ExamCompass has been serving free Security+ practice questions since the SY0-401 days. You can sit through 400+ domain-specific quizzes without spending a cent. The question most people don't ask until after a failed attempt: is free enough to actually pass the exam?
This review breaks down exactly what the ExamCompass Security+ practice tests cover, where they're genuinely useful, and where they leave dangerous gaps — especially now that CompTIA has moved the exam to SY0-701.
What ExamCompass Security+ Actually Is
ExamCompass is not a course. It has no video lectures, no instructor, no structured learning path. It's a quiz engine — a website that presents multiple-choice Security+ practice questions organized by exam domain. Everything on the site is free. There's no premium tier, no upsell.
The platform has been around since at least the SY0-401 exam cycle (released 2014), which gives it credibility purely from longevity. The questions are categorized by topic: threats and attacks, cryptography, PKI, identity management, network security, risk management, and so on.
What you get:
- Domain-based quizzes you can run repeatedly in random order
- Instant feedback on right/wrong answers with brief explanations
- No account required — open a page and start drilling
- Coverage across all current SY0-701 exam objectives (though the depth varies by domain)
What you don't get: performance tracking, adaptive testing, hands-on labs, scenario-based questions that mirror the actual exam format, or any explanation of why a concept works the way it does. For that, you need something else alongside it.
ExamCompass Security+ Coverage by Exam Domain
The SY0-701 exam is divided into five domains. Here's how ExamCompass holds up across each one:
General Security Concepts (12%)
ExamCompass covers terminology, cryptography basics, and control types well here. The definitions-style questions are a good fit for this domain, which rewards memorization more than the later domains.
Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations (22%)
The heaviest weighted domain on the exam. ExamCompass has solid question volume on attack types, malware categories, and social engineering. Where it struggles: application security vulnerabilities and newer threat actor TTPs that appeared with the SY0-701 update. Some questions still feel tuned to SY0-601 era objectives.
Security Architecture (18%)
Cloud, infrastructure, network design — this is where ExamCompass starts to thin out. The questions exist but the depth doesn't match what CompTIA actually tests. Scenario-based questions involving cloud hybrid environments are nearly absent.
Security Operations (28%)
The largest domain and the weakest area for ExamCompass. The exam now leans heavily on performance-based questions (PBQs) — drag-and-drop, command-line simulation, log analysis. ExamCompass is multiple choice only. You can know the right answer in a quiz and still fail a PBQ because you've never practiced the actual workflow.
Security Program Management and Oversight (20%)
Compliance frameworks, data privacy regulations, risk calculations, audit types. ExamCompass has reasonable coverage here. Memorization-heavy material tends to do well in a flashcard-style quiz format.
Where ExamCompass Security+ Falls Short
The free quiz model has a structural problem: it trains you to recognize correct answers from a list, not to apply knowledge under exam conditions. CompTIA has deliberately increased the number of scenario-based and performance-based questions on SY0-701 to counter exactly this kind of rote preparation.
Three specific gaps worth knowing before you rely on ExamCompass Security+ as your primary resource:
- No PBQ simulation. Performance-based questions are the first questions you'll see on the actual exam. They're unforgiving if you've only drilled multiple choice.
- Explanation depth is thin. When you get a question wrong, ExamCompass tells you the right answer. It rarely explains the underlying concept in enough depth to prevent the same mistake in a differently worded question.
- SY0-701 alignment is incomplete. Some ExamCompass Security+ question sets were written for SY0-601 and haven't been fully refreshed. The exam objectives changed enough in 2023 that this matters — particularly around zero trust architecture, cloud security, and automation/scripting concepts.
How to Use ExamCompass Security+ Effectively
ExamCompass works best as a final-mile tool, not a primary study resource. The optimal workflow most successful candidates use:
- Build foundational knowledge through a structured course or textbook first (Professor Messer's notes, Darril Gibson's guide, or a video course)
- After completing each domain in your primary resource, drill that domain's questions on ExamCompass to reinforce retention
- In the two weeks before the exam, use ExamCompass for daily timed quiz sessions across all domains
- Track which question categories you consistently miss — these are your weak spots, not random mistakes
- Supplement with at least one full-length practice exam from a source that includes performance-based question simulations (MeasureUp, Jason Dion's Udemy course practice exams, or CompTIA's own CertMaster Practice)
Used this way, ExamCompass Security+ is legitimately valuable. Used as your only resource, it's a false confidence machine.
Top Courses to Pair with ExamCompass Security+
Since ExamCompass covers reinforcement but not instruction, here are the resources worth combining it with:
CompTIA Security+ & CySA+ Cybersecurity Assessment Course
Covers Security+ exam objectives with the scenario-based framing that ExamCompass practice tests lack — particularly useful for the Security Operations domain where PBQs are most common.
Computer Security and Systems Management Specialization
Goes deeper on the architecture and operations domains than most Security+ prep resources, making it a good complement if ExamCompass quizzes reveal consistent gaps in those areas.
IT Security: Defense Against the Digital Dark Arts
Google's cybersecurity course through Coursera covers foundational concepts with practical context — worth running through before the Security+ exam if you're newer to the field and find ExamCompass questions feel abstract.
ExamCompass Security+ vs. Other Free Study Resources
ExamCompass isn't the only free option. Here's how it stacks up against common alternatives:
- Professor Messer's free study notes and videos — Better for instruction. Messer's content is written specifically for the current exam version and updated with each cycle. No quiz engine, but the explanations are far deeper than ExamCompass provides.
- CompTIA's free sample questions — Small sample size (20-30 questions) but they're written by the people who write the actual exam. Use these to calibrate how well ExamCompass questions align with real difficulty.
- Reddit r/CompTIA study guides — Community-curated lists of which free resources people actually passed with. The passing reports there consistently cite ExamCompass as a supplement, not a standalone.
- Quizlet Security+ decks — Good for pure terminology drilling. Less context than ExamCompass but faster for flashcard-style memorization of acronyms and definitions.
FAQ
Is ExamCompass Security+ free?
Yes, completely free. ExamCompass doesn't have a paid tier for Security+ content. All domain quizzes and practice questions are accessible without creating an account or entering payment information.
Does ExamCompass cover the SY0-701 exam?
Partially. ExamCompass has updated some content for SY0-701, but portions of the question bank still reflect SY0-601 objectives. Cross-reference the domains you're studying against CompTIA's official SY0-701 exam objectives (available free on CompTIA's website) to identify where ExamCompass coverage may be outdated.
Can you pass Security+ using only ExamCompass?
Unlikely for most candidates. ExamCompass doesn't include performance-based question practice, and PBQs appear at the start of the actual exam. Candidates who rely solely on multiple-choice drill tools typically struggle with the scenario-based questions that now make up a significant portion of the exam.
How many practice questions does ExamCompass have for Security+?
The total varies by domain, but ExamCompass Security+ provides several hundred questions across all exam domains when you count the individual topic quizzes. You can repeat each quiz set multiple times in randomized order, which expands effective practice volume.
Is ExamCompass accurate to the real Security+ difficulty?
Generally, ExamCompass questions are slightly easier than the actual exam. The real Security+ often presents questions with two plausible answers requiring you to identify the best choice — a subtlety that straight-recall quiz questions don't replicate well. Treat a consistent 85%+ score on ExamCompass as a signal you're ready for a full practice exam, not as readiness for the real thing.
What should I use alongside ExamCompass for Security+ prep?
The combination that consistently appears in passing reports: a structured video course or textbook for instruction, ExamCompass for domain-specific drilling, and at least one full-length timed practice exam with PBQ simulations before your test date. Jason Dion's Udemy course includes practice exams that many candidates cite specifically for their PBQ coverage.
Bottom Line
ExamCompass Security+ is a legitimate free resource with a specific job: reinforcing terminology and concept recognition across Security+ exam domains. It does that job well. The problem is that job is only about half of what you need to pass SY0-701.
If you're already working through a structured course and want a free way to drill concepts between sessions, ExamCompass is worth bookmarking. If you're planning to use it as your primary study tool and skip paid resources entirely, you're likely to hit the exam's scenario-based questions unprepared.
The candidates who pass Security+ on the first attempt tend to use ExamCompass the way it's best suited: as a repetition tool in the final weeks of prep, not as a substitute for actual instruction. Pair it with something that teaches the material, and it earns its place in the study stack.