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Boson sells practice exams that simulate the real exam (ExSim-Max) and a Cisco network simulator (NetSim), each bought for one exam and one year. OpenpassAI is all-in-one: lessons, an AI tutor, practice exams, hands-on labs, readiness tracking and career tools in one plan for 286 certifications.
200 free credits · No credit card required
At a glance
Winner for IT certificationsThe all-in-one IT certification platform
Practice exams and a network simulator, sold per exam
The short answer
A Boson practice exam covers one exam for a year, and NetSim is bought separately. OpenpassAI covers 286 certifications from CompTIA, AWS, Cisco, Microsoft, Google Cloud, ServiceNow, ISC2, PMI, NVIDIA, Databricks, Salesforce and Splunk in one plan, so your next certification is already included.
ExSim-Max explains each answer in writing, with references. OpenpassAI has lessons that follow your exam’s objectives, an AI tutor, and hands-on practice built in: labs in live Linux and Windows terminals, and command-line and network topology questions. A network simulator is in development.
Boson’s score reports break your results down by category. OpenpassAI turns your results into a readiness score by domain, picks what to study next, and adds interview practice and resume tools.
Your personal dashboard
Every session starts from your dashboard: readiness for your exam, curriculum progress, accuracy by domain, your streak and the next best thing to study, for every certification you’re working on.
Side by side
What you get for certification prep in each, tool by tool.
WinnerOpenpassAI wins 4 of 6 categories
| Feature | | Boson |
|---|---|---|
| CoverageWinner: OpenpassAI | ||
| Certifications in one purchase | 286 | One exam each |
| Vendors | 12 | Cisco, CompTIA, Microsoft and more |
| LearningWinner: OpenpassAI | ||
| AI tutor that explains any exam topic | 7 teaching styles | Written explanations |
| Lessons that follow your exam’s objectives | Yes | Courseware, sold separately |
| Spoken tutoring | Yes | No |
| Audio lessons with transcripts and a quiz | Yes | No |
| Flashcards with spaced repetition | Yes | No |
| PracticeEven | ||
| Practice questions for your certification | Yes | ExSim-Max, per exam |
| Timed exam simulator | Yes | Simulation mode |
| Performance-based questions | Yes | Simulates question types |
| Command-line tasks at a Cisco, Linux or Windows prompt | Yes | In NetSim |
| Network topology exercises | Yes | In NetSim |
| Hands-on labs in a live terminal | Linux and Windows | NetSim and Practice Labs |
| Network simulator | In development | NetSim |
| Real-world job scenarios | Yes | No |
| ProgressWinner: OpenpassAI | ||
| Personal dashboard: readiness, progress, streak | Yes | Score reports |
| Exam-readiness score by domain | Yes | Category breakdown |
| Weak topics found by AI, then drilled | Yes | By category, in reports |
| CareerWinner: OpenpassAI | ||
| Voice interview practice for your target role | Yes | No |
| Resume optimizer | Yes | No |
| Career roadmap, application tracker and salary coach | Yes | No |
| PriceEven | ||
| Practice exams for one exam, for a year | Included | $99 |
| Hands-on labs, for a year | Included | $179 for NetSim |
| Your next certification | Included | Bought separately |
| Every certification and tool in one plan | $19/month | No |
| Pass guarantee | Yes | No pass, no pay |
Boson details from Boson, ExSim-Max practice exams, NetSim network simulator, Boson’s guarantee, checked November 10, 2026. OpenpassAI isn’t affiliated with Boson.
The verdict
Studying for CCNA? The lessons, the tutor, the practice exams, the labs and your readiness score are in one OpenpassAI plan, for every certification after CCNA too, and a network simulator is in development. It starts free with 200 credits.
Price
Boson sells each practice exam and each simulator for one exam and one year. OpenpassAI Pro includes every learning and career tool for every certification.
Everything included$19/month
Pro, or $190 a year · Backed by our 100% Pass Guarantee
Free: $0, with 200 starter credits. No credit card required.
NetSim lab pack$29
10 guided labs on one topic, such as IPv4 subnetting, for a year
ExSim-Max practice exams$99
One exam, for a year: Security+, CCNA or CISSP
NetSim network simulator$179
One Cisco exam, for a year: 101 guided labs for CCNA
US prices as published by Boson. Checked November 10, 2026.
FAQs
Find quick answers or contact our support team.
ExSim-Max is a set of practice exams for one exam, with a simulation mode and written explanations. OpenpassAI is one plan for 286 certifications, with lessons, an AI tutor, practice exams, performance-based questions, live Linux and Windows labs, a readiness dashboard and career tools.
Yes, in the same plan as everything else. Labs run in live Linux and Windows terminals, and performance-based questions include command-line tasks at a Cisco, Linux or Windows prompt and network topology exercises. A network simulator is in development. Boson sells its labs as separate products: NetSim is $179 a year for one Cisco exam.
OpenpassAI Pro is $19 a month or $190 a year for every certification and every tool, so three months of Pro cost less than one Boson practice exam, and a year costs less than two. Boson’s ExSim-Max practice exams are $99 for one exam for a year, and NetSim is $179 for one Cisco exam for a year.
286 certifications from CompTIA, AWS, Cisco, Microsoft, Google Cloud, ServiceNow, ISC2, PMI, NVIDIA, Databricks, Salesforce and Splunk, each checked every week against the vendor’s own site, so launches and retirements show up on the day.
No. This comparison uses Boson’s published products and prices as of November 10, 2026.
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