Cisco certification exams

Schedule and pass your certification exams. Earn your certifications, <a href=and take one step closer to the career you want." />

Get ready to be a rock star in your field. Schedule and pass your certification exams. Earn your certifications, and take one step closer to the career you want.

Looking to get certified?

You’re in the right place. Learn everything you need to know about scheduling an exam, tracking your status, maintaining your certifications, and more. Questions? Check out our answers to frequent questions.

How to schedule an exam

How to schedule an exam

All Associate, Professional, and Expert written exams are offered both in-person and online. Schedule these exams through the Cisco Certification Tracking System.

First time?

Before you can register for an exam, complete the following steps:

  1. Create your Cisco account on cisco.com
  2. Use your Cisco account to log in to the Certification Tracking System.
  3. In the Certification Tracking System, complete your account profile.

Ready to schedule your written exam?

Want to know more about taking an exam online?

All Expert lab and practical exams are offered in-person.

You can schedule a lab or practical exam using the CCIE website.

What testing is like

What testing is like

Written exams are either unproctored or proctored. Unproctored exams are online "open-book.” Proctored exams are timed and delivered in a secure environment. Most core exams last from 90 minutes to 2 hours. After you’ve finished your testing session, you’ll receive a score report that includes a score for each exam section and the passing score for the given exam.

Lab or practical exams typically last 8 hours. These exams are Pass or Fail. Your results are available online within 48 hours. Log in to the certification tracking system to see them.

How to pay for an exam

How to pay for an exam

Pay with credit card

Use your credit card when you register with Pearson VUE. You can also redeem exam vouchers.

Pay with exam vouchers

Cisco customers and learning partners can redeem Cisco Learning Credits for exam vouchers.

Lab or practical exams

You can find CCIE lab exam payment, cost, and registration information on the CCIE/CCDE Book Your Exam resource page.

Acknowledge agreement before you begin

Acknowledge agreement before you begin

Before you answer any exam questions, you must acknowledge the Cisco Certifications and Confidentiality Agreement.

Signing this legal agreement is required. If you do not acknowledge this confidentiality agreement, you will not be able to proceed with the exam or receive a refund.

What happens after you pass

What happens after you pass

Look for an email for your required next steps.

Within 24 hours of passing your certification exam, you will receive an email with instructions on the next steps. Complete these steps to receive your certification.

The Cisco Certification Tracking System records exam and certification status. Keep your profile and contact information up to date to receive notifications about your certification.

After you are notified that you’ve been certified, you are authorized to use the logo associated with the specific certification you have achieved. Before using a logo, you must read and acknowledge the Cisco Certifications Logo Agreement. You can download the logo in your profile within the Certifications Tracking System.

Certification kit

The email you receive after passing your exam will also include instructions for receiving your certification kit. Each kit includes the following items:

For information about the CCIE or CCDE certification kit, visit the Cisco Expert certification benefits page.