Which exam domains do candidates actually lose marks on?
Across 6,690 domain-tagged practice exam answers from 32 candidates recorded by FigigExams between 22 and 31 August 2026, covering CCNA 200-301, CompTIA Security+ SY0-701 and CCNP ENCOR 350-401, one pattern held in all three certifications: the domain candidates scored worst on was never the domain that cost them the most marks. On CCNA 200-301 the weakest domain was Security Fundamentals at 55.4% accuracy, but IP Connectivity - at 60.0% accuracy and 25% of the exam - put 10.0 points of the real paper at risk against Security Fundamentals' 6.7. Measured August 2026.
In This Report
The finding: your weakest domain is rarely your most expensive one
In CCNA 200-301, CompTIA Security+ SY0-701 and CCNP ENCOR 350-401 alike, the domain with the lowest accuracy was not the domain with the highest weighted shortfall. Ranking revision by raw domain score therefore sends candidates to a domain that is comparatively cheap to fail, while a heavily weighted domain they are merely mediocre at quietly costs them more marks.
The reason is arithmetic, not psychology. A domain score tells you how often you were right inside that domain. It says nothing about how much of the real exam that domain represents. CompTIA, Cisco and ISC2 all publish domain weights, and those weights vary by a factor of two or three within a single exam - CCNA 200-301 runs from 10% to 25%, Security+ SY0-701 from 12% to 28%, CCNP ENCOR 350-401 from 10% to 30%. A 60% score in a 25% domain is worth more attention than a 55% score in a 15% domain, and no raw score board will tell you that.
| Certification | Lowest-accuracy domain | Highest-cost domain | Same? |
|---|---|---|---|
| CCNA 200-301 | Security Fundamentals (55.4%) | IP Connectivity (10.0 pts) | No |
| Security+ SY0-701 | Security Program Management (75.0%) | Security Operations (5.4 pts) | No |
| CCNP ENCOR 350-401 | Automation and AI (66.9%) | Infrastructure (7.0 pts) | No |
Sample: 32 candidates, 39 study paths, 6,690 domain-tagged answers, 22-31 August 2026. CCNP ENCOR figures are provisional - see Limits.
What weighted shortfall means
Weighted shortfall is a domain's published blueprint weight multiplied by the rate at which a candidate misses questions in that domain. It expresses a weakness in points of the real exam rather than as a percentage score.
The arithmetic
weighted shortfall = blueprint weight × (100 − domain accuracy) ÷ 100
Worked on CCNA 200-301 IP Connectivity: the domain carries 25% of the exam and candidates answered it at 60.0% accuracy, so the miss rate is 40.0%. 25 × 40.0 ÷ 100 = 10.0 points of the real exam at risk. Security Fundamentals is weaker at 55.4% accuracy, but carries only 15%: 15 × 44.6 ÷ 100 = 6.7 points. IP Connectivity is the more expensive problem despite the better score.
This is the same quantity the FigigExams study path uses to rank what to revise after a paper, worked through in full on the CCNA study path and Security+ study path pages. This report is what the same arithmetic shows when it is aggregated across candidates rather than applied to one person.
CCNA 200-301: per-domain accuracy across 4,188 answers
Measured across 4,188 domain-tagged CCNA 200-301 answers from 17 candidates (21 study paths) between 22 and 31 August 2026. Overall accuracy across all domains was 57.5%. Domains and weights are Cisco's published 200-301 v1.1 blueprint, which is the exam candidates sit until 2 February 2027.
| Domain | Weight | Answers | Accuracy | Accuracy | Weighted shortfall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IP Connectivity Costliest | 25% | 987 | 60.0% | 10.0 pts | |
| Network Access | 20% | 616 | 56.0% | 8.8 pts | |
| Network Fundamentals | 20% | 926 | 56.3% | 8.8 pts | |
| Security Fundamentals Lowest score | 15% | 699 | 55.4% | 6.7 pts | |
| Automation and Programmability | 10% | 473 | 58.6% | 4.1 pts | |
| IP Services | 10% | 487 | 58.7% | 4.1 pts |
What stands out on CCNA 200-301: the accuracy spread is remarkably flat - just 4.6 percentage points separate the best domain from the worst. Candidates are not failing one topic and acing the rest; they are roughly equally shaky everywhere, which means the weights decide entirely where the marks go. IP Connectivity, Network Access and Network Fundamentals together carry 65% of the exam and account for 27.6 of the 42.5 points at risk.
Cisco's v2.0 blueprint, live 3 February 2027, restructures these six domains into five and brings troubleshooting verbs back after five years. This report measures v1.1, and we will re-measure against v2.0 once candidates are sitting it.
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CompTIA Security+ SY0-701: per-domain accuracy across 1,080 answers
Measured across 1,080 domain-tagged Security+ SY0-701 answers from 12 candidates (12 study paths) between 22 and 31 August 2026. Overall accuracy was 79.0% - markedly higher than the CCNA cohort. Domains and weights are CompTIA's published SY0-701 objectives.
| Domain | Weight | Answers | Accuracy | Accuracy | Weighted shortfall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Security Operations Costliest | 28% | 336 | 80.7% | 5.4 pts | |
| Security Program Management and Oversight Lowest score | 20% | 216 | 75.0% | 5.0 pts | |
| Threats, Vulnerabilities and Mitigations | 22% | 228 | 81.1% | 4.2 pts | |
| Security Architecture | 18% | 132 | 77.3% | 4.1 pts | |
| General Security Concepts | 12% | 168 | 79.2% | 2.5 pts |
What stands out on Security+ SY0-701: Security Operations is the single most consequential domain on this exam and it is not close. At 28% it is the heaviest domain CompTIA publishes for SY0-701, so even a respectable 80.7% accuracy leaves more marks on the table than the genuinely weak 75.0% in Program Management. The two together account for 10.4 of the 21.2 points at risk - just under half of everything, from two of five domains.
Security Program Management and Oversight being the weakest domain is worth noting on its own: it is the governance, risk and compliance material, and it is the part candidates from a hands-on background most often treat as reading rather than studying. Full domain list and weights on the Security+ exam objectives page.
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CCNP ENCOR 350-401: per-domain accuracy across 1,422 answers
Provisional. Measured across 1,422 domain-tagged CCNP ENCOR 350-401 answers from only 3 candidates (6 study paths) between 27 and 31 August 2026. Three candidates is not a population. The answer volume is substantial and the domain ordering is internally consistent across all six paths, but treat this table as a first reading rather than a finding, and see Limits. Overall accuracy was 75.2%. Domains and weights are Cisco's published 350-401 v1.2 blueprint, effective 19 March 2026.
| Domain | Weight | Answers | Accuracy | Accuracy | Weighted shortfall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure Costliest | 30% | 564 | 76.8% | 7.0 pts | |
| Security | 20% | 224 | 71.0% | 5.8 pts | |
| Automation and Artificial Intelligence Lowest score | 15% | 151 | 66.9% | 5.0 pts | |
| Network Assurance | 10% | 161 | 70.2% | 3.0 pts | |
| Architecture | 15% | 207 | 83.1% | 2.5 pts | |
| Virtualization | 10% | 115 | 80.0% | 2.0 pts |
What stands out on CCNP ENCOR 350-401: Infrastructure at 30% is the heaviest single domain in any of the three certifications measured, and it dominates the shortfall ranking even at a decent 76.8% accuracy. Automation and Artificial Intelligence is the weakest domain by score - which is unsurprising given Cisco renamed domain 6.0 to include Artificial Intelligence in v1.2 and dropped the named vendor tools, so much of the published study material has not caught up. Domain weights and topic list on the CCNP ENCOR exam topics page.
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Method
- Source
- Study paths generated by the FigigExams study-path engine when a candidate submits a practice paper. Each carries per-domain
correctandseencounts already joined to that certification's blueprint, so this report aggregates the same numbers the candidate saw on their own board. - Window
- 22 August 2026 to 31 August 2026 inclusive. The study-path engine began writing these records on 22 August 2026, so this is the complete history rather than a sampled slice of it.
- Unit of measurement
- One answered, domain-tagged question. A question counts once per attempt. Questions the stored question-to-domain map does not classify are excluded rather than guessed.
- Population
- 39 study paths from 32 distinct candidates. Excluded before aggregation: accounts belonging to FigigExams staff, accounts matching test or disposable-email patterns, records with no resolvable certification scope, and two records whose authentication record no longer exists. 53 raw records reduced to 39.
- Certifications covered
- Only certifications with a published domain blueprint stored against them: CCNA 200-301 (v1.1), CompTIA Security+ SY0-701, CCNP ENCOR 350-401 (v1.2). CompTIA A+ Core 1 and Core 2, CISSP and AWS Solutions Architect Associate are not in this report because their blueprint mapping does not currently resolve - see Limits.
- Weighted shortfall
blueprint weight × (100 − domain accuracy) ÷ 100, reported in points of the real exam. Domain weights are the vendors' own published figures, not our estimates.
Limits of this data
What this report cannot tell you
- These are practice results, not exam results. We observe how candidates score on our papers. We do not observe what they scored at a testing centre, so nothing here is a pass rate or a prediction of one.
- The CCNP ENCOR table rests on 3 candidates. The answer volume is large because those candidates sat multiple long papers, but three people cannot represent a population. It is published as provisional and flagged in every table.
- Four certifications are missing. A+ Core 1, A+ Core 2, CISSP and AWS Solutions Architect Associate have question-to-domain maps but no resolvable blueprint key, so they produce no domain board and are absent here. This is a known gap on our side, not an absence of candidates.
- The window is ten days. It is the full history of the study-path engine rather than a sample, but it is short, and it covers late August only. Seasonality - exam booking cycles, course completions - is not controlled for.
- Self-selection. Everyone in this sample chose to take a practice exam and finish it. Candidates who abandoned a paper produce no study path and are invisible here, which will bias the accuracy figures upward relative to the whole population of people studying for these exams.
- No rate-shaped claims. We deliberately publish distributions and within-attempt accuracy only. Anything requiring a clean denominator - activation rates, completion rates, pass rates - is not reported, because our attempt history before this window is structurally incomplete and would not support it.
We will re-run this report on a longer window and add the four missing certifications once their blueprint mapping resolves. The domain ordering is the part we expect to be stable; the absolute accuracy figures will move.
https://figigexams.com/learn/research/where-candidates-lose-marks/
Sample: 6,690 domain-tagged practice answers, 32 candidates, 22-31 August 2026. CCNA 200-301, Security+ SY0-701, CCNP ENCOR 350-401.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which CCNA 200-301 domain is hardest?
Measured across 4,188 domain-tagged CCNA 200-301 practice answers from 17 candidates between 22 and 31 August 2026, the lowest-accuracy domain was Security Fundamentals at 55.4%. But the domain that cost candidates the most marks was IP Connectivity: it carries 25% of the exam, and at 60.0% accuracy it puts 10.0 points of the real paper at risk against Security Fundamentals' 6.7. "Hardest" and "most expensive" are different questions.
Which Security+ SY0-701 domain do candidates score worst on?
Across 1,080 domain-tagged SY0-701 answers from 12 candidates in the same window, the weakest domain was Security Program Management and Oversight at 75.0%. The costliest was Security Operations - at 28% of the exam and 80.7% accuracy it puts 5.4 points at risk, against 5.0 for Program Management.
What is the best way to decide which domain to study first?
Rank domains by weighted shortfall - blueprint weight multiplied by your miss rate - not by raw domain score. In all three certifications measured here, the lowest-scoring domain was not the one putting the most marks at risk, so a raw score board sends you to the wrong place. The study path method page works the arithmetic through on a real paper.
Does this tell me whether I will pass?
No. This report measures how a group of candidates scored on practice papers by domain. It contains no pass rates and makes no prediction about a real sitting - we do not observe testing-centre outcomes. For where your own score sits against a booking decision, see am I ready for the CCNA or am I ready for the Security+.
Why are CompTIA A+, CISSP and AWS not in this report?
Those certifications have question-to-domain maps but no resolvable blueprint key on our side, so they generate no domain board and no per-domain figures. It is a gap in our data plumbing rather than an absence of candidates, and they will be added once it is fixed.
How large is the sample?
39 study paths from 32 distinct candidates, totalling 6,690 domain-tagged answers, over 22-31 August 2026. By certification: CCNA 17 candidates / 4,188 answers, Security+ 12 candidates / 1,080 answers, CCNP ENCOR 3 candidates / 1,422 answers. The ENCOR figures are provisional on that basis.