thinQmaster Virtual testing partner Adaptive practice exams that find your weak spots and drill them. Every answer explained. From $69
Enroll

thinQmaster

Find your exam

Five questions free, before you decide.

Step 1 · choose a vendor

In one of our camps? Your practice exams come with the tuition — they are on your study page already.

IAPP · Governance, Risk & Privacy · Professional

IAPP CIPM exam guide

Exam CIPM

CIPM proves you can build and run a privacy program: framework, governance, data assessment, protection, performance metrics and handling requests and incidents. It is the operational counterpart to the CIPP law credentials and is popular with privacy managers.

Questions90
Time limit150 minutes
Passing score300 (100-500 scaled score)
Exam fee$550 USD
Valid for2 years
DeliveryPearson VUE test center or OnVUE online proctored

Format: Multiple choice, including scenario-based questions. Fee note: Same price for members and non-members; certification maintenance fee required to activate and every two years (included in IAPP membership).

Who it's for

Privacy program managers, DPOs and compliance leads responsible for operating privacy programs.

What the exam covers

I. Privacy Program: Developing a Framework (14-18 questions)—
II. Privacy Program: Establishing Program Governance (12-16 questions)—
III. Operational Life Cycle: Assessing Data (12-16 questions)—
IV. Operational Life Cycle: Protecting Personal Data (9-13 questions)—
V. Operational Life Cycle: Sustaining Program Performance (7-9 questions)—
VI. Operational Life Cycle: Responding to Requests and Incidents (10-14 questions)—

A dash means the vendor does not publish a weight for that domain.

Eligibility & prerequisites

Required: None.

Recommended: Experience in privacy, compliance or program management.

Keeping it active

Two-year cycle: 20 CPE credits and the certification maintenance fee ($250 for non-members; included in IAPP membership).

Skills & careers

Skills it validates

  • Building a privacy framework and strategy
  • Establishing privacy governance and roles
  • Data inventories and privacy impact assessments
  • Integrating privacy and security controls
  • Privacy metrics and audits
  • Handling data subject requests and breaches

Job roles

Privacy Program ManagerData Protection OfficerPrivacy Operations LeadCompliance ManagerChief Privacy Officer

Where it fits in your path

Planning a degree too? See how this cert earns college credit in the College Credit Navigator.

Build my study plan

  1. Week 1: BoK and framework development.
  2. Week 2: Governance, roles and policies.
  3. Week 3: Data assessment (inventories, PIAs/DPIAs, vendor assessments).
  4. Week 4: Protection, performance metrics, requests and incidents.
  5. Week 5: Practice exam and mocks, then book.

Make it yours: pick your exam date and weekly hours. We'll split your time by domain weight and give you a printable plan.

Exam-day tips

  • Framework and governance together are up to 34 questions; focus there first.
  • Scenario questions ask what a privacy manager should do next; choose the process-driven option.
  • Know the differences between PIA, DPIA and vendor assessments.
  • Pair CIPM with a CIPP to earn the IAPP Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP) designation later.

Key terms for this exam

All 54 terms Study with thinQcards™

Commonly confused on this exam

Frequently asked questions

How much is CIPM?

$550.

Do I need CIPP before CIPM?

No, but they complement each other.

How do I renew?

20 CPEs and the maintenance fee every two years.

Is CIPM easier than CIPP?

It is less memorisation-heavy but more scenario-based.

CIPM vs CDPSE?

CIPM is about running the program; CDPSE is about engineering privacy into technology.

Official page: iapp.org. Reviewed November 2026. Vendors change fees and objectives, so confirm with the vendor before you book. Spot something out of date? Tell us.