IT certifications come in many varieties available today, but they can be understood through two simple dimensions: the specialty area they cover — such as networking, security, cloud computing, or technical support — and the level they target, from foundational credentials for beginners to professional ones for experienced practitioners.
Why Types Matter
The certification market can look like an alphabet soup of unfamiliar names. Categorizing credentials by specialty area and level turns that confusion into a map. Once you understand the categories, you can locate any certification you hear about within the map, and — more importantly — you can figure out which part of the map is relevant to your own goals.
The categories below are described as concepts. This guide deliberately does not name specific credentials, vendors, or exam codes. If you are still fuzzy on the basic idea of what a certification is, start with our guide on what an IT certification is first.
Specialty Areas as Concepts
Most certifications cluster around the main specialty areas of IT work. Here are the broadest ones:
Networking. Credentials in this area cover how computers connect and communicate: network design, addressing, routing, switching, and troubleshooting connectivity. Networking fundamentals underpin almost every other IT specialty, which is why many beginners start here.
Security. Security-focused credentials cover protecting systems and data: threat concepts, access control, encryption basics, and incident response. Security is a deep specialty, so credentials exist at both foundational and advanced levels.
Cloud computing. These credentials cover building and managing services on cloud platforms: virtual machines, storage, networking in the cloud, and deployment concepts. Because the cloud market has a few dominant vendors, both vendor-specific and vendor-neutral cloud credentials exist as concepts.
Systems administration. This area covers installing, configuring, and maintaining servers and operating systems — the day-to-day work of keeping IT infrastructure running. Certifications here tend to emphasize hands-on operational skills.
Technical support and help desk. Support credentials cover troubleshooting methodology, customer communication, and common hardware and software problems. They suit people beginning in user-facing IT roles.
Data and databases. Credentials in this area cover working with data: database fundamentals, data handling, and — at higher levels — analysis and management concepts.
Project management. Although not strictly a technology skill, project management credentials are common in IT because technology work is organized as projects. These cover planning, scheduling, and team coordination concepts.
Software and development. Developer-oriented credentials cover programming concepts, application design, and software lifecycle practices within specific ecosystems.
These areas overlap in practice. A network administrator benefits from security knowledge; a cloud engineer benefits from networking knowledge. The categories are a starting framework, not rigid boxes.
Levels: Foundational, Professional, and Beyond
Alongside specialty areas, certifications are commonly described by level:
Foundational (entry-level). These cover broad basics of a specialty area with no assumed prior experience. They verify that you understand core concepts and terminology. Foundational credentials are the natural starting point for beginners, and our guide to entry-level certifications explains what to expect from them.
Professional (intermediate). These assume working knowledge and go deeper into design, implementation, and troubleshooting. They often recommend some hands-on experience before attempting the exam.
Expert or advanced. These target seasoned practitioners and typically cover complex scenarios, architecture-level decisions, and deep troubleshooting. They are the most demanding credentials in the market.
The level system is a concept, not a universal standard — different certifying bodies use different names and structures. Always check the official documentation for the credential you are considering.
Vendor-Specific vs. Vendor-Neutral, Revisited
Certification types also split along a second axis: whether the credential is tied to one vendor's products or covers concepts that apply across vendors. A vendor-specific networking credential verifies skill with that vendor's equipment; a vendor-neutral one verifies understanding of networking principles generally.
This matters when choosing. If your current or target employer standardizes on a particular vendor's technology, a vendor-specific credential in that ecosystem may be more immediately relevant. If you want portable knowledge that transfers between employers and products, a vendor-neutral credential may suit you better. Many professionals eventually hold a mix.
How the Areas Relate to Each Other
It helps to see the specialties not as a flat list but as layers. Infrastructure layers — networking, systems administration, and cloud — provide the foundation that everything else runs on. Security sits across all layers, since every system needs protection. Support interacts with all of them from the user-facing side. Data and project management are horizontal disciplines that apply within and across technical teams.
This layered view explains why foundational knowledge in one area makes the others easier to learn. Networking fundamentals, for example, make cloud concepts far more approachable because cloud platforms are built on networks.
Choosing an Area Without Guessing
If you are deciding where to focus, resist the urge to pick whatever sounds most impressive. Instead, consider three honest questions: What work do you actually enjoy doing? What roles are accessible from your current position? And what does your target role's day-to-day work involve?
Answering these questions is the core of the decision process, and it is covered in depth in our framework for how to choose the right IT certification. The short version: match the certification type to the work you want to do, not to a prestige ranking. There are no official rankings of certifications, and any list claiming to name the "best" ones is someone's opinion, not a fact.
Stacking and Sequencing Credentials
Few people earn just one certification and stop. More commonly, credentials are earned in sequence over a career — a pattern sometimes called stacking. Understanding how stacking works helps you see each certification as a step rather than a destination.
The most common sequence is vertical: foundational, then professional, then advanced, all within one specialty area. Each level assumes the knowledge of the one below, so the progression feels natural. Someone might begin with a broad foundational credential, then earn a professional-level one in networking, then later pursue an advanced credential in network security. The knowledge compounds.
Horizontal stacking is the other pattern: earning credentials across related specialty areas at a similar level. A systems administrator might add a cloud credential, then a security credential, building a broader skill set rather than a deeper one. Horizontal stacking suits generalist roles and people whose work touches many areas.
There is no required order imposed from outside — you sequence credentials according to your goals. A useful rule of thumb is to let each credential earn its keep before pursuing the next: use the knowledge at work, let it settle into real skill, and then decide what the next gap is. Credentials earned back-to-back without application in between tend to be shallower and harder to retain.
Also worth remembering: not every career step requires a new credential. Sometimes the right move after earning one certification is a project, a new responsibility at work, or simply time spent practicing. The credential opens the door; walking through it is the experience that makes the next credential meaningful. Thinking through multi-credential sequences is a skill of its own — see when one certification leads to another: planning your path.
A Note on What Changes
The certification landscape shifts over time. New specialty areas emerge as technology evolves, vendors restructure their credential programs, and exam formats are updated. Treat any list of certifications — including the concepts in this guide — as a snapshot. When you are ready to commit to a specific credential, verify the current details in the certifying body's official documentation: the exam objectives, the prerequisites, the format, and the renewal rules.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many types of IT certifications are there?
There is no fixed number, because certifications are created, updated, and retired by many different certifying bodies over time. The useful way to think about "types" is by specialty area — networking, security, cloud, systems administration, support, data, project management, and development — and by level, from foundational to expert. Within each combination there may be several credentials from different vendors, so the total count is always changing and not worth memorizing.
What is the difference between vendor-specific and vendor-neutral certifications?
A vendor-specific certification verifies your skill with one company's products or platform, while a vendor-neutral certification verifies understanding of concepts and practices that apply across many vendors. Vendor-specific credentials can be very relevant when your work centers on that vendor's technology. Vendor-neutral credentials tend to transfer more easily between employers and products. Many professionals hold a mix of both over the course of a career.
Should beginners start with a foundational certification?
In most cases, yes — foundational credentials are designed for people with little or no experience, and they build the vocabulary and concepts that higher-level material assumes. Starting at the right level also makes studying more efficient, since you are not fighting gaps in basic knowledge. If you already have substantial hands-on experience, you may be able to begin higher, but check the official prerequisites and exam objectives to judge honestly whether you are ready.
Do certification levels transfer between vendors?
No. Levels like "foundational," "professional," or "expert" are labels used by individual certifying bodies, and there is no universal standard mapping one vendor's levels to another's. A professional-level credential from one body is not automatically equivalent to a professional-level credential from a different body. When comparing credentials, look at the exam objectives and prerequisites in each vendor's official documentation rather than relying on level names alone.
Can one certification cover multiple specialty areas?
Some credentials deliberately span more than one area — for example, a certification might combine networking and security, or systems administration and cloud concepts. These can be efficient for beginners who want broad exposure. However, broader coverage usually means less depth in each area. As you advance, you will typically need more specialized credentials to go deep. Consider whether your current goal is breadth (understanding the landscape) or depth (mastering one area).
This site is educational information only — not career or exam advice, and not affiliated with any vendor or certifying body.
