network+ at a glance

Factor	CompTIA Network+ (N10-009)	CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701)
What it proves	You can configure, manage and troubleshoot networks	You can assess, harden and defend systems and respond to incidents
Difficulty positioning	Intermediate foundation; heavy on subnetting, ports and protocols	A step up; assumes networking literacy and adds security concepts across five domains
Prerequisites	None enforced; CompTIA recommends A+ plus 9–12 months in a junior network role	None enforced; CompTIA recommends Network+ plus two years in a security or systems admin role
Exam format	Max 90 questions, 90 minutes, multiple-choice + performance-based	Max 90 questions, 90 minutes, multiple-choice + performance-based
Passing score	720 (scale 100–900)	750 (scale 100–900)
Cost (US retail, June 2026 reseller listing)	$399	$439
Best for	Aspiring network admins, infrastructure techs, IT generalists	Aspiring SOC analysts, security admins, anyone targeting security-cleared or compliance-driven roles
Career path	Network administration → network engineering	Security operations → analyst and specialist security roles
Renewal	3 years; 30 CEUs via the CE programme	3 years; 50 CEUs via the CE programme

Prices are US retail as listed by CompTIA's authorized resellers in June 2026 and vary by country — confirm current fees on comptia.org.

The real difference between Network+ and Security+

The confusion between these two exams usually comes from overlap: Security+ contains networking content, and Network+ contains security content. But their centres of gravity are different.

Network+ certifies infrastructure competence. It is about making networks work: addressing and subnetting, switching and routing concepts, wireless, cloud connectivity, and troubleshooting methodology. The security material inside it is there so a network technician does not build something dangerous.

Security+ certifies defensive judgement. Its five SY0-701 domains — General Security Concepts; Threats, Vulnerabilities and Mitigations; Security Architecture; Security Operations; and Security Program Management and Oversight — assume you already understand how networks move traffic and ask what can go wrong, how attackers exploit it, and how you detect, prevent and govern against that.

Put bluntly: Network+ answers "how does this environment work?", Security+ answers "how does this environment get attacked and defended?". A hiring manager reads them the same way.

Do you need Network+ before Security+?

No — and this is the question most searchers actually mean. CompTIA enforces no prerequisite on Security+; the Network+ recommendation describes assumed knowledge, not a required certificate. Plenty of candidates pass Security+ without ever sitting Network+.

The honest test is whether you already have Network+-level knowledge, however you acquired it. Ask yourself:

Can you explain what happens to a packet from your laptop to a web server, naming the layers involved?
Do you know common ports and protocols without looking them up?
Could you describe the difference between a switch, a router and a firewall in one sentence each?

If yes, skipping straight to Security+ is entirely reasonable — you would be paying $399 to certify knowledge you already have en route to the credential you actually need. If those questions feel shaky, going straight at Security+ means learning networking and security simultaneously, which is where many self-taught candidates stall. In that case, either study Network+ material first (even without sitting the exam) or take Network+ properly and bank the credential.

Which is harder: Network+ or Security+?

CompTIA positions Security+ a rung above Network+: its recommended experience is longer (two years versus 9–12 months), its passing score is higher (750 versus 720), and its content presumes networking literacy rather than teaching it. Most candidates who take both report that Security+ felt harder for exactly that reason — it stacks a new discipline on top of one you are expected to have.

That said, "harder" depends on what you walk in with. A candidate who has run a home lab and read security news for years may find Security+ intuitive and Network+'s subnetting drills tedious. This article will not re-litigate each exam's difficulty in depth: the dedicated breakdowns of how hard the Security+ exam really is and how hard Network+ is cover question styles, PBQs and common failure points exam by exam.

Choose by destination: four common situations

A comparison table cannot decide for you; your target job can. Here is how the choice resolves for the four readers who most often ask it.

You want a security job as fast as possible

Take Security+. It is the credential that appears in security job screens, and it is widely used to satisfy U.S. Department of Defense workforce requirements, which makes it near-mandatory for many government and contractor roles. Study Network+-level material as part of your preparation if your fundamentals are thin, but put your exam budget on SY0-701. Whether the credential justifies its cost for your market is a separate question, weighed properly in is Security+ worth it in 2026.

You want to move up from helpdesk into infrastructure

Take Network+. Your next roles — junior network admin, NOC technician, field engineer — are hiring for exactly what N10-009 certifies. Security+ can follow later once you know which direction your career bends. For a value-for-money view of that first step, see whether Network+ is worth it.

You are undecided between networking and security

Take Network+ first. It keeps both doors open: it is the assumed foundation for Security+, and it is directly employable in infrastructure roles. Choosing Security+ first only makes sense when you are already committed to the security path. If you are earlier in your thinking than this — still weighing the whole CompTIA portfolio — the broader guide to which CompTIA certification to start with is the better starting point, and if you have not yet cleared the A+ question, A+ vs Network+ settles that sequencing first.

You already work in networking and want to add security

Go straight to Security+. Your day job is the Network+ syllabus; certifying it adds little. Security+ formalises the direction you are growing in, and passing it — a higher-level CompTIA exam — would also renew a Network+ certification if you hold one, thanks to CompTIA's stackable renewal model.

Taking both: order, timing and renewal economics

If your plan includes both certifications, three practical points matter.

Order: Network+ first. The content builds in that direction, and reversing the order forces you to backfill fundamentals mid-study.
Version awareness. As of August 2026, N10-009 and SY0-701 are the current versions. CompTIA lists SY0-701's retirement only as estimated for 2026, and while a successor is expected, it has not been officially announced — so there is no verified reason to delay booking Security+ waiting for a new version.
Renewal stacks upward. Both certifications last three years. Renewing the higher certification automatically renews the lower one, and CE fees are paid only on your highest cert — so holding both costs less to maintain than it first appears. Security+ requires 50 CEUs to renew via the upload route, Network+ 30.

One budgeting note: every exam attempt costs a full-price voucher (CompTIA allows an immediate second attempt, then a 14-day wait from the third), so a readiness check before booking protects real money. A timed, full-length run of CompTIA Security+ practice questions — or the Network+ equivalents on the CompTIA exams hub — will show you which domains need another pass before you spend $399–439 finding out at Pearson VUE. Use practice results diagnostically: map misses to objectives and restudy, rather than re-running the same questions until the answers are memorised.

Frequently asked questions

Is Network+ a prerequisite for Security+?

No. CompTIA enforces no prerequisites on either exam. Network+ appears in Security+'s recommended background as a description of assumed knowledge, and you can meet that through experience or self-study instead.

Can I skip Network+ entirely and never take it?

Yes, and many security-focused candidates do. The risk is a fundamentals gap, not a rules problem. If you can troubleshoot connectivity and talk ports and protocols fluently, the certificate itself is optional for a security path.

Do Network+ and Security+ expire?

Both are valid for three years from your pass date and renew through CompTIA's Continuing Education programme — via CEUs, a CertMaster CE course, retaking the latest exam version, or earning a higher CompTIA certification.

Is there a cheaper way to sit these exams?

Authorized voucher resellers legitimately sell below US retail, and prices differ by country. Buy only from CompTIA or its authorized resellers, and check comptia.org for your region's current pricing.

Making the call

Strip the decision to one question: what job title do you want on your next contract? "Security analyst" points to Security+; "network administrator" points to Network+; "not sure yet" points to Network+ because it feeds both futures. There is no universally superior exam here — only a better match for where you are standing and where you are pointed. Pick the one your target job description names, prepare against the official objectives, benchmark with timed practice before booking, and let the other exam wait until your career asks for it.

Exam facts in this guide were checked against official certification-provider pages on 30 August 2026. Fees, exam codes and policies change — confirm on the provider’s own site before you book.