comparison

CompTIA Network+ vs Cisco CCNA

Network+ is vendor-neutral; CCNA is Cisco-specific, and its blueprint centres on routing, switching and configuring Cisco equipment. Pick by whether your target employers run Cisco.

Choose between these for my background

Next source review 2026-09-07.

Certification details change. Always confirm final pricing, availability, and credential terms on the official provider page linked in the sources below before you pay for anything.

Decision comparison

Side-by-side comparison

Side-by-side certification tradeoff grid with fit-dependent caveats.

Cited detail

EvidenceCompTIA Network+Cisco Certified Network Associate
Exam codeN10-009200-301
Exam length90 minutes120 minutes
Credential levelFoundationAssociate
Published exam price$399 (exam fee as of 2026-06-13)$300 (exam fee as of 2026-06-13)
Official certification sourceBLS occupation contextO*NET role evidenceRoleMath scoring evidence

Choose by fit

Choose CompTIA Network+ when
  • You are still validating whether networking is your lane.
  • You want vendor-neutral fundamentals before committing to Cisco depth.
  • You are pairing networking with support, cloud, or security exploration.
Choose Cisco Certified Network Associate when
  • You want network administration to be the main target role.
  • You are willing to learn one vendor's configuration syntax, not just networking concepts.
  • You want routing and switching taught against Cisco equipment specifically.
Not claimed here
  • Exam pass rates
  • Job placement rates
  • Any job guarantee
  • A salary figure attributed to this certification
  • A salary prediction for you personally
  • Return on investment or a payback period

Related Roles

These are role mappings for career-planning context. Salary and outlook data must stay tied to BLS occupations, not to certification outcomes.

The Relationship column compares a credential's published exam objectives with the work the occupation involves, and names which credential it is describing. A role RoleMath maps to only one of the two credentials shows that one; where both map to it, both are named, and Both means they read the same way for that role. Covers the core means the objectives reach that occupation's main work, Covers groundwork that they reach what it builds on rather than the work itself, and Partial overlap that they meet it only in places; a qualifier such as after a foundation records where RoleMath reads the objectives as assuming earlier study or experience, and Overlap not classified marks a pairing we hold but have not placed on this scale. This is RoleMath's reading of published objectives, not a measurement of hiring: we have not surveyed employers, and nothing here measures how much a credential is asked for or what it does for an application.

Every wage below is the occupation's national annual median wage - the midpoint of that occupation's wage distribution - as published by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025. It is not the OEWS mean, not an average, and not a starting wage. The outlook column is the BLS Employment Projections change for the same occupation over 2024-2034. Both describe the occupation, not an outcome of holding the credential.

RoleRelationshipSOCAnnual median wage (BLS OEWS, May 2025)BLS outlook (2024-2034)
Network AdministratorBoth - Covers groundwork15-1244$99,130 annual median-4.2%
Network Automation EngineerBoth - Covers groundwork15-1241$134,050 annual median11.9%
Network Security EngineerCompTIA Network+ - Covers groundwork; Cisco Certified Network Associate - Covers the core15-1299$116,580 annual median8.2%
Technical Support EngineerCompTIA Network+ - Covers groundwork15-1232$61,860 annual median-3.7%
Cybersecurity AnalystCompTIA Network+ - Covers groundwork; Cisco Certified Network Associate - Partial overlap15-1212$129,180 annual median28.5%

Core source records

This table lists the page’s core content records and when they were checked. Claim-specific citations appear beside the relevant text and may not be repeated here.

Show all 35 sources
IDSupportsSourceChecked
CIT-01Public official credential page for CompTIA Network+.Network+ (Plus) Certification | CompTIA2026-06-19T04:57:20+00:00
CIT-02Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Administrator.Network Administrator BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-03Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Administrator.Network Administrator BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-04Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Administrator.Network Administrator O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-05Supports occupation-level labor context for Junior Systems Administrator.Junior Systems Administrator BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-06Supports occupation-level labor context for Junior Systems Administrator.Junior Systems Administrator BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-07Supports occupation-level labor context for Junior Systems Administrator.Junior Systems Administrator O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-08Supports occupation-level labor context for Cloud Support Associate.Cloud Support Associate BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-09Supports occupation-level labor context for Cloud Support Associate.Cloud Support Associate BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-10Supports occupation-level labor context for Cloud Support Associate.Cloud Support Associate O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-11Supports occupation-level labor context for Cybersecurity Analyst.Cybersecurity Analyst BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-12Supports occupation-level labor context for Cybersecurity Analyst.Cybersecurity Analyst BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-13Supports occupation-level labor context for Cybersecurity Analyst.Cybersecurity Analyst O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-14Supports occupation-level labor context for IT Support Specialist.IT Support Specialist BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-15Supports occupation-level labor context for IT Support Specialist.IT Support Specialist BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-16Supports occupation-level labor context for IT Support Specialist.IT Support Specialist O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-17Supports occupation-level labor context for Technical Support Engineer.Technical Support Engineer BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-18Supports occupation-level labor context for Technical Support Engineer.Technical Support Engineer BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-19Supports occupation-level labor context for Technical Support Engineer.Technical Support Engineer O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-20Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Security Engineer.Network Security Engineer BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-21Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Security Engineer.Network Security Engineer BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-22Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Security Engineer.Network Security Engineer O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-23Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Automation Engineer.Network Automation Engineer BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-24Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Automation Engineer.Network Automation Engineer BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-25Supports occupation-level labor context for Network Automation Engineer.Network Automation Engineer O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-26Supports occupation-level labor context for Security Engineer.Security Engineer BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-27Supports occupation-level labor context for Security Engineer.Security Engineer BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-28Supports occupation-level labor context for Security Engineer.Security Engineer O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-29Supports occupation-level labor context for Systems Engineer.Systems Engineer BLS OEWS wage source2026-06-25T08:28:38+00:00
CIT-30Supports occupation-level labor context for Systems Engineer.Systems Engineer BLS Employment Projections source2026-06-25T08:27:06+00:00
CIT-31Supports occupation-level labor context for Systems Engineer.Systems Engineer O*NET source2026-07-14T04:32:12+00:00
CIT-32Public official credential page for Cisco Certified Network Associate.Cisco Certified Network Associate - Cisco2026-06-09T03:15:31+00:00
CIT-33Supports official facts for Cisco Certified Network Associate.Official exam topics2026-06-09T03:15:31+00:00
CIT-34The exam fee shown for CompTIA Network+, and the date beside it, were both read from this published price source on 2026-06-13.CompTIA Network+ exam fee - published price source, read 2026-06-132026-06-13
CIT-35The exam fee shown for Cisco Certified Network Associate, and the date beside it, were both read from this published price source on 2026-06-13.Cisco Certified Network Associate exam fee - published price source, read 2026-06-132026-06-13

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