Best Security+ Prep of 2026: Courses, Books & Practice Exams Compared

Six CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701) prep options compared with prices verified on each provider's own site — Professor Messer, Jason Dion, the Sybex study guide, Messer's practice exams, Pocket Prep, and CompTIA's CertMaster — plus what the coming SY0-801 means for buyers.

Prices and product details verified June 12, 2026. Providers change pricing and bundles often — always confirm on the seller's site before you buy.

Disclosure: some links below are affiliate links — if you buy through one, PlayPrepHQ may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Rankings and opinions are our own, and no provider paid to be included.

Security+ is the most-taken cybersecurity certification, and its prep market has a shape worth knowing before you spend: the best course is free, the best drilling costs $30–$50, and the big money sits in the exam itself — $439 per attempt since late May 2026, after the second price rise in a year. Every price below was verified on the provider’s own site this month, against the current SY0-701 exam — with one eye on its successor, because CompTIA has published draft V8 objectives and a tentative SY0-801 preview around late October 2026 has been floated on its instructor network.

How we picked

We weighted three things: objective coverage per dollar (does the resource teach the full SY0-701 blueprint, and what does a complete stack cost?), PBQ readiness (performance-based questions are where multiple-choice-only preppers stumble, so products that rehearse them scored higher), and fine-print honesty (auto-renewals, guarantee conditions, and redemption clocks, all read and reported). We earn a commission on some links — it never changes the order of these picks, and several picks here pay us nothing, including the free course we recommend first.

Two corrections to stale advice you’ll still find elsewhere: the voucher is $439 now — articles quoting $349, $404, or even $425 are one to three price hikes behind. And CompTIA restructured its store — the old bundle names are gone, CertMaster gained new products, and old deep links redirect, so reviews describing the previous lineup are describing products you can’t buy.

Which one should you buy?

Also considered

CompTIA Security+ Get Certified Get Ahead (SY0-701 edition) — the franchise Darril Gibson built, now authored by Joe Shelley — remains a well-loved book at about $38, but it duplicates the Sybex pick’s job with a smaller online test bank, so it’s the alternate, not the pick. N2K’s practice test ($89.95 for 180 days) brings strong analytics but costs three Messer exam sets and doesn’t publish its question count. LinkedIn Learning’s Security+ path (by the same Mike Chapple who writes the Sybex guide) is genuinely good — but it’s locked inside a ~$40/month subscription with an auto-converting free trial, so it only makes sense if work or your library already provides it.

Our picks at a glance

Product Best for Price
Professor Messer's SY0-701 Course Best free The complete, current video course the whole community studies from — for $0 Free (course notes $30; Success Bundle $119)
Jason Dion's SY0-701 Course (Udemy) Best paid course Structured, deep instruction with a practice exam, for pocket change on sale Udemy list price is theater — near-perpetual sales run ~$13–30; never pay list
Sybex CompTIA Security+ Study Guide (9th ed.) Best book One authoritative reference with a serious online test bank List $55 — around $31 on Amazon at review
Professor Messer's SY0-701 Practice Exams Best practice exams Realistic, PBQ-inclusive practice tests with no subscription $30 PDF (printed $50; full Success Bundle $119)
Pocket Prep (IT & Cybersecurity) Best app The biggest question bank here, in 10-minute phone sessions $20.99/month, $49.99/3 months, $124.99/year (auto-renews; 30 questions free)
CompTIA CertMaster + Voucher Bundles Official pick Vendor-built labs and PBQ practice, with the exam and retake folded in Learn+Labs $718; Practice $209; Complete bundle with voucher+retake $1,058

1. Professor Messer's SY0-701 Course

Best free

Best for: The complete, current video course the whole community studies from — for $0

Video course · Free (course notes $30; Success Bundle $119)

Professor Messer's free Security+ course — 121 videos, just over 15 hours — is the default starting point for the entire Security+ community: complete SY0-701 coverage, concise videos mapped one-to-one to exam objectives, and monthly live study groups on top. The free tier is video only, by design; his 96-page course notes cost $30, the practice exams are separate (see below), and he resells the exam voucher at $395 against CompTIA's $439 — the cheapest reputable route to the exam itself.

Pros

  • Genuinely free, complete, and current for SY0-701
  • Huge community — study groups, notes, and shared wisdom around the same material
  • His $395 voucher resale saves $44 on the exam fee

Cons

  • No question bank built in — budget for a practice-exam source
  • Video-only: no labs or progress tracking unless you buy the bundle
Watch free on professormesser.com

2. Jason Dion's SY0-701 Course (Udemy)

Best paid course

Best for: Structured, deep instruction with a practice exam, for pocket change on sale

Video course + practice test · Udemy list price is theater — near-perpetual sales run ~$13–30; never pay list

Dion's course doubles Messer's depth — 31+ hours of objective-by-objective video with quizzes throughout and a full practice exam — and was updated as recently as May 2026. On Udemy it costs a lunch during the sales that are effectively always running, with lifetime access. His own-site edition ($349) adds hands-on labs, an eBook, 600+ questions, and the 60-day pass guarantee — which applies only to direct purchases, not Udemy. For pure drilling, his separate six-exam practice sets add 540 questions.

Pros

  • Deepest mainstream video instruction, updated May 2026
  • Lifetime access for sale-price pocket change
  • Udemy's flat 30-day refund applies

Cons

  • Udemy edition has no labs, eBook, or pass guarantee — those live in the $349 direct version
  • 31 hours is a real time commitment next to Messer's 15
View on Udemy

3. Sybex CompTIA Security+ Study Guide (9th ed.)

Best book

Best for: One authoritative reference with a serious online test bank

Book + online test bank · List $55 — around $31 on Amazon at review

Chapple and Seidl's Sybex guide is the standard Security+ book: 704 pages covering all five SY0-701 domains, 500+ practice questions in the title alone, and complimentary access to the Sybex online test bank with hundreds more questions and flashcards. It's still the current edition — the 10th, for SY0-801, is announced for December 2026 but not yet out — and it outlives the exam as a desk reference. Reading 704 pages is the slow path, so most buyers pair it with videos and use the book for depth and the test bank for reps.

Pros

  • Most rigorous single-volume coverage, by the authors of the LinkedIn Learning path
  • Big online test bank included with the book price
  • Cheap on Amazon and useful long after exam day

Cons

  • The slowest prep path if used alone
  • Book questions skew easier than the real exam's PBQs
Check price on Amazon

4. Professor Messer's SY0-701 Practice Exams

Best practice exams

Best for: Realistic, PBQ-inclusive practice tests with no subscription

Practice exams (PDF/print) · $30 PDF (printed $50; full Success Bundle $119)

Three full 90-question exams — 380 pages with detailed explanations, including multiple-choice and performance-based questions, which almost nothing else offers at this price. Written by the instructor most candidates already study with, so the style matches what you've learned. It's a static PDF: no adaptive engine, timer, or wrong-answer drilling, which is the honest trade-off for a one-time $30 with no auto-renew. The $119 Success Bundle adds the notes, audio, and priority study-group Q&A.

Pros

  • PBQ-style questions included — rare at any price, unheard of at $30
  • One-time purchase, no subscription or expiry
  • Explanations written in the same voice as the course you studied

Cons

  • 270 questions total — less volume than Dion's sets or an app bank
  • Static PDF: you keep score yourself
Visit professormesser.com

5. Pocket Prep (IT & Cybersecurity)

Best app

Best for: The biggest question bank here, in 10-minute phone sessions

Mobile app · $20.99/month, $49.99/3 months, $124.99/year (auto-renews; 30 questions free)

Pocket Prep's Security+ bank now counts 1,330 questions — bigger than stale reviews report — with per-domain breakdowns, a mock-exam mode, and the category's best mobile UX for commute-sized study. One subscription unlocks its other 25 IT exams (A+, Network+, CySA+, CISSP and more), which suits anyone stacking certifications. Know the model: it auto-renews, there's no video or PBQ simulation, and the 'pass guarantee' is three free months of access, not money back.

Pros

  • Largest verified question bank of any pick on this page
  • One subscription covers 26 IT and cybersecurity exams
  • Genuinely useful free tier (30 questions plus daily modes)

Cons

  • Auto-renewing subscription — set a reminder
  • Multiple-choice only: no PBQ practice
Visit Pocket Prep

6. CompTIA CertMaster + Voucher Bundles

Official pick

Best for: Vendor-built labs and PBQ practice, with the exam and retake folded in

eLearning + labs + voucher · Learn+Labs $718; Practice $209; Complete bundle with voucher+retake $1,058

CompTIA's own line is the only prep with official PBQ-style interactive items and vendor-aligned browser labs — and it's priced like it knows that. Learn+Labs runs $718 for a 12-month license; the Complete Learning Bundle at $1,058 wraps in the $439 voucher and retake assurance, which is the only configuration where the math gets defensible (about $580 of exam value inside). Every component must be redeemed within 12 months of purchase. If an employer is paying, this is the low-risk pick; if you're not, the third-party stack above does the job for a fraction.

Pros

  • Official PBQ-style items and real browser-based labs
  • Bundles include the voucher and retake assurance — the $439 fee is insured
  • Tracks the official objectives by definition

Cons

  • By far the most expensive route — $718 before you even own a voucher
  • 12-month redemption and access clocks on everything
View CompTIA's store

Start free, right here

Whatever you buy (or don't), PlayPrepHQ's CompTIA Security+ prep is free: exam-style quizzes, spaced-repetition flashcards, and a timed mock exam built to the real test blueprint. It pairs well with any of the paid options above — and it's a no-risk way to find your weak areas before spending anything.

Take a free timed mock exam → Read the how-to-pass guide →

Frequently asked questions

Can I pass Security+ with just Professor Messer's free videos?
Many people do — the free course (121 videos, just over 15 hours) covers every SY0-701 objective. But it deliberately contains no question bank, so add a practice source: Messer's own $30 exam set (three 90-question tests including PBQ-style items), free ExamCompass quizzes, free drilling here on PlayPrepHQ, or Dion's 540-question Udemy sets. A realistic materials budget is $0–$60 against the $439 exam fee.
Is CertMaster worth it versus third-party prep?
If you're paying out of pocket, usually not: CertMaster Learn+Labs costs $718 for a 12-month license, against roughly $13–25 for Dion's course on a Udemy sale or $0 for Messer. What CertMaster uniquely offers is official PBQ-style interactive items and vendor labs, and the $1,058 Complete bundle folds in the voucher plus retake assurance — about $580 of exam value. Employer paying? Take CertMaster. Self-funding? Third-party plus a voucher is hundreds cheaper.
How many PBQs are on the SY0-701 exam?
CompTIA won't publish a count — officially the exam is 'a mix of multiple-choice and performance-based questions,' up to 90 items in 90 minutes. Test-takers commonly report roughly 3–6 PBQs, usually front-loaded. Two official details worth knowing: partial credit is offered on some PBQs, and you can flag and return to simulation-style PBQs (virtual-environment PBQs must be finished when you encounter them) — most coaches advise doing the multiple choice first.
Should I wait for SY0-801?
No. CompTIA has posted only draft V8 objectives, and the tentative timeline shared publicly on the CompTIA Instructors Network is a preview launch around October 20, 2026 — dates that can slip. Historically the outgoing exam stays testable well after a successor ships — SY0-601 remained available almost nine months after SY0-701 launched — and your certification is valid for three years from whenever you pass. Waiting idles your job search to study for an exam with no mature prep materials; SY0-701's are battle-tested.
Do I need hands-on labs to pass?
You need to be ready for PBQs — simulated tasks delivered as simulations or virtual environments — but dedicated lab products are optional. Most self-studiers prep for them with practice exams that include PBQ-style items (Messer's $30 set does) plus free hands-on tinkering at home. If you want structured labs, they're included in Dion's $349 direct program, or CertMaster Labs sells alone for $199.
How much does the Security+ exam itself cost in 2026?
$439 per attempt — raised May 29, 2026, the second price rise in a year (it was $425, and $404 before that), so most articles quote stale numbers. A retake-assurance bundle costs $579. Authorized resellers sell legitimate discounted vouchers — Professor Messer's goes for $395 — and students with a .edu address get steep academic-store discounts.

Sources