Let’s get this out of the way: yes, your favorite tech YouTuber with LED lights, and maybe a beard, and 12 monitors just told you that CompTIA certs are a waste of time. “Bro, just learn hacking on Kali and skip the A+.” Cool story, keyboard warrior—but here in the real world, CompTIA certs are still a solid move. Here’s why.
1. The A+ is the IT World’s Driver’s License
Before you can drive a Ferrari (like configuring BGP on a Cisco router or launching a red team op), you need to prove you can parallel park without hitting a mailbox. That’s A+. It teaches you how computers work before you start breaking them “for security testing purposes.”
2. Network+ Teaches You That Wi-Fi Is Not Magic
YouTube might make networking look like a few plug-ins and pings. But Network+ reveals the harsh truth: everything is broken and barely held together by duct tape and DNS. If you don’t understand subnets, routing, and protocols, enjoy spending your help desk career rebooting modems until retirement.
3. Security+ Teaches You That Hackers Aren’t Wizards (Just Organized Nerds)
Sure, learning to hack on YouTube looks cool. But Security+ gives you the boring, actually useful stuff—risk management, compliance, access control. Basically, everything you need to land a job that pays you to worry about phishing emails instead of just watching Mr. Robot.
4. HR Departments Love Buzzwords (And CompTIA Is One of Them)
You know who does care about certs? HR. The folks who decide whether your resume makes it to the hiring manager. And you know what they search for in their little ATS system? “CompTIA”. You could be a wizard with Python and packets, but if the bot doesn’t find the right keywords, it’s bye-bye job posting.
Bottom line:
CompTIA certs may not teach you how to hack the Pentagon from a café, but they will help you understand why the printer only prints on Tuesdays and how to fix it. And in IT, that’s a superpower. So study up, pass the exam, and laugh all the way to your first job—while YouTube guy complains about gatekeeping from his mom’s basement.