Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless

What is it?

What exactly is the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless?

Professional enterprise wireless

CCNP Enterprise with the wireless concentration (ENWLSI 300-430) certifies professional skills in Cisco wireless design, deployment and troubleshooting.

Before you book

Who is eligible to sit the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless?

Who it is for: Wireless network engineers

The test itself

What is the format of the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless?

The Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless is administered by Pearson VUE and runs 90 minutes, contains 55–65 (concentration) questions and requires ~825 of 1000 to pass.

Money & time

How much does the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless cost?

For the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless, the exam fee is $300; the all-in cost is typically $700+; most candidates spend 4–8 months preparing.

The fine print

What are the retake and renewal rules for the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless?

Proctoring & delivery

Delivered by Pearson VUE: at authorized test centers or online via OnVUE remote proctoring (CCST uses the Certiport/Pearson VUE platform). A government-issued photo ID is required; online tests include a room/environment scan.

Retake policy

If you fail, Cisco requires a waiting period of 5 calendar days before you may retake the same exam. Each attempt requires full payment of the exam fee. Cisco does not cap total attempts, but some exams limit attempts within a 12-month window.

Score reporting

Results are reported as pass/fail and made available online (Cisco Certification Tracking System) typically within 48 hours. A section-level performance breakdown is provided to help target further study; scaled scores use a 300-1000 range (CCNA/CCNP-style exams).

Recertification

All Cisco certifications are valid for 3 years from the date earned. Recertify before expiry by (a) passing a higher-or-equal level qualifying exam, (b) earning Continuing Education (CE) credits through eligible training/activities, or (c) a combination of exam + CE. For associate-level certs 30 CE credits are required; for professional-level 40 CE credits. Certificates can also be extended via the Cisco Continuing Education program.

Refunds & rescheduling

Exam fees are generally non-refundable once scheduled, but Pearson VUE allows rescheduling or cancellation up to 24-48 hours before the appointment without penalty; no-shows forfeit the fee. CCST/Certiport policies may differ by region.

What it pays

How much does this credential pay?

$130,390 median for computer network architects (BLS, May 2024)

There is no Bureau of Labor Statistics occupation called "wireless engineer" or "CCNP Wireless" — the credential validates professional-level wireless networking skill, and the wage question belongs to the role you perform with it. The closest official BLS occupation is Computer Network Architects, SOC 15-1241, which had a May 2024 median wage of $130,390 ($62.69 per hour), with the lowest 10 percent earning less than $79,520 and the highest 10 percent more than $198,030. The fit is deliberate: wireless professionals with this credential work as senior network engineers and architects who design, implement and operate enterprise wireless LANs — access-point deployment, controllers, RF design, roaming, and security — which is precisely the network design and implementation work the computer network architect occupation describes. BLS counted 179,200 computer network architect jobs in 2024 and projects 12 percent employment growth from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations, with about 11,200 openings a year, driven by firms building new networks and upgrading existing ones as they invest in cloud, AI and infrastructure. The limitation to state plainly: the BLS median covers the whole occupation at all levels and across all industries, and wireless specialists are a slice of that workforce — enterprise wireless roles range from campus wireless engineers to architect-level WLAN leads, and pay within that range follows experience, industry and geography rather than the certificate; employer surveys, which are not BLS data, typically place senior wireless architects above the median. Read the government figure as the market level for the occupation the credential serves, not as a measure of the certificate’s premium, and remember the credential itself does not appear in wage data because BLS classifies by job duty rather than by certificate. The credential is best understood as a signal that moves a network engineer toward the architect tier, where the occupation’s upper half of the distribution lives.

Job growth.BLS projects 12 percent growth for computer network architects from 2024 to 2034, about 11,200 openings per year.

Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook - Computer Network Architects

Your schedule

How long should I study for it?

150-250 hours over 12-16 weeks (core), plus 40-80 hours for the wireless concentration exam of focused study

Because the standalone CCNP Wireless no longer exists, the study plan for a wireless-focused candidate is the CCNP Enterprise path: the 350-401 ENCOR core exam (120 minutes, about 90-110 questions, US$400) plus one wireless concentration — 300-425 ENWLSD for design or 300-430 ENWLSI for implementation — each 90 minutes and US$300. ENCOR covers the enterprise network at the professional level, and crucially for a wireless candidate, it includes a wireless and mobility architecture block alongside architecture, virtualisation, infrastructure, network assurance, security and automation, so the core is not wasted effort even though it is broad. A defensible plan runs 150 to 250 hours over 12 to 16 weeks for the core, with 40 to 80 hours on top for the wireless concentration. Weeks 1-4 build the routing and switching core: OSPF, EIGRP, BGP at the professional level, Layer 2 technologies and redundancy, with heavy lab work, because ENCOR items present real configurations. Weeks 5-7 cover architecture, virtualisation and wireless: SD-Access and SD-WAN concepts, device virtualisation, and the wireless block — RF fundamentals, controller-based design, roaming, and wireless security — which is where a wireless candidate should invest extra time because the ENCOR wireless block tests it. Weeks 8-10 cover automation and programmability: Python for network engineers, REST APIs, NETCONF/RESTCONF and controller-based automation. Weeks 11-12 drill security fundamentals and integration scenarios. Weeks 13-16 add question-bank drilling, two full timed practice exams, then the wireless concentration plan: site surveys, wireless design and high availability for ENWLSD, or implementation, deployment and troubleshooting for ENWLSI. The plan is lab-heavy because both exams reward configuration and design knowledge, and a wireless candidate should rehearse controller and access-point configuration hands-on.

1. Weeks 1-460

   Routing and switching core

   • OSPF, EIGRP and BGP at the professional level
   • Layer 2 technologies and redundancy
   • Lab every protocol until configuration is fluent
2. Weeks 5-745

   Architecture, virtualisation, wireless

   • SD-Access and SD-WAN concepts
   • Device virtualisation and network assurance
   • Wireless block: RF, controllers, roaming, security — invest extra time here
3. Weeks 8-1045

   Automation and programmability

   • Python for network engineers
   • REST APIs, NETCONF/RESTCONF
   • Controller-based automation labs
4. Weeks 11-1230

   Security fundamentals

   • Security controls in the enterprise network
   • Integration scenarios across the domains
   • First full practice exam
5. Weeks 13-1440

   Drill and timed practice

   • Question-bank drilling in volume
   • Second full timed practice exam
   • Re-lab every miss by domain
6. Weeks 15-1640

   Wireless concentration

   • ENWLSD: site surveys, design, mobility, high availability
   • ENWLSI: implementation, deployment, troubleshooting
   • One full practice exam for the concentration

What to buy

Which study resources are worth paying for?

For a candidate pursuing wireless today, the buying logic is the CCNP Enterprise path: the two required exams anchor the budget — ENCOR is US$400 and each wireless concentration is US$300, so the two-exam certification costs $700 in exam fees alone, before any training, books or labs, and a realistic total budget including training and materials is $900 to $2,500. Cisco’s official learning resources include the exam topics documents (free), Cisco U. courses and the Cisco Learning Network, and the official Cisco Press books for ENCOR and the wireless concentrations are the standard references, running roughly $50-$80 each. Third-party training companies offer full ENCOR and wireless courses from roughly $100 to $1,000 depending on format, with self-paced video courses at the low end and instructor-led programs at the high end. Lab access is non-negotiable — either a paid lab subscription (roughly $50-$200) or a local virtual lab environment — because both exams reward configuration and design practice, and wireless candidates specifically need access to controller and access-point simulation. The single most important buying warning is version: any course, book or question bank built for the retired CCNP Wireless exams (300-360/365/370/375) is obsolete and should be avoided, and candidates should check the cover for the current ENCOR and wireless concentration codes before paying. The exam fee is payable with Cisco Learning Credits, which employers often provide, so checking your employer’s training budget before paying list price is a genuine cost lever. Prices below are list prices as of mid-2026 and change frequently; we rank nothing by commission.

List prices as of mid-2026, subject to change; ENCOR is $400 and concentration exams $300. Avoid any material written for the retired CCNP Wireless exams. No commission or affiliate ranking is implied.

What you'll face

What question types will I see?

The current wireless path uses the same exam mechanics as the rest of the Cisco professional program: the 350-401 ENCOR core exam has about 90 to 110 questions in 120 minutes, mixing single-answer multiple choice, multiple-response, drag-and-drop and scenario-based items, and it is delivered at Pearson VUE centres or through online proctoring in English and Japanese. The wireless concentrations — 300-425 ENWLSD for design and 300-430 ENWLSI for implementation — follow the same question mix in a 90-minute format and drill wireless in depth: site surveys, wired and wireless infrastructure, mobility, WLAN high availability and design for ENWLSD, and deployment, configuration and troubleshooting for ENWLSI. The ENCOR core includes a wireless and mobility architecture block, so a wireless candidate faces RF fundamentals, controller-based design, roaming mechanisms and wireless security items even in the core, alongside the routing, virtualisation, assurance, security and automation domains. Many items across both exams present an actual configuration, topology or design scenario and ask for the correct command, fix or analysis, the style that rewards hands-on practice over memorisation. Cisco reports results as pass/fail on a scaled score with no published numeric threshold, so there is no official percentage to target, and the score report shows relative performance by topic area. At roughly one minute per item in the core, the scenario and configuration items consume most of the clock, so candidates should flag uncertain items early and budget the reading-heavy questions deliberately rather than answering in presented order. The samples below are editor-written illustrations of the published exam topics and the configuration-flavoured style of the real items, not live exam items.

Samples are editor-written illustrations of the published blueprint, not live exam items.

Reference

What are the key facts about the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless?

Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless is a certification credential; awarded by Cisco; the exam fee is $300; typical preparation is 4–8 months; holders typically earn $85,000 – $120,000.

In short

Is the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless worth it?

• Wireless is a CCNP Enterprise concentration.
• It builds on the ENCOR core.
• It renews every three years.

Worth comparing

How does the Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless compare with similar credentials?

• Cisco Certified Network Professional Enterprise Cisco Systems
• Cisco Certified Network Associate Cisco Systems

Trust

Where does this information come from?

Everything above is taken from the awarding body's own published material. Fees, question counts and domain weights are revised regularly — check the official page before you pay.

• Cisco Awarding body
• Official Cisco Certified Network Professional Wireless exam page Exam page
• Cisco certification programme Programme rules

Research confidence: high · Last reviewed 2026-08