CompTIA Security+ is designed as an entry point into cybersecurity, covering foundational concepts — network security, threats and vulnerabilities, access control, and cryptography basics — without requiring prior hands-on security experience to sit the exam.
CISSP, by contrast, is an advanced certification aimed at professionals with several years of hands-on security experience across multiple domains; it requires proof of that experience to fully certify, and the exam assumes a working understanding of security architecture and governance, not just definitions.
The practical path for most professionals is Security+ first, to build foundational credibility and open entry-level roles, followed by CISSP once real experience across security domains has accumulated — attempting CISSP without that groundwork usually means a much harder exam and a certification without the depth to back it up on the job.