Technology changes quickly. The skills employers needed a few years ago aren't necessarily the same ones they need today—and with cybersecurity, cloud computing, AI, automation, and increasingly complex networks reshaping the workplace, that isn't likely to slow down in 2027.
The good news? You don't have to learn everything at once.
The right IT certification can help you focus on the skills that make sense for where you are now and where you want your career to go next. Whether you're trying to land your first IT position, move into cybersecurity, strengthen your networking skills, work with cloud infrastructure, or build more advanced technical expertise, there's a certification path for you.
There isn't one IT certification that's right for everyone. The best choice depends on your experience, career goals, and the area of technology you want to pursue.
For this list, we've selected 10 IT certifications worth considering for 2026 and 2027 across technical support, networking, cybersecurity, cloud computing, Linux, and IT infrastructure. Some are designed for professionals just getting started, while others are intended for experienced IT and cybersecurity practitioners.
Here's where each certification fits—and how to decide which one may be right for you.
Best for: Cybersecurity fundamentals and professionals moving into security
Cybersecurity isn't just the responsibility of dedicated security teams anymore. Organizations need people throughout IT who understand how to identify threats, reduce risk, protect systems, and respond when something goes wrong.
That's one reason CompTIA Security+ continues to be an important certification for IT professionals interested in cybersecurity.
Security+ validates foundational cybersecurity knowledge across threats and vulnerabilities, security architecture, security operations, identity and access, risk management, cryptography, and related security concepts.
It's a particularly useful next step for someone who already understands basic IT or networking and wants to begin building more specialized cybersecurity skills.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Security touches virtually every part of modern IT. As organizations adopt more cloud services, connected devices, automation, and AI-enabled technologies, professionals who understand cybersecurity fundamentals can apply those skills across a wide range of IT environments.
Best for: IT beginners, career changers, help desk and technical support
There's a reason CompTIA A+ continues to be one of the first certifications people encounter when researching a career in technology.
A+ provides a broad foundation across hardware, operating systems, networking, cybersecurity, mobile devices, cloud concepts, virtualization, troubleshooting, and technical support. Rather than pushing you immediately into one specialty, it helps you understand how different pieces of an IT environment work together.
That makes CompTIA A+ particularly useful for people pursuing entry-level IT support, help desk, desktop support, and technician roles—or anyone who wants to establish a technical foundation before moving into a more specialized area.
The current CompTIA A+ certification requires candidates to pass both Core 1 (220-1201) and Core 2 (220-1202).
For someone asking, “Which IT certification should I get first?” A+ deserves to be near the top of the list.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: A strong IT foundation doesn't become less important as technology gets more complicated. Understanding hardware, software, networking, security, and troubleshooting together can provide a starting point for several different IT career paths.
Best for: Experienced cybersecurity professionals and security leadership
CISSP isn't an entry-level cybersecurity certification—and that's part of what makes it valuable.
The Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) is designed for experienced security professionals and covers a broad body of cybersecurity knowledge, including security and risk management, asset security, security architecture and engineering, communications and network security, identity and access management, security assessment and testing, security operations, and software development security.
For professionals who have already built meaningful cybersecurity experience and are moving toward senior technical, architecture, management, or leadership responsibilities, CISSP is an important credential to consider.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Cybersecurity is increasingly a business issue as much as a technical one. Organizations need experienced professionals who can think about security across systems, people, processes, risk, architecture, and operations—not simply individual security tools.
Best for: Networking, infrastructure and network administration
Networks are still the backbone of modern technology—even when the applications and services running on top of them live in the cloud.
The Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) validates knowledge across network fundamentals, network access, IP connectivity, IP services, security fundamentals, automation, and programmability.
It's a strong choice for professionals interested in networking, network administration, infrastructure, and related technical roles. Networking knowledge can also provide a valuable foundation for professionals who ultimately want to specialize in cybersecurity, cloud computing, or automation.
CCNA is also evolving. Cisco has announced a refreshed CCNA exam for 2027 with an increased focus on practical skills and modern technologies, including the growing role of AI within networking.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Today's network professionals need to understand more than routers and switches. Modern networking increasingly intersects with security, automation, software, cloud infrastructure, and AI-driven technologies.
Best for: Vendor-neutral networking fundamentals
If you're interested in networking but want to build a vendor-neutral foundation, CompTIA Network+ is another certification worth considering.
Network+ covers networking concepts, implementation, operations, security, and troubleshooting. It can help learners understand how networks are designed, connected, maintained, secured, and supported without focusing exclusively on one technology vendor.
For someone building an IT certification path, Network+ can fit naturally between foundational IT training and more specialized networking, cloud, or cybersecurity certifications.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Almost everything in modern IT depends on connectivity. Cloud services, cybersecurity tools, remote workplaces, data centers, applications, and AI systems all rely on networks functioning securely and reliably.
Best for: Cybersecurity analysts and defensive security
Once you've built foundational cybersecurity knowledge, you may be ready to move beyond understanding security concepts and toward actually analyzing threats.
That's where CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) comes in.
CySA+ focuses on areas such as security operations, vulnerability management, incident response, threat analysis, and using data to identify and respond to malicious activity.
It's particularly relevant for professionals interested in defensive cybersecurity, security analysis, incident response, and security operations center (SOC) environments.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Organizations don't just need security tools—they need professionals who can understand what those tools are telling them. The ability to investigate suspicious activity, identify vulnerabilities, analyze security information, and respond to incidents remains an important part of modern cybersecurity.
Best for: Linux administration, systems administration and IT infrastructure
Linux is everywhere—even if the average technology user rarely thinks about it.
Linux-based systems play an important role across servers, cloud environments, cybersecurity, development, networking, and enterprise infrastructure. That makes Linux knowledge valuable for IT professionals interested in working behind the scenes of modern technology environments.
CompTIA Linux+ validates practical skills related to Linux system management, security, scripting, containers, troubleshooting, and other administrative tasks. Because it is vendor-neutral, Linux+ can be a strong option for professionals who want broadly applicable Linux knowledge rather than focusing on a single distribution.
It's particularly worth considering if your career goals involve systems administration, cloud computing, cybersecurity, DevOps, networking, or IT infrastructure.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: As cloud infrastructure, automation, containers, and cybersecurity continue to evolve, Linux remains an important part of many of the technology environments supporting them.
Best for: Cloud infrastructure and cloud operations
Cloud skills are no longer limited to people with “cloud” in their job title.
Modern IT environments frequently combine on-premises systems, cloud platforms, virtualization, networking, storage, security, and automation. CompTIA Cloud+ focuses on technical skills involved in deploying, securing, managing, and troubleshooting cloud environments.
Because Cloud+ is vendor-neutral, it can be useful for professionals who want broader cloud infrastructure knowledge rather than training focused exclusively on a single cloud provider.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Hybrid and cloud-based environments are now a normal part of enterprise IT. Understanding how cloud infrastructure works alongside networking, security, storage, and traditional systems can make cloud knowledge useful across numerous technical roles.
Best for: Penetration testing, vulnerability assessment and offensive cybersecurity
Cybersecurity isn't only about defending systems when a threat appears. Organizations also need professionals who understand how weaknesses can be discovered and addressed before they're exploited.
CompTIA PenTest+ focuses on penetration testing and vulnerability management skills, including planning and scoping engagements, information gathering, vulnerability discovery, attacks and exploits, post-exploitation activities, and communicating findings.
For professionals who already have foundational networking and cybersecurity knowledge, PenTest+ can provide a path toward more specialized offensive security skills.
It can be particularly relevant for individuals interested in penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, security consulting, and other hands-on cybersecurity roles.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: As organizations face increasingly sophisticated security threats, proactively finding and addressing weaknesses remains an important part of cybersecurity. Penetration testing skills can help security professionals understand not only how systems are defended, but how vulnerabilities may be exploited.
Best for: Experienced cybersecurity practitioners and advanced technical security
SecurityX, formerly known as CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP+), is designed for experienced cybersecurity professionals who want to validate advanced technical security skills.
Where some advanced cybersecurity certifications lean more heavily toward management, SecurityX is particularly relevant to practitioners working with enterprise security architecture, engineering, operations, governance, risk, and advanced security challenges.
It's not where most people should begin their cybersecurity certification journey. For experienced professionals who want to remain highly technical as they advance, however, it can be a compelling option.
Why consider it for 2026–2027: Modern security environments are increasingly complex. Cloud infrastructure, enterprise networks, automation, evolving threats, and interconnected systems require experienced security professionals who can apply advanced technical knowledge across an organization.
No discussion of today's IT certifications would be complete without mentioning the major cloud platforms.
Certifications from Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud can be particularly valuable for professionals who work—or want to work—in environments built around those specific platforms. Vendor-specific credentials can be excellent choices when you already know which cloud ecosystem aligns with your role, employer, or career goals.
So why aren't they in this Top 10?
Our list emphasizes certifications that can build skills across IT support, networking, cybersecurity, infrastructure, Linux, and vendor-neutral cloud environments. That doesn't make AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud certifications less valuable. It simply means the best cloud certification for you may depend heavily on the technologies you're actually going to use.
For professionals who want to develop broader cloud and infrastructure knowledge first, a vendor-neutral certification such as CompTIA Cloud+ may be worth considering before—or alongside—specializing in a particular cloud platform.
Choosing the best IT certification depends much more on your goals than on a ranking.
If you're completely new to IT:
Start by looking at CompTIA A+.
If you're interested in networking:
Consider CompTIA Network+ or Cisco CCNA.
If you want to move into cybersecurity:
CompTIA Security+ can provide a strong foundation, while CySA+ and PenTest+ offer different paths as you develop more specialized security skills.
If you're already an experienced cybersecurity professional:
Advanced credentials such as CISSP or SecurityX may make more sense for your level of experience.
If you're interested in cloud infrastructure:
Consider CompTIA Cloud+, along with vendor-specific cloud certifications that match the technologies you expect to work with.
If you're interested in Linux, systems administration, or infrastructure:
Consider CompTIA Linux+ to build practical Linux skills that can apply across servers, cloud environments, cybersecurity, and IT infrastructure.
The goal shouldn't simply be to collect certifications. A better approach is to build a certification path that supports the kind of work you actually want to do.
They can be—but the value of a certification depends on what you do with it.
An IT certification can help validate your knowledge, give you a structured way to develop new skills, and demonstrate that you've invested in professional development. What it can't do is replace hands-on experience, curiosity, communication skills, or the ability to solve real problems.
A strong approach combines certification, practical skills, hands-on experience, and continued learning.
That matters even more as technology changes.
AI isn't eliminating the need to understand networks. Cloud computing hasn't eliminated cybersecurity. Automation hasn't eliminated troubleshooting. Instead, these technologies are becoming more interconnected.
Building strong fundamentals and continuing to develop specialized skills can help you adapt as the IT industry changes around you.
Choosing the right certification is only the first step. How you prepare matters, too.
CBT Campus has provided professional IT certification training since 1991, helping individuals build technical skills, prepare for certification exams, and continue developing throughout their careers.
Our certification training options include courses for CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+, Cloud+, CySA+, SecurityX, Linux+, Server+, PenTest+, Cisco CCNA, CISSP, and more.
Depending on the course, training options include live virtual instructor-led training, accelerated IT certification bootcamps, e-learning, and on-demand learning options.
Not sure which certification fits your experience and career goals? Our Training Advisors can help you explore your options and find a training path that makes sense for you.
Ready to take the next step? Fill out the form below to connect with a CBT Campus Training Advisor and learn more about available IT certification courses, training formats, scheduling, and enrollment.
Prefer to speak with someone directly? Call CBT Campus at 1-877-872-4646.