Failed A+ Core 1 or Core 2? CompTIA Retake Rules

The waiting rule depends on the attempt number

CompTIA uses one retake policy for all its certification exams, A+ included. As checked on October 17, 2026, it works like this:

The policy counts attempts at the same exam. A failed 220-1202 does not use up an attempt on 220-1201, and the other way around.

Three more rules from the same policy matter here:

• You pay every time. CompTIA says you pay the exam price for each attempt. It offers no free retests and no retake discounts.
• A pass is final. Once you pass an exam, you cannot take it again on the same exam code without CompTIA's prior consent. A 680 on Core 1 is a pass. You cannot retake 220-1201 to raise it.
• Breaking the rule voids the test. CompTIA invalidates a test taken in violation of the retake policy, and the candidate may face a suspension.

For what the 675 and 700 cut scores mean, see the A+ passing score guide.

Your passed core still counts, within the same version

You need both exams for the certification. CompTIA's V15 page says Core 1 and Core 2 "must be taken from the same version, no mixing allowed." So a passed 220-1201 pairs only with a passed 220-1202, and the other way around.

The CompTIA pages checked for this guide do not set a separate deadline between your two passes inside V15. The deadline that matters is the version itself. CompTIA launched V15 on March 25, 2025, and says retirement is usually three years after launch, estimated 2028. It has not published an exact V15 retirement date.

CompTIA has handled this situation before. For V14, its November 2024 blog told candidates to pass the second exam before the series retired on September 25, 2025, and said a V14 Core 1 pass could only lead to certification within the V14 series. Expect the same logic for V15. If your second exam keeps slipping, watch for CompTIA's V15 retirement announcement.

A retake timeline, worked through

Dana is a fictional candidate. She passes Core 1 in June 2026, then fails Core 2 on November 3.

The policy allows a second attempt right away. That is rarely useful unless the miss was narrow and you already know its cause. Dana uses three weeks of targeted work so that her second attempt is not a repeat of the first. Booking and rescheduling rules are in how to schedule A+.

Re-study the weakest domain, not the whole book

Start with the score report. CompTIA's testing policies say you get one when the exam ends. Note anything it tells you about where you lost points. Then write down, in your own words, the topics that felt unstable. Do not try to reconstruct the questions.

If nothing clear stands out, start with the largest V15 weights for the exam you failed:

Then sort each weak topic into one of three kinds. Each kind needs a different fix.

1. Recall. Port numbers, command names, connector types. Short daily drills fix these.
2. Procedure order. For example, the malware-removal sequence. Practice ordering the steps until you can explain why each one comes where it does.
3. Scenario judgment. Choosing the next step for a symptom. Rereading rarely fixes this. Work through explained scenarios instead.

The A+ study guide shows how to turn objectives into a checklist, and the free A+ practice questions give you a quick baseline. To keep the retake focused, you can also rebuild the A+ domain you missed with explained Passy practice →. It will not predict your next scaled score.

What not to do between attempts

Do not buy "real exam questions." The A+ objectives say candidates who use unauthorized brain-dump material will have their certifications revoked and be suspended from future testing.

Count the 14 days from your most recent attempt, not from your first, and leave a margin. Do not top up your practice with question banks labeled 220-1101 or 220-1102 either. They were written for the retired V14 blueprint, and the 220-1201 vs 220-1101 guide shows how the weights moved. Prepare for the V15 objectives, not for remembered items.