Security+ SY0-701 or SY0-801: Which Exam Should You Take?

CompTIA's new Security+ launches on 17 November 2026. Here is how to choose, using only CompTIA's own exam pages.

If you are studying for CompTIA Security+ right now, you have probably seen the question in every forum: should I sit the current exam, SY0-701, or wait for the new one, SY0-801?

The short answer: if you have already been studying for SY0-701 and can sit the exam before June 2027, take SY0-701. If you are starting from zero today and your exam is many months away, SY0-801 is the better long-term choice. The rest of this article explains why, with the dates and numbers taken from CompTIA's own pages.

Practising for SY0-701 now? DailyDebian has a free set of Security+ SY0-701 practice questions with answers and explanations, and the full SY0-701 practice question pack (611 questions with answers) when you want more.

The key dates

According to CompTIA's exam pages, checked on 9 November 2026:

• SY0-701 (Security+ V7) launched on 7 November 2023.
• SY0-801 (Security+ V8) launches on 17 November 2026.
• SY0-701 retires on 11 June 2027 in English. The Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish and Thai versions retire later, on 13 August 2027.

That gives you an overlap of roughly seven months in which you can choose either exam. After 11 June 2027, English candidates can only book SY0-801.

What stays the same

The exam format does not change between the two versions. Both pages list:

• A maximum of 90 questions
• A mix of multiple-choice and performance-based questions (PBQs)
• 90 minutes
• A passing score of 750 on a scale of 100 to 900

So the experience on test day will feel very similar. Your time management plan, your approach to PBQs (many people flag them and come back at the end) and your target score all carry over.

The certification you earn is also the same: CompTIA Security+. Nobody hiring for a role that asks for Security+ will be checking which exam code you passed. What matters more is that the certification is current, and CompTIA certifications run on a three-year renewal cycle (Security+ needs 50 continuing education units, or CEUs, in that cycle). A pass on SY0-701 next spring is just as valid for the next three years as a pass on SY0-801.

What changes: the domains

The five domain names are nearly the same, but the weights move. Here they are from CompTIA's pages, SY0-701 first, then SY0-801:

• General security concepts: 12% on SY0-701, 16% on SY0-801
• Threats, vulnerabilities and mitigations (V8 calls it "Threats, vulnerabilities and attacks"): 22% to 24%
• Security architecture: 18% to 19%
• Security operations: 28% to 27%
• Security program management and oversight: 20% to 14%

Three things stand out:

1. Program management and oversight drops from 20% to 14%. Governance, risk and compliance still matter, but they take up less of the exam.
2. General concepts and threats both grow. Together they move from 34% to 40% of the exam.
3. Security operations stays the biggest domain at 27 to 28%. If you are strong in operations today, that strength carries straight over.

CompTIA's V8 page also lists topics such as AI-related risks, Zero Trust principles and AI-assisted workflows. The page does not mark which items are new compared with V7, so treat any "everything that changed" list you see online with care until you have read the official exam objectives yourself.

How to decide

Take SY0-701 if:

• You have already studied a good part of the SY0-701 material. Switching now means re-mapping your notes to new objectives and new weights for very little gain.
• You can book your exam before 11 June 2027. That is a comfortable window for most people who are mid-way through their studies.
• You want the widest choice of study material. SY0-701 has been out for three years. Courses, books, labs and practice tests are mature and have been corrected many times. On launch day, SY0-801 material will be thin and some of it will be rushed.
• You need the certification soon for a job offer, a contract requirement or a promotion.

Wait for SY0-801 if:

• You are starting from scratch and realistically will not sit the exam for several months.
• Your planned date is close to or after June 2027. Studying for an exam that retires a few weeks after your test date leaves no room for a resit.
• You want your study to line up with the newest objectives, for example because your employer's training budget or course provider has already moved to V8.

The one situation to avoid

The worst outcome is studying SY0-701 slowly, then finding you need a retake after 11 June 2027 and having to switch to SY0-801 with no plan. If you choose SY0-701, book the exam early, ideally with enough room before the retirement date for a second attempt if you need one.

A simple study plan for SY0-701 before it retires

If you are going with SY0-701, here is a plan that fits most people with some IT background:

1. Download the official SY0-701 exam objectives from CompTIA and use them as your checklist. Mark each objective red, amber or green.
2. Weight your time by the domains. Security operations (28%) and threats (22%) are half of the exam, so they deserve about half of your hours.
3. Practise with timed question sets early. 90 questions in 90 minutes is tight once PBQs eat into your time. Do short timed sets of 20 to 30 questions, then full-length sets in the final two weeks.
4. Read every explanation, including for questions you got right. Getting a question right for the wrong reason is how people fall short of 750.
5. Book the exam once you score well and consistently on new questions, not on questions you have seen before.

A good place to start step 3 is the free DailyDebian SY0-701 practice questions. Each one comes with the correct answer and an explanation. When you want a full bank to work through by domain, the DailyDebian Security+ SY0-701 pack has 611 questions with answers and explanations.

Frequently asked questions

When does Security+ SY0-801 come out?
CompTIA lists the launch date for Security+ V8 (SY0-801) as 17 November 2026.

When does SY0-701 retire?
11 June 2027 for the English exam, and 13 August 2027 for Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish and Thai.

Is SY0-801 harder than SY0-701?
CompTIA does not publish a difficulty comparison. The format, length and passing score are the same. The difference is in the weights and the topics.

If I pass SY0-701, do I need to take SY0-801 later?
No. You hold the same Security+ certification. You keep it current through CompTIA's three-year renewal cycle, not by retaking each new version.

Sources

• CompTIA, Security+ certification overview (V7 and V8): https://www.comptia.org/en-us/certifications/security/
• CompTIA, Security+ V7 (SY0-701) exam details, domains and retirement dates: https://www.comptia.org/en-us/certifications/security/v7/
• CompTIA, Security+ V8 (SY0-801) exam details and domains: https://www.comptia.org/en-us/certifications/security/v8/
• CompTIA, Earn continuing education units (three-year renewal cycle, 50 CEUs for Security+): https://www.comptia.org/en-za/resources/ce/learn/earn-continuing-education-units-ceus/

DailyDebian makes practice questions and free study tools for IT certification exams.