What is the pass rate for CompTIA A+?

CompTIA doesn't publish an official pass rate for A+, so treat any specific percentage you see elsewhere with caution. What's certain is the passing scores themselves: 675 out of 900 for Core 1 and 700 out of 900 for Core 2.

What's the hardest part of the CompTIA A+ exam?

Most candidates find the performance-based questions (PBQs) the hardest part — they're interactive, scenario-driven, typically open the exam, and carry more weight than a standard multiple-choice question.

Can a complete beginner pass CompTIA A+?

Yes. A+ is designed as an entry-level certification with no prerequisites. With a structured study plan that works through the official objectives and includes real PBQ practice, beginners pass it regularly.

What score do you need to pass CompTIA A+?

675 out of 900 for Core 1 (220-1201) and 700 out of 900 for Core 2 (220-1202). Both exams use CompTIA's 100–900 scaled scoring, not a raw percentage.

How to Pass CompTIA A+ on the First Try

Updated August 2026

First-try passes aren't luck — they're the result of a specific set of habits that most self-study candidates skip. Here's what separates people who pass CompTIA A+ on their first attempt from people who need a second try, and what to actually do about it.

Know what you're up against

CompTIA A+ is two separate exams, not one. Core 1 (220-1201) and Core 2 (220-1202) each run 90 questions in 90 minutes, and you have to pass both to earn the certification. Core 1 passes at 675 out of 900; Core 2 passes at 700 out of 900 — both on CompTIA's scaled 100–900 scoring, not a raw percentage.

Performance-based questions (PBQs) — the interactive, scenario-driven tasks where you configure a setting or troubleshoot a device — typically open each exam, ahead of the multiple-choice questions. That ordering matters: you spend some of your freshest exam minutes on the hardest question type, so PBQ readiness has to be a first-attempt priority, not something you cram at the end.

CompTIA doesn't publish an exact PBQ count, and it can vary by exam form, so don't study toward a fixed number of interactive tasks. Treat every domain as PBQ-eligible instead: if a domain covers a hands-on skill — configuring a SOHO router, terminating a cable, walking through the troubleshooting methodology — assume it can show up as a PBQ, not just a multiple-choice question about the same topic.

Core 1's five domains aren't weighted evenly — Hardware and Network Troubleshooting (28%) and Hardware (25%) alone make up more than half the exam, with Networking (23%), Mobile Devices (13%), and Virtualization and Cloud Computing (11%) filling out the rest. Core 2 splits differently: Operating Systems (28%) and Security (28%) are tied for the largest share, with Software Troubleshooting (23%) and Operational Procedures (21%) behind them. Knowing the weighting before you start means you can allocate study hours where the points actually are, instead of spreading time evenly across domains that aren't worth the same amount.

Study the objectives, not just a course

CompTIA publishes the exact exam objectives for 220-1201 and 220-1202 — a line-by-line list of everything that can be tested. Every question on the real exam maps back to one of those line items. A video course or article series is a good on-ramp, but it's a lens on the objectives, not a replacement for them. Before you sit either exam, work through the official objectives document domain by domain and confirm you can explain every line without notes — not just recognize it on a multiple-choice list.

Cross-reference as you go. After every article, video, or course module, find the specific objective line it maps to and check it off. If you can't point to which objective a piece of content covers, you don't actually know whether it's going to be tested — and if you reach the end of a domain with unchecked lines, that's exactly where to study next, not the next domain in the syllabus.

Practice PBQs early, not last

Most first-try failures aren't a knowledge gap — they're a PBQ gap. Candidates study the content, feel confident, and then hit an interactive PBQ interface they've never used under time pressure. Because PBQs open the exam and typically carry more weight than a standard multiple-choice item, being slow or unsure on the first few questions costs you both points and confidence for the rest of the exam. Start PBQ practice as soon as you finish your first domain, not after you finish the whole course — examwizardz.app/pbq-practice has free PBQs you can drill from day one.

PBQ formats repeat more than people expect, even though the content changes exam to exam: drag-and-drop cable and connector identification, click-to-configure a router or Windows setting, and step-order tasks like the troubleshooting methodology or the malware removal procedure. Get comfortable with the interaction patterns early, and the only genuinely new thing on exam day is the specific scenario in front of you.

Take timed mock exams

Pacing is a skill, not an accident. With 90 questions in 90 minutes, budget roughly one minute per multiple-choice question, which leaves a real cushion for PBQs — they take longer, and you don't want to be watching the clock during one. Take at least one full-length, timed mock exam under real conditions (no notes, no pausing) in the final two weeks before each exam. It's the best way to find out if your pacing actually holds up outside of untimed study sessions.

Pay attention to where the minutes actually go, not just your final score. If you're spending two or three minutes rereading a networking question because a port number didn't come to mind instantly, that's a flashcard gap, not a pacing problem — and no amount of extra timed practice fixes it on its own. Fix the recall gap first, then re-test your pacing.

Schedule both exams close together

Core 1 knowledge decays while you study Core 2 — networking port numbers and hardware specs fade faster than most people expect once you stop actively reviewing them. Scheduling 2 to 4 weeks between Core 1 and Core 2 works well for most candidates: close enough that Core 1 material is still fresh if a Core 2 question touches on it, far enough apart to actually prepare for Core 2's material properly. Waiting months between the two often means re-learning Core 1 content from scratch before you can even start on Core 2.

If a longer gap happens anyway — a rescheduled appointment, a life event, whatever — budget a short refresher pass on Core 1's port numbers, RAID levels, and troubleshooting methodology order before you sit Core 2. Those specifics fade the fastest, and Core 2 occasionally touches on them indirectly even though it's officially the software and security half of the exam.

The most common reasons people fail

These four patterns show up in failed first attempts more than anything else — and unlike "bad luck on exam day," every one of them is fixable with a few weeks of intentional practice:

Skipping PBQ practice until the last week, or skipping it entirely — leaving the highest-weighted, most unfamiliar question type as an afterthought instead of a first priority.
Memorizing brain-dump answers instead of understanding the underlying concept — a paraphrased question or a slightly different scenario exposes memorized answers instantly.
Ignoring the order of CompTIA's troubleshooting methodology and jumping straight to a plausible-sounding fix, which scores wrong even when the fix itself is correct.
Poor time management — running out of time on multiple choice and rushing the PBQs, or over-investing in PBQs and running short on the rest of the exam.

Exam vouchers cost real money, and pricing can change — check CompTIA's current pricing before you schedule either exam. Either way, a first-try pass is always the cheapest pass: you only buy the voucher once instead of twice, and you avoid losing weeks of momentum re-scheduling and re-studying for a retake.