Cisco certifications

You can access free introductory IT courses through Cisco Networking Academy. These courses will prepare you for Entry-level networking certifications, and it’s a great way to determine whether a CCNA certification is right for you. You can also access free webinars, tutorials, and more with Cisco U., our new learning platform.

Cisco written exams

Pearson VUE administers all Cisco exams except CCIE lab exams. Pearson VUE offers two ways to pay for an exam:

• Use your credit card when registering for an exam
• Prepay for your exam before you schedule it by purchasing an exam voucher using your Cisco Learning Credits

CCIE lab exams

CCIE Lab exam payment, cost and registration information is found on our CCIE Book Your Exam resource page.

Exam vouchers - Learning Credits

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

Join over 1.2 million learners at the Cisco Learning Network community. Get advice from alumni, connect with your peers, and access IT training resources for all Cisco certifications: practice tests, webinars and training videos, just to name a few.

Within 24 hours of passing your certification exam, you’ll receive an email with details on next steps. You must complete the steps in the email to trigger the fulfillment process.

Learn more about certification fulfillment and benefits

Once you are certified and you have completed the fulfillment process, you’ll receive a certification kit, including:

• A PDF version of your certificate
• A Certification logo available for download through your profile
• The option for a printed certificate to be shipped to you (6-8 weeks for shipping)
• A digital badge of the Certification logo (through Acclaim)

For information about the CCIE/CCDE certification kit, please visit the Cisco Expert Level Benefits page.

For most exams, you’ll need to wait a period of 5 calendar days, beginning the day after you’ve taken the exam before retaking the same exam.

For CCIE or CCDE written exams, specifically, you’ll need to wait for a period of 15 calendar days, beginning the day after you’ve taken the exam before retaking the same exam.

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

There are two pathways you can take to keep your certification active. You can:


1. Take another certification exam to recertify
2. Earn Continuing Education Credits to help you work toward recertification. Explore eligible training items through the Cisco Continuing Education program.

Even after an exam is retired, active certifications based on that exam will remain valid until their individual expiration dates. Retired exams will no longer be available for certifying or recertifying.

View all retired exams