CompTIA Security+ guideExam day and scoring
Can You Take the Security+ Exam Online?
Yes. CompTIA lets you schedule SY0-701 at a Pearson VUE test center or online through OnVUE. The system rules are not identical on every official page.
Short answer
You can take Security+ at a Pearson VUE test center or online through OnVUE. CompTIA’s scheduling page sends you to Pearson for either choice. Run the OnVUE system test on the same computer and network you will use. Pearson’s page and CompTIA’s help article do not match on every detail, including upload speed and the macOS version, so the system test beats a blended checklist. Passy is not the exam and cannot book it.
Two official ways to sit the same exam
CompTIA’s scheduling page says you book in CompTIA Central and then finish on Pearson VUE’s site. You choose a test center or online through OnVUE. Both are the certification exam. Neither one is a Passy practice session. To book, use CompTIA’s scheduling steps.
The exam itself is still a maximum of 90 questions in 90 minutes. Online delivery adds a check-in before that clock. It does not replace the exam with a shorter practice form.
What to compare
| Question | Test center | OnVUE, from the pages checked October 3, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Where | A Pearson VUE center you select | A private room you control |
| Identity | Government photo ID that matches the registration, under Pearson’s ID rules | The same matching ID, photographed in the check-in. CompTIA’s ID article says some IDs cannot be used online, including U.S. military CAC cards |
| Equipment | The center’s computers | Your computer: one display, a webcam, a microphone, and speakers. Headphones are not allowed |
| Network | The center’s | Your own. Pearson says at least 6 Mbps down and 2 Mbps up. CompTIA’s help article says 6 Mbps down and 3 Mbps up |
| Operating system | The center’s | Pearson’s OnVUE page says Windows 10 or macOS 14 or higher. CompTIA’s help article says Windows 10 or 11 and macOS 10.15 and above |
| Before test day | Standard appointment rules | Run and pass the system test on the same machine and network |
Do not average those rows into a private “official” spec. The mismatch is the point. Pearson and CompTIA have both published requirements, and they are not copies of each other. The system test on the Pearson page is the check that applies to your machine.
CompTIA’s online-testing help article also says OnVUE is not available in every country. The list on that article, checked October 3, 2026, names China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, South Korea, Slovenia, Sudan, and Syria. Confirm the article before you rely on it. Country rules change.
Check-in, in principle
Pearson’s OnVUE page says to begin check-in 30 minutes before the appointment, photograph yourself and your ID, and show the room. A proctor watches the session. Extra monitors, phones, headphones, virtual machines, and VPNs are called out as problems. If the room or the computer fails the rules, Pearson warns that the exam can be cancelled and the fee forfeited. Read the current page before you move furniture around, because the photo steps are theirs, not a summary you should improvise from memory.
What Passy is not
A practice set in a browser does not check your webcam, your ID, or your room. It also does not submit a score to CompTIA. If you want to rehearse the ideas, use the free question set. If you want the appointment, stay on CompTIA and Pearson.
Trust the source
Official sources
Exam policies can change. Use these primary sources for the most current details.