- What the 700-750 Exam Actually Is
- Format, Fees, and Delivery Mechanics
- Reading the Blueprint: Eleven Objectives, Nearly Equal Weight
- Domain-by-Domain: What to Master
- Playing an Open-Book, Non-Proctored Exam Well
- A Four-Week Plan Built Around the Blueprint
- Who Takes This Exam and Why It Matters
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The 700-750 SMBE exam costs USD $80 plus tax, runs 90 minutes, and is open-book and non-proctored.
- Nine of eleven objectives carry 10% each; Exploring Platforms and Business Value Demonstrations carry 5% each.
- One attempt per purchase must be completed within two days; closing the browser pauses the clock.
- After a failed attempt, Cisco requires a 48-hour wait before you can retest.
What the 700-750 Exam Actually Is
The Cisco Small and Medium Business Engineer exam, code 700-750 SMBE, belongs to Cisco's 700-series family of channel-partner exams. It is tied to the Cisco Small and Medium Business Engineer Specialization and is aimed at people who design, position, and support Cisco solutions for smaller organizations. If you landed here wondering about the acronym itself, our explainers on what SMBE is and what SMBE stands for cover the terminology in detail.
This is not a deep configuration exam in the style of a CCNA. Its blueprint is wide and solution-oriented: partnership programs, workplace technology, hybrid and remote work, security, IT simplification, application performance, platforms, and the business case for all of it. Passing depends on recognizing which Cisco capability fits which small-business scenario and being able to articulate the value, not on memorizing CLI syntax.
The official preparation resource is Cisco's Small and Medium Business - Technical course. Cisco's two-page exam-objective outline (the scope document linked from the exam page) is your authoritative map, and this guide is built around it.
Format, Fees, and Delivery Mechanics
Before you study a single domain, understand the delivery rules, because they shape your strategy more than they do for most certification exams.
| Item | What Cisco and Pearson VUE state |
|---|---|
| Exam code | 700-750 SMBE |
| Fee | USD $80 plus tax (Cisco 700-series channel-partner rate) |
| Provider | Pearson VUE |
| Duration | 90 minutes |
| Languages | English and Japanese |
| Delivery | Self-administered, non-proctored, open-book, online |
| Attempts | One attempt per purchase, completed within two days |
| Pause behavior | Closing the browser pauses the clock; resume within the two-day window and remaining time |
| Retake wait | 48 hours after a failed attempt |
| Passing score / question count | Not published by Cisco in the reviewed sources |
A quick note on the clock: some older third-party material mentions a 60-minute duration, apparently traced to a 2024 SMB requirements document. The current Cisco exam page and the objective PDF both specify 90 minutes, so treat that as authoritative. For a fuller cost breakdown, including how a retake affects your total spend, see our SMBE certification cost guide. Scheduling nuances are covered in SMBE exam dates and scheduling.
Reading the Blueprint: Eleven Objectives, Nearly Equal Weight
Cisco publishes eleven exam-objective headings. Nine of them share the highest weight at 10% each, while Exploring Platforms and Understanding Business Value Demonstrations (BVDs) are 5% each, totaling 100%. That flat distribution has one big implication: there is no "heavy" domain you can lean on to carry you. A weak area in any 10% objective costs you as much as a weak area in any other.
Cisco is also explicit that these objectives are guidelines, that related topics may appear, and that the objectives can change. The headings are not an allocation of preparation-course time, so do not assume the Small and Medium Business - Technical course gives each heading equal coverage. For the full domain-level breakdown, see SMBE Exam Domains: Complete Guide to All 11 Content Areas.
| # | Objective | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Partnership Opportunities with Cisco | 10% |
| 2 | Enabling People, Enhancing Workspaces | 10% |
| 3 | Exploring SMB Experiences | 10% |
| 4 | Navigating Hybrid Workforce Experiences | 10% |
| 5 | Adapting to Remote Workforce Experiences | 10% |
| 6 | Securing the Modern Workplace | 10% |
| 7 | Implementing SMART IT | 10% |
| 8 | Enhancing Application Performance | 10% |
| 9 | Exploring Platforms | 5% |
| 10 | Understanding Business Value Demonstrations (BVDs) | 5% |
| 11 | Introducing Engineering Programs | 10% |
Domain-by-Domain: What to Master
The objective names are your best clue to the question style: they describe scenarios and outcomes (hybrid work, remote work, securing the workplace) rather than isolated product features. Expect to connect a customer situation to a Cisco approach.
The business-and-programs cluster
Partnership Opportunities with Cisco (10%)
This objective covers how a channel partner works with Cisco. Because the 700-series exams are priced for channel partners, this is the lens of the whole exam.
- Know what the partnership model offers a small-business-focused partner and why specialization matters.
- Be able to describe how engineers contribute to partner capability.
- Review the Cisco partner program materials linked from the exam page rather than relying on memory.
Introducing Engineering Programs (10%)
Often underestimated because the title sounds administrative. Treat it as a full 10% objective.
- Understand the engineering-focused programs and specializations Cisco offers around SMB solutions.
- Connect the SMBE credential to the Specialization it supports.
Understanding Business Value Demonstrations (BVDs) (5%)
Small weight, but the concept recurs across other domains.
- Be able to explain what a BVD is, what it shows a customer, and when to use one.
- Practice framing a technology in terms of business outcomes, not specs.
The workforce-experience cluster
Enabling People, Enhancing Workspaces; Navigating Hybrid; Adapting to Remote (30% combined)
Three objectives, three different customer situations. Study them as a set and learn to distinguish them.
- Compare the needs of an office-centric team, a hybrid team, and a fully remote team.
- Know which collaboration, networking, and workspace technologies suit each pattern.
- Expect scenario wording where the same product is right in one case and wrong in another.
Exploring SMB Experiences (10%)
This one grounds everything in the small and medium business context.
- Understand typical SMB constraints: limited IT staff, tighter budgets, need for simplicity.
- Be ready to match solution complexity to customer maturity.
The technology-outcomes cluster
Securing the Modern Workplace (10%)
Security for distributed, cloud-connected small businesses.
- Understand how identity, device, and network protection fit together for hybrid and remote staff.
- Be able to explain security in terms an SMB owner would value.
Implementing SMART IT (10%) and Enhancing Application Performance (10%)
Operational simplicity and user experience.
- Know how Cisco positions simplified, manageable IT for small teams.
- Understand what affects application performance for users and how visibility helps.
Exploring Platforms (5%)
A smaller objective, but it ties the solution areas together.
- Recognize the platforms Cisco offers and what each is for at a high level.
For difficulty expectations across these areas, our SMBE difficulty guide breaks down where candidates tend to feel pressure, and the SMBE cheat sheet condenses the must-know facts for a final review.
Playing an Open-Book, Non-Proctored Exam Well
Cisco lists this exam as open-book, and it is self-administered with no proctor. That changes what "being prepared" means. You are not being tested on rote recall of facts you could look up in seconds; you are being tested on whether you can find, interpret, and apply information fast enough to finish in 90 minutes.
- Build an index, not a library. Prepare a quick-reference list organized by the eleven objective names so you can jump to the right area immediately.
- Know the scenario vocabulary. Terms like hybrid, remote, SMART IT, and BVD should trigger instant recognition.
- Budget time per question. Since Cisco does not publish the question count, avoid fixating on a per-question number. Instead, check your pace at the halfway mark of the 90 minutes.
- Use the pause deliberately. Closing the browser pauses the clock, but it must stay within the two-day window and your remaining time. Use it for genuine interruptions, not as a way to research.
- Read the operative phrase. Scenario questions hinge on words describing the customer: size, workforce pattern, existing infrastructure, goal.
A Four-Week Plan Built Around the Blueprint
Because every major objective weighs the same, the plan below groups related domains so concepts reinforce each other, and leaves the final week for integration. Adjust to your own background: a partner-side presales engineer may already know the program content, while a hands-on network admin may need more time on business value.
Context and programs
- Partnership Opportunities with Cisco and Introducing Engineering Programs
- Exploring SMB Experiences, to anchor the customer mindset early
- Read Cisco's objective PDF end to end and note unfamiliar terms
Workforce scenarios
- Enabling People, Enhancing Workspaces
- Navigating Hybrid Workforce Experiences and Adapting to Remote Workforce Experiences, studied side by side
- Write a one-line "best fit" summary for each work pattern
Technology outcomes
- Securing the Modern Workplace
- Implementing SMART IT and Enhancing Application Performance
- Exploring Platforms and Understanding Business Value Demonstrations (BVDs)
Integration and rehearsal
- Timed practice sets across all eleven objectives
- Re-study your two weakest objectives
- Finalize your quick-reference index, then purchase the exam only when ready
Timed practice is the most valuable activity in week four. Our SMBE practice tests are organized by objective so you can see exactly which areas are costing you time or accuracy. If you want structured learning content to pair with practice, see the overview of SMBE training options.
Who Takes This Exam and Why It Matters
The pricing tier tells you the intended audience: the $80 fee reflects Cisco's 700-series channel-partner rate. The typical candidate works for, or with, a Cisco partner serving small and medium businesses, in roles such as presales systems engineer, solutions architect, technical account manager, or sales engineer. Cisco describes partner-organization renewal as separate from an individual's exam status, and no exact individual renewal interval is asserted here, so confirm current terms with Cisco before planning around expiration.
Whether the credential makes financial sense depends on your employer and role. Our SMBE ROI analysis, salary guide, and SMBE jobs overview explore the career side. For eligibility questions, see SMBE requirements and prerequisites.
Key Takeaway
Study to the eleven published objective names, not to a guessed question bank. Because Cisco publishes neither a passing score nor a pass rate for this exam, the safest target is solid, scenario-ready competence in every domain rather than a number to chase. Our pages on the passing score and pass rate explain what is and is not known.
Frequently Asked Questions
The exam is 90 minutes, according to both Cisco's current exam page and the exam-objective PDF. Older references to 60 minutes should be treated as outdated or unverified.
It is open-book, self-administered, and non-proctored, delivered online through Pearson VUE. Even so, the 90-minute limit means you need working knowledge of every domain rather than depending on lookups.
The fee is USD $80 plus tax under Cisco's 700-series channel-partner rate. Each purchase covers one attempt that must be completed within two days. If you fail, Cisco requires a 48-hour wait before you can retest, which means buying another attempt.
Cisco does not publish a passing score for this exam, and the number of questions is not established in the reviewed official sources either. Prepare for consistent performance across all eleven objectives instead.
None dominates: nine objectives are weighted 10% each, and Exploring Platforms and Business Value Demonstrations are 5% each. Prioritize your personal weak spots, and do not skip the program-focused objectives such as Partnership Opportunities with Cisco and Introducing Engineering Programs.