How much does the CISSP exam cost?

As of 2026, the CISSP exam fee is $749 USD in most regions. Certified members also pay an Annual Maintenance Fee (AMF) of $135 USD per year to keep the credential active.

What is the passing score for the CISSP?

The CISSP passing standard is a scaled score of 700 out of 1000. The scaled score accounts for the varying difficulty of questions under the adaptive format, so it is not a simple percentage of questions answered correctly.

How many questions are on the CISSP exam?

The English CISSP exam uses Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT) and contains between 100 and 150 questions, with up to 3 hours to complete it. Twenty-five items are unscored pretest questions.

How much work experience does the CISSP require?

The CISSP requires five years of cumulative paid work experience in at least two of the eight CISSP domains. A four-year college degree or an approved credential can waive one year, reducing it to four.

How many CPE credits does the CISSP require?

To maintain the CISSP you must earn 120 Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits over each three-year cycle — a minimum of 40 per year — and pay the annual maintenance fee.

How long is the CISSP valid?

The CISSP certification is valid for three years. It renews each cycle once you have met the 120-CPE requirement and paid the Annual Maintenance Fee.

CISSP by the Numbers: Exam Stats, Cost & Requirements (2026)

Every key CISSP number in one place — exam format, cost, maintenance, and eligibility — with sources. Figures reflect the ISC2 exam outline effective April 15, 2024, and were last verified in September 2026. Always confirm current details with ISC2 before you register.

The CISSP exam at a glance

Metric	Value
Exam format	Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT)
Number of questions	100–150 items
Unscored pretest items	25 (included in the total)
Time limit	3 hours
Passing standard	700 out of 1000
Domains	8
Question types	Multiple choice and advanced item types
Languages	English, Chinese, German, Japanese, Spanish
All languages on CAT since	April 15, 2024

How the adaptive format and scoring work is covered in our CISSP CAT exam format guide.

How much does the CISSP cost?

Fee	Amount (USD)
Exam registration (Americas / standard)	$749
Annual Maintenance Fee (AMF)	$135 per year

The $749 price applies to the Americas and regions not listed separately by ISC2; exam pricing varies by region. The AMF is a single annual fee — you pay it once per year no matter how many ISC2 certifications you hold.

Keeping the certification: CPE requirements

Requirement	Value
CPE credits per cycle	120
Certification cycle	3 years
Suggested annual target	~40 CPE credits

Details on earning and logging credits are in our CISSP CPE requirements guide.

Eligibility and endorsement

Requirement	Value
Work experience required	5 years, paid, in 2 or more of the 8 domains
Experience waiver	1 year (a 4-year degree or an ISC2-approved credential)
Endorsement deadline after passing	9 months
Associate of ISC2 path	Up to 6 years to earn the experience

The full post-exam process is explained in our CISSP endorsement guide.

The 8 domains and their weights (2024)

Domain	Weight
1. Security and Risk Management	16%
2. Asset Security	10%
3. Security Architecture and Engineering	13%
4. Communication and Network Security	13%
5. Identity and Access Management (IAM)	13%
6. Security Assessment and Testing	12%
7. Security Operations	13%
8. Software Development Security	10%

A plain-language tour of each domain is in our guide to the eight CISSP domains, and key terms are defined in the CISSP glossary.

The CISSP in context

265,000+ — certified members and associates across all ISC2 certifications worldwide (ISC2, 2025).
16,029 — cybersecurity professionals surveyed in the 2025 ISC2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study, a record for the report.
95% — of surveyed practitioners reported at least one skills gap on their team (ISC2, 2025).
33% — said their organization lacks the resources to staff its security team adequately (ISC2, 2025).

Sources

ISC2 — CISSP Certification Exam Outline (format, passing standard, domain weights)
ISC2 — Exam Pricing (exam cost)
ISC2 — Annual Maintenance Fees (AMF)
ISC2 — Endorsement (experience and endorsement)
ISC2 — 2025 Cybersecurity Workforce Study (industry context)