CISA Exam Cost, Retakes, and the Experience Requirement Explained
The CISA exam costs $575 for ISACA members and $760 for non-members. Here is the full cost, the retake policy, and the 5-year experience requirement explained.
The CISA exam costs $575 for ISACA members and $760 for non-members, per ISACA, and that fee covers one attempt. As with most senior certifications, the number that actually hurts is the retake, because a failed attempt means paying the full fee again. And the second cost people underestimate is not money at all: it is the five-year experience requirement standing between passing the exam and holding the certification.
This is the complete breakdown, the exam fee by membership status, the retake rules, the ongoing fees, and the experience requirement with its waivers, so you can budget both the money and the eligibility before you register.
Quick takeaways
- CISA exam fee: $575 for ISACA members, $760 for non-members, per ISACA. One attempt each.
- A retake means paying the full fee again, so failing effectively doubles your exam cost.
- Extra costs: a one-time $50 application processing fee and an annual maintenance fee ($45 members, $85 non-members).
- To certify you need 5 years of IS audit, control, or security experience. Waivers cut up to 3 years; at least 2 hands-on years always apply.
- You have 5 years from your exam date to submit the experience paperwork, so passing does not expire immediately.
- PrepClubs is independent prep material and is not affiliated with or endorsed by ISACA.
The exam fee, by membership status
CISA pricing depends on whether you are an ISACA member. The exam fee is $575 for members and $760 for non-members, per ISACA. Because ISACA membership itself carries a fee, doing the math often shows that joining first and paying the member rate lands close to, or below, the non-member exam price once you factor in the other member discounts. Run your own numbers before you register.
There is also a one-time application processing fee of $50 when you apply for certification after passing. Budget it in; it is easy to forget.
| Cost item | Member | Non-member |
|---|---|---|
| Exam registration | $575 | $760 |
| Retake (per attempt) | $575 | $760 |
| Application processing fee | $50 (one-time) | $50 (one-time) |
| Annual maintenance fee | $45/year | $85/year |
The retake policy, and why it is the real cost
Read the CISA fee the way you would read insurance: the thing you are insuring against is a retake. Each exam sitting requires its own paid registration. If you do not pass, you pay the full fee again to sit again. ISACA runs the exam in defined testing windows, so you also lose calendar time between attempts, not just money.
That makes the true expected cost of CISA the fee multiplied by the number of attempts you need. Pass first time and you paid once. Fail once and you have roughly doubled the exam cost and pushed your timeline back. The cheapest way to control CISA cost is not a discount; it is walking in ready.
The five-year experience requirement
Here is the barrier that is not money. To become CISA-certified, ISACA requires five years of professional experience in information systems auditing, control, or security. Crucially, you do not need the experience to sit the exam, only to certify after you pass.
Waivers reduce it. A relevant four-year degree waives up to one year, and a master's in information security or IT waives up to two. But the maximum combined substitution across the general and education waivers is three years, so every candidate must have at least two years of verifiable hands-on IS audit, control, or security work. Note that holding CISM, CISSP, or a CPA does not itself waive CISA experience.
The five-year window and the Associate path
Timing works in your favor. Experience can be counted from the ten years before you apply or the five years after you pass the exam. In other words, passing the exam does not expire the next day: you have up to five years from your exam date to accumulate and submit the required experience.
And if you have passed but are not yet close to five years, ISACA's CISA Associate designation (introduced in 2025) lets you hold a recognized status while you build toward full certification. That means an early-career auditor can lock in the exam result and convert later.
Staying certified
Once certified, you keep it active with the annual maintenance fee ($45 for members, $85 for non-members) and 120 CPE credits per three-year cycle, with a minimum of 20 CPE hours each year. Treat the AMF and CPE as recurring commitments, not a one-off, when you budget the true lifetime cost.
Where the Pass Guarantee fits
The financial risk in CISA is concentrated in the retake, and a retake is the full fee again plus a lost testing window. That is exactly where a pass guarantee stops being a slogan and becomes real. If your prep comes with a guarantee that extends your access when you do not pass the first time, then a stumble costs you study time, not another paid registration bought under pressure. It does not pay ISACA's fee for you, and no honest provider claims it does, but against a full-fee resit it is meaningful insurance on the most expensive part of the process.
FAQ
How much does the CISA exam cost?
$575 for ISACA members and $760 for non-members, per ISACA, covering one attempt. There is also a one-time $50 application processing fee when you apply for certification after passing.
How much does a CISA retake cost?
A retake costs the full exam fee again, so $575 for members or $760 for non-members per attempt, per ISACA. Each sitting requires its own paid registration, which is why the effective cost can be much higher than the sticker price.
What is the CISA experience requirement?
Five years of IS audit, control, or security experience to certify, per ISACA. A four-year degree waives up to one year and a master's up to two, but the maximum waiver is three years, so at least two hands-on years are always required.
Do I need experience to sit the CISA exam?
No. You can take and pass the exam without the experience, then submit the five years within five years of your exam date, or hold the CISA Associate designation in the meantime. The experience is required to certify, not to test.
What ongoing fees does CISA have?
An annual maintenance fee of $45 for members or $85 for non-members, per ISACA, plus 120 CPE credits per three-year cycle (minimum 20 per year). These recur for as long as you hold the certification.
Is ISACA membership worth it for CISA?
Often yes. The member exam rate ($575 vs $760) plus other member discounts can offset the membership fee, especially if you plan to use ISACA resources or pursue further certifications. Compare the totals for your situation before deciding.
Related on PrepClubs
- Is CISA worth it?: the ROI read by role.
- CISA domains explained: the five job-practice areas and their weights.
- CISA test track: practice built for a first-time pass.
Control the cost by passing once
The cheapest CISA is the one you pass on the first attempt, because a retake is the full fee again plus a lost testing window, per ISACA. PrepClubs' CISA track is built to protect that first attempt: a free diagnostic to place you across the five job-practice domains, then a paid bank of scenario questions with written rationales that train the assess-and-report auditor reasoning the exam rewards. It is a one-time purchase with 30 days of access, not a subscription. If you prepare with PrepClubs and do not pass your real test, we extend your access at no extra cost. No fine print. PrepClubs has helped more than 1,600 students prepare for cognitive and certification assessments. Start with the free CISA diagnostic.
FAQ
