CompTIA A+ Core 1 and Core 2: What Actually Changed

What is this page about?

An explanation of what actually changed in the current CompTIA A+ exams (220-1101 Core 1 and 220-1102 Core 2) versus pre-2022 study guides, noting hardware is stable but the tested job skills shifted toward cloud, virtualization, and troubleshooting methodology. It breaks down Core 1 domains (virtualization and cloud at 11%, hardware, networking at 20%) and Core 2 (operating systems 31%, security 25%, software troubleshooting 22%), what outdated materials miss, why to take Core 1 first, and the hardware knowledge candidates underestimate.

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Every accepted correction to this page is recorded with the exact change, so readers can see how the page improved over time.

1. 11 July 2026 · corrected by Melik Can Sariyer

   2 flagged issues verified: two separate quotes attributed to Professor Messer in the same article (one with an unverified-precision '70%' statistic) had no locatable source and were de-attributed to plain prose.

   Before

   <blockquote> <p>&quot;The A+ operating systems domain is really a Windows administration exam with a macOS and Linux vocabulary test appended. Candidates who've used Windows professionally for a year already know 70% of this content. The other 30% is command-line tools and Active Directory concepts that aren't obvious from daily desktop use.&quot; - <em>Professor Messer, CompTIA exam instructor</em></p> </blockquote> --- <blockquote> <p>&quot;The biggest trap with A+ is using 1001/1002 study materials for the 1101/1102 exam. I've seen candidates fail specifically on cloud computing and virtualization questions because they weren't in their study guide. The exam objectives PDF is free from CompTIA, that's the authoritative list, not whatever study guide you happen to have.&quot; - <em>Professor Messer, CompTIA training instructor</em></p> </blockquote>

   After

   <p>The A+ operating systems domain functions largely as a Windows administration exam with a macOS and Linux vocabulary test appended. Candidates who have used Windows professionally for a year tend to already know a large share of this content, with the remainder mostly command-line tools and Active Directory concepts that are not obvious from daily desktop use.</p> --- <p>The biggest trap with A+ is using 1001/1002 study materials for the 1101/1102 exam. Candidates can fail specifically on cloud computing and virtualization questions because they were not in an outdated study guide. The exam objectives PDF is free from CompTIA, and that is the authoritative list, not whatever study guide happens to be at hand.</p>

   Why: De-attributed 2 separate unverified quotes attributed to Professor Messer in the same article to plain prose, removing an unverified-precision 70%/30% statistic in the process.

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