Security+ SY0-701 vs SY0-801: Which Version to Take in 2026-2027

Short answer: if you are already preparing for SY0-701 and can sit the exam before spring 2027, take SY0-701. If you are starting from zero and your exam date is in late spring 2027 or later, prepare for SY0-801. CompTIA expects Security+ V8 (SY0-801) to launch on or around 17 November 2026, and lists 11 June 2027 as the English retirement date of SY0-701. That gives English candidates about seven months in which both versions can be booked. Both lead to the same Security+ certification, valid for three years, and the exam format stays the same. What changes is the content mix: AI-related risks become an explicit topic and the domain weights move. Every date and figure below was checked on comptia.org on 13 October 2026.

The timeline

Sources: CompTIA Security+ V7 page, CompTIA Security+ V8 page.

"On or around" is CompTIA's own wording, so treat 17 November as a target, not a promise. The V8 page lists English as the only language at launch. If you plan to test in Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish or Thai, SY0-701 stays available until 13 August 2027, and CompTIA has not yet said when V8 arrives in those languages.

What stays the same

Sources: the V7 and V8 pages on comptia.org.

CompTIA presents the experience line as a recommendation, not an entry requirement. One small difference: the V7 page names Network+ in its recommendation, and the V8 page does not. Our Security+ eligibility page covers this in more detail.

CompTIA does not publish a pass rate for either version, so we do not give one.

What changes: the domain weights

This is where the two versions really differ. The five domains keep almost the same names, but their weights move.

Weights from the V7 and V8 pages, checked 13 October 2026.

Three things stand out.

Governance shrinks. Security Program Management and Oversight drops from a fifth of the exam to 14%. On SY0-701, policies, risk management, third-party risk, compliance and audits are the third-largest domain. On SY0-801 they are the smallest.

Fundamentals and threats grow. General Security Concepts gains four points and the threats domain gains two. Together they rise from 34% to 40% of the exam. The threats domain also changes its name from "Mitigations" to "Attacks", which matches CompTIA's description of V8: identifying "threat actors, attack techniques, vulnerabilities, and indicators of malicious activity, including AI-related risks."

Security Operations stays the biggest domain. At 27-28% in both versions, monitoring, incident response, vulnerability management and security tooling remain the largest block. Time spent here helps you whichever version you take.

What is new in SY0-801

The V8 page describes four skill areas. Two are clearly new or larger than in V7:

• AI-related risks. V8 asks you to "identify threat actors, attack techniques, vulnerabilities, and indicators of malicious activity, including AI-related risks." The AI wording is new on the V8 page and sits inside the threats domain, which also gains weight.
• Automation in operations. V8 asks you to "use monitoring, vulnerability management, security tools, automation, and operational security practices."

The other two areas will look familiar to V7 candidates: "layered security controls, Zero Trust principles, access management, and cryptographic technologies", and protecting "cloud, hybrid, on-premises, and connected environments while supporting resilience and business continuity."

CompTIA publishes the full objectives for each version as a download. Before you buy any study material, check which exam code it was written for. A book or course for SY0-701 will cover most V8 topics, but it will not cover the AI objectives or follow the new weights.

Which version should you take?

The retake rules matter here. Under CompTIA's retake policy, you can retake immediately after a first failure, but you must wait at least 14 days before a third or later attempt. If your SY0-701 date is late May 2027, a failed first attempt leaves you very little room. So for SY0-701 we suggest planning to sit no later than early spring 2027.

Vouchers and cost

Two points from CompTIA's voucher terms matter for anyone buying around the changeover:

• "Vouchers are exam series specific, and in some cases, exam code specific." A voucher bought for SY0-701 may or may not cover SY0-801. Check before you book.
• "Once a certification exam has retired, vouchers for that exam are no longer valid", and voucher purchases cannot be returned, refunded or exchanged. A code-specific SY0-701 voucher you have not used by 11 June 2027 is lost.

CompTIA sets voucher prices by country. We could not read a current US list price on a CompTIA page on 13 October 2026, so we do not quote one in this article. Check the CompTIA store for your country. Our Security+ cost page lists the other fees, including retakes and renewal.

Renewal works the same way

Under CompTIA's renewal policy, "certifications expire three years from the certification date", whichever version you passed. To renew Security+ you can:

• earn 50 continuing education units and pay the CE fee, which is $150 for the three-year period and can be paid at any time before expiry;
• complete a CompTIA CertMaster CE course;
• pass the latest version of the exam;
• or earn a higher-level CompTIA certification.

The third option links the two versions. A SY0-701 holder who later passes SY0-801 renews Security+ by doing so. You cannot renew by passing the exact same exam twice. If your certification lapses, you must pass the version that is current at that time.

How to prepare for either version

Use the weights to plan your hours. Security Operations is the largest domain in both versions, so start there. For SY0-701, give Security Program Management and Oversight its full 20%. For SY0-801, move that time into General Security Concepts and the threats domain, and add a study block on AI-related risks.

Our Security+ practice questions follow the SY0-701 exam objectives, grouped by domain:

• General Security Concepts
• Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations
• Security Architecture
• Security Operations
• Security Program Management and Oversight

They are multiple-choice scenario questions. The performance-based items on the real exam are interactive tasks, and we do not reproduce them. The exam format page explains what they look like. If you are preparing for SY0-801, the same questions still cover most of the shared ground, but they do not cover the new AI objectives.

Verdict

The safe choice is the version you can finish preparing for with time to spare before its window closes. For most people already studying, that means SY0-701 in the next few months. For someone starting in 2027, it means SY0-801. Both lead to the same certification with the same format, pass mark and renewal rules. The only differences are the content mix and the dates.

For more context, see the Security+ overview or the which certification hub if you are still choosing between certification families.

Exam codes, launch and retirement dates, format, passing score, recommended experience, languages and domain weights for both versions verified on comptia.org (Security+ V7 and V8 pages) on 13 October 2026. Retake, voucher, renewal, CEU and CE fee rules from CompTIA's test policy, voucher terms and continuing education pages, checked the same day. CompTIA publishes no pass rate, and we could not confirm a current US voucher price on a CompTIA page, so we give neither.