The CompTIA A+ All-in-One Exam Guide has outsold every other IT certification prep book in its category for over two decades. It's written by Mike Meyers. That's not a marketing claim — it's the reason every IT forum thread about A+ prep eventually lands on the same two names: Professor Messer (free) and Mike Meyers (paid, comprehensive). If you're searching "mike meyers comptia," you're probably trying to figure out whether his materials are worth buying and which ones to get. This breaks that down without the sales pitch.
Who Mike Meyers Actually Is (Skip If You Know)
Mike Meyers co-founded Total Seminars in 1987, back when CompTIA A+ was a new credential and most IT training happened in classrooms. He wrote the first edition of the A+ All-in-One Exam Guide in the mid-1990s and has updated it through 11 editions. He also has books and video courses covering Network+, Security+, and Linux+.
His reputation comes from two things: he explains hardware and OS concepts at a level that actually sticks, and he doesn't treat the exam as the endpoint. A lot of cert prep content teaches you to memorize definitions. Meyers' materials push you toward understanding how things work, which means you can answer questions you've never seen before rather than hoping a memorized answer appears verbatim.
He's not an academic. His style is conversational, occasionally rambling in the videos, and he makes analogies that are sometimes strange but usually work. If you like structured, formal instruction, his video style might annoy you. If you like having a knowledgeable person explain something like you're sitting next to them, it's effective.
Mike Meyers CompTIA A+ Materials: What Exists
The Mike Meyers CompTIA ecosystem isn't one product — it's a set of overlapping formats. Here's what's available and how they fit together:
The All-in-One Exam Guide (Book)
The 11th edition covers the current Core 1 (220-1101) and Core 2 (220-1102) objectives. At roughly 1,400 pages, it's dense. Each chapter ends with practice questions. The book assumes you're starting from near-zero on hardware knowledge, which makes it good for career changers but occasionally tedious for people with hands-on IT experience who just need exam-specific review.
The book is available from McGraw-Hill, Amazon, and most libraries. Used copies of the 10th edition (220-1001/1002) are cheap but outdated — the current exams have enough differences in cloud, virtualization, and scripting content that it's worth getting the 11th.
Video Courses (Udemy and Total Seminars)
Meyers' video content is sold through two channels: his own platform at Total Seminars (totalsem.com) and Udemy. The Udemy versions go on sale frequently and are often the cheaper option. Total Seminars bundles videos with practice exams and sometimes simulations.
The A+ video series is split by exam domain and runs roughly 20-25 hours total across both cores. He uses physical hardware in many segments — you'll see him crack open machines, swap RAM, pull drives — which is more useful than pure slides for someone who hasn't done much hands-on work.
Practice Exams
Total Seminars sells standalone practice exam software. It includes multiple timed exams and a performance-based question simulator (the drag-and-drop, ordering, and scenario questions that CompTIA uses). This is probably underrated compared to the book and videos — a lot of people study the content but skip realistic exam simulation and then freeze on PBQs.
Mike Meyers' CompTIA Network+ and Security+ Materials
Meyers also has full book and video series for Network+ (N10-009) and Security+ (SY0-701). The Network+ book follows the same structure as A+. The Security+ materials are newer and some reviewers find the coverage less comprehensive than dedicated Security+ prep from other authors (particularly Darril Gibson or Jason Dion), but they're serviceable for someone who wants to stick with one author ecosystem across certifications.
How Mike Meyers CompTIA Prep Compares to Alternatives
The honest comparison:
- Professor Messer (free): Study notes and videos are free at professormesser.com. Shorter videos, strictly exam-objective-focused. No deep dives. Excellent for someone who already has IT experience and wants a structured review without paying. Lacks the hardware-handling depth Meyers provides.
- Jason Dion (Udemy): More affordable on Udemy, very exam-focused, strong on practice questions. Good for Security+ especially. Less engaging video style than Meyers. Strong practice exam library.
- CompTIA's own CertMaster: Expensive, adaptive, and follows objectives exactly. Useful if your employer pays for it. Terrible value if you're self-funding.
- Mike Meyers: More expensive than free, more conceptual than some alternatives, and longer. Worth it if you're new to IT and want to understand what's happening, not just pass the exam and immediately forget the content.
The common pattern among people who pass on the first attempt: they use Meyers' book or videos for primary study, then use Professor Messer's notes and Jason Dion's practice exams for review and drilling. The combination is more effective than any single resource.
Top Courses for Mike Meyers CompTIA Prep
These are the formats worth considering based on study style and budget:
Mike Meyers CompTIA A+ Core 1 + Core 2 Video Course (Udemy)
Available during Udemy's frequent sales for under $20, this is the lowest-cost entry point into Meyers' video content. Covers all 220-1101 and 220-1102 domains with hardware demos. Best for visual learners who want more than slides.
CompTIA A+ All-in-One Exam Guide, 11th Edition (McGraw-Hill)
The book that built his reputation. If you're the kind of person who retains information better from reading than watching, this is the primary resource to get. The included practice questions are adequate for chapter review but not sufficient as standalone exam prep — supplement with a practice exam tool.
Total Seminars All-in-One A+ Bundle
Bundles video course, practice exams, and simulations through totalsem.com. More expensive than buying Udemy separately but includes the performance-based question simulator, which is hard to find elsewhere and directly maps to how CompTIA tests hands-on knowledge. Recommended if you're willing to pay for a single cohesive package.
Mike Meyers CompTIA Network+ Video Course
Follows the same teaching approach as A+. If you're planning to stack certifications — A+ then Network+ — staying in the Meyers ecosystem reduces the context-switching of adapting to different instructors. Available on Udemy and Total Seminars.
FAQ
Is Mike Meyers CompTIA A+ course enough to pass the exam?
The video course or book alone is usually not enough. Most successful candidates combine Meyers' content for conceptual understanding with a dedicated practice exam tool (his own or Jason Dion's) and Professor Messer's study notes for objective-by-objective review. The combination takes more time but produces significantly better first-attempt pass rates.
Which is better: Mike Meyers book or video course?
Depends on how you learn. The book is more thorough and better for reference — you can flip back to a section during review. The video is better for concepts that require seeing hardware or watching a process happen. Many people use both: videos first, then re-read relevant book chapters on topics that didn't click in video form.
Are Mike Meyers CompTIA materials updated for the current exams?
Yes, as of 2026 the A+ materials are updated for Core 1 (220-1101) and Core 2 (220-1102). The Network+ materials cover N10-009. Security+ covers SY0-701. Check the product listing on Total Seminars or Udemy for the specific exam version before buying — older versions of his courses are still listed and cover retired exams.
How long does it take to get through Mike Meyers' A+ course?
The video series is roughly 20-25 hours of content. Most people don't watch it straight through — they take notes, re-watch segments, and pause for lab exercises. Realistic total study time using Meyers as your primary resource, including practice exams, is 80-120 hours for someone without prior IT experience. That's roughly 2-3 months studying 5-10 hours per week.
Is Mike Meyers' CompTIA Security+ course as good as his A+ course?
His A+ materials are widely considered best-in-class. His Security+ content is solid but faces stronger competition from authors who specialize in Security+ specifically. If you're studying for SY0-701, Meyers' material covers the objectives, but many candidates supplement with or switch to Jason Dion or the Darril Gibson All-in-One book for Security+.
Where can I get Mike Meyers CompTIA courses cheap?
Udemy puts courses on sale for $10-20 regularly. The Total Seminars site occasionally runs bundle discounts. The book is available used on Amazon (make sure it's the 11th edition for current A+ exams). Professor Messer remains fully free and is a legitimate alternative for budget-constrained candidates.
Bottom Line
Mike Meyers is the right choice for CompTIA prep under specific conditions: you're new to IT, you want to actually understand the material rather than memorize for one exam, and you're comfortable with a conversational teaching style. His A+ All-in-One Exam Guide is still the most comprehensive single resource for the credential. His videos add value if you're the type who learns better by watching than reading.
Where people go wrong with Meyers is treating his content as sufficient on its own. The book and videos are teaching tools; they're not exam simulators. Add Professor Messer's free study notes for structured review and a practice exam library with 500+ questions before you schedule the actual exam. That combination — Meyers for learning, Messer for review, practice exams for timing and PBQ exposure — is what consistently shows up in pass reports on Reddit's r/CompTIA.
If you're stacking certifications (A+ → Network+ → Security+), staying in the Meyers ecosystem makes sense. The teaching approach is consistent, and the Total Seminars bundle pricing improves if you're buying multiple courses. If you only need one certification and budget is a constraint, Professor Messer plus a $15 Dion practice exam bundle on Udemy gets you to the same place for less.