Cisco Certification Changes 2026: CCNA to CCIE Explained

Cisco spent most of 2025 quietly updating exam blueprints. Then, on February 3, 2026, it rebuilt large parts of its certification program at once: DevNet disappeared as a brand name, CyberOps got folded into the CCNA and CCNP tiers, six specialist exams retired outright, and a wireless track Cisco killed off in 2020 came back from the dead. If you’re studying for a Cisco exam right now, or you’re holding a credential that just got renamed without anyone asking your opinion, the practical questions are straightforward: what actually changed, what does it cost, and does any of it move your paycheck.

Why Cisco Rushed a Certification Overhaul in February 2026

The timing isn’t random. Cisco has spent the past two years pushing customers toward AI-ready networking, infrastructure-as-code, and cloud-native automation, and its certification catalog had fallen behind that message. DevNet, the brand Cisco used since 2019 for programmability and automation skills, tested real ability but sat outside the CCNA/CCNP/CCIE ladder that hiring managers actually recognize. Renaming DevNet Associate to CCNA Automation folds automation skill directly into the tier structure every network hiring manager already understands, instead of asking them to learn a second brand.

There’s labor-market data backing up why Cisco made this specific bet. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment for network and computer systems administrators, the classic CLI-and-cable role, to decline 4 percent from 2024 to 2034, as routine configuration work gets automated or outsourced to Networks-as-a-Service providers. Computer network architects, the design-and-build role that leans on automation and cloud skills, are projected to grow 12 percent over the same period, four times the average for all occupations. Cisco’s rebrand is a bet that the certification ladder should track the second number, not the first.

The DevNet-to-Automation Rebrand: CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE Automation

This is the biggest single change in the update. Every DevNet certification kept its exam content largely intact but now carries a CCNA/CCNP/CCIE name, with updated objectives that lean harder into AI-ready networking and multi-vendor programmability.

CCNA Automation (Formerly DevNet Associate)

The entry point is still the 200-901 exam, now positioned as the CCNA Automation credential. It covers Python-based network programmability, REST APIs, and automation fundamentals rather than traditional CLI configuration, which makes it a genuinely different skill test from the standard 200-301 CCNA most network engineers already know.

CCNP Automation (Formerly DevNet Professional)

The professional tier still runs on the 350-901 DEVCOR core exam, paired with a concentration exam such as Automating Cisco Enterprise Solutions. Candidates who already passed the core under its old DevNet Professional name keep full credit; nothing needs to be retaken.

CCIE Automation (Formerly DevNet Expert)

The expert-level credential keeps the same two-part structure Cisco uses across every CCIE track: the 350-901 written qualifier followed by a hands-on lab exam. What changed is the lab’s emphasis, which now weighs infrastructure-as-code and multi-vendor automation scenarios more heavily than the DevNet Expert lab did as recently as 2024.

CyberOps Folded Into the Same Naming Structure

Cisco’s security operations track went through an identical rename, not a content overhaul. The material a candidate studies barely moved; the label on the certificate did.

CCNA Cybersecurity (Formerly Cisco Certified Cybersecurity Associate)

The associate-level credential still runs on the 200-201 exam, Understanding Cisco Cybersecurity Operations Fundamentals, covering SOC monitoring, security data types, and incident analysis basics. Anyone who earned the old Cybersecurity Associate title on or after February 3, 2026 receives the CCNA Cybersecurity name automatically.

CCNP Cybersecurity (Formerly Cisco Certified Cybersecurity Professional)

At the professional level, the 350-201 CBRCOR core exam, Performing CyberOps Using Core Security Technologies, remains the required core, still paired with a concentration exam depending on specialization (forensics, threat hunting, or detection engineering).

Six Specialist Exams Retired, One Track Came Back From the Dead

Not every change in this update was cosmetic. Cisco cut real exams and, in one case, reversed a five-year-old decision to kill a certification path entirely.

The Exams That Are Gone

Six specialist-level exams stopped being available to schedule on February 2, 2026, one day before the rest of the overhaul took effect:

• 300-835 CLAUTO, Automating Cisco Collaboration Solutions
• 300-810 CLICA, Implementing Cisco Collaboration Applications
• 300-820 CLCEI, Implementing Cisco Collaboration Cloud and Edge Solutions
• 300-535 SPAUTO, Automating Cisco Service Provider Solutions
• 300-735 SAUTO, Automating and Programming Cisco Security Solutions
• 300-910 DEVOPS, Implementing DevOps Solutions and Practices Using Cisco Platforms

Anyone who already passed one of these exams keeps whatever credential it satisfied. What changes is that a candidate mid-study for one of these six now needs to redirect toward its replacement concentration exam instead, since Cisco isn’t accepting new registrations for the retired codes.

CCNP Wireless Returns After Its 2020 Shutdown

Cisco discontinued CCNP Wireless in 2020, folding wireless content into the Enterprise track instead. That decision got reversed on March 19, 2026, when CCNP Wireless relaunched as its own certification again, with exam content rebuilt around Wi-Fi 6E and 7 deployment, cloud-managed wireless architecture, and the kind of dense-deployment troubleshooting that a general Enterprise exam never tested in depth.

CCNP Collaboration’s Cloud-Focused Refresh

CCNP Collaboration didn’t get renamed, but it did get a new exam: 300-825 CLCUX, Implementing Cisco Collaboration Cloud Customer Experience, added alongside updates to the track’s existing exams. The addition reflects how much of Cisco’s collaboration business has shifted toward cloud-hosted calling and contact center platforms since the track was last refreshed.

What Cisco Certification Actually Costs in 2026

None of the renaming touched Cisco’s exam pricing, but the total cost still varies enormously by level, and most of that variance sits in prep, not the exam fee itself.

The CCIE number surprises people who haven’t priced it out before. Most of that gap between the $2,000 official fee and the realistic total comes from lab retakes; Cisco’s own pass-rate data has historically put first-attempt CCIE lab success well under 50 percent, which is why serious candidates budget for at least one retry before they ever book the first attempt.

Does the Automation and Cybersecurity Push Actually Pay More

Renaming a certification doesn’t automatically make it worth more, so it’s worth checking the market data separately from Cisco’s own framing.

• CCNA holders average around $112,333 in the United States as of 2026, with a spread from roughly $55,000 for entry-level help desk and NOC roles up to $120,000-plus for senior engineers and architects.
• CCNP holders average $110,000 to $120,000, with roughly 4,800 to 5,100 active job postings per week in early 2026 specifically requiring the credential.
• Network automation engineers, the role the new CCNA/CCNP Automation track is aimed at, average around $113,000, noticeably ahead of the $95,000 to $105,000 typical for a general network engineer without automation skills.
• Adding Python plus Ansible or Terraform on top of a solid CCNP background is adding $15,000 to $30,000 to offers for candidates who can show it, according to recruiting data from network-automation-focused hiring firms.

The honest caveat: none of this pay premium is guaranteed by the certificate itself. It reflects what candidates who can demonstrate the underlying automation skill are currently commanding, and a renamed exam with the same content only closes that gap if the candidate actually builds the scripting and API skills the exam is now named after, not just the credential line on a resume.

If You Already Hold DevNet or CyberOps Certification, What Happens Now

Cisco handled the migration automatically for anyone caught mid-cycle, which removes most of the anxiety around this change but not all of it.

1. If your DevNet or CyberOps certification was active on February 3, 2026, Cisco migrated it to the new name automatically. Your credential ID, badge, and original expiration date all carried over unchanged; no retesting or paperwork was required.
2. Your renewal clock didn’t reset. Cisco’s official recertification policy keeps every certification on a three-year cycle regardless of level, and the rebrand didn’t restart that clock for anyone who was already partway through it.
3. Renewal itself still works the same three ways it always has: retake an exam, advance to the next certification level, or bank Continuing Education credits, 30 for Associate, 80 for Professional, and 120 for CCIE.
4. If you’re mid-study for one of the six retired specialist exams, redirect toward that exam’s replacement concentration now. Cisco isn’t accepting new registrations for the retired codes, so continuing to prep for one is time spent on an exam you can no longer schedule.

Should You Pursue Cisco’s New Automation or Cybersecurity Track in 2026

Separating the rename from the real decision matters here. Someone who already holds a standard CCNA or CCNP gets little from also chasing the Automation-branded version unless their actual job involves scripting network changes rather than clicking through them. The Automation track earns its keep for network engineers who are being asked, or expect to be asked soon, to manage infrastructure through code instead of a CLI session, which is an increasingly common expectation as Gartner and other analysts track enterprises automating a growing share of routine network operations.

A few honest filters before committing time and exam fees to either new track:

• If your current role has zero exposure to Python, REST APIs, or infrastructure-as-code tools, CCNA Automation is a bigger leap than the old DevNet Associate branding implied, and it’s worth a few weeks of self-study in Python basics before booking the exam.
• If you’re already comfortable with CyberOps content, the rename to CCNA/CCNP Cybersecurity changes nothing about your study plan; don’t pay for new materials that only differ in the cover page.
• If you’re deciding between CCNP Wireless and folding wireless knowledge into a general CCNP Enterprise track, the standalone Wireless path only makes sense if dense-deployment Wi-Fi work is a real, recurring part of your job, not an occasional task.
• If you’re weighing CCIE Automation against a standard CCIE track, remember the written exam is shared infrastructure (350-901 DEVCOR), so the real decision point is the lab, not the qualifier.

None of this guarantees a raise or a new job. What the data supports is narrower and more useful: employers are paying a measurable premium right now for people who can prove automation skill on top of core networking knowledge, and Cisco’s rebrand is an attempt to make its certification ladder reflect that reality instead of testing a skill set the market has already started moving past.

Cisco Certification Changes 2026: Frequently Asked Questions

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