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As of May 2026, the current state of CMMC compliance efforts in the defense industrial base (DIB) is causing concern. As the statistics and trends in this article demonstrate, there is a widening gap between the CMMC compliance progress made by government contractors and the growing demand for CMMC certification in Department of War (DoW) contracts.
Latest Troubling Statistics for CMMC 2.0 Compliance Readiness
The following statistics emphasize that government contractors need to accelerate their efforts to achieve CMMC 2.0 compliance or be left behind in the current and future DoW contract environment.
Integrisit, LinkedIn, IBSS, Federal News Network, Alluvionic, Cybersheath, Cispoint, 112Cyber, Preveil, and GAO provided the following statistics and trends.
- The number of DIB contractors who currently report feeling fully prepared for CMMC audits/assessments is only 1%.
- Less than 1,000 government contractors out of an estimated 80K-110K that will require it have achieved CMMC Level 2 certification.
- The most optimistic CMMC certification reports estimate that only 8% of government contractors requiring CMMC Level 2 certification have achieved it or are currently in progress to achieve it.
- Small and mid-sized companies (who make up more than 70% of DIB companies) are too often overconfident in their CMMC efforts with a deep readiness gap. Their self-assessed scores are averaging a negative 133-point variance after undergoing audits by third-party assessors (C3PAOs).
- Experts estimate that only 25% of companies pursuing third-party assessments are well-prepared. Assessors are turning away half of organizations seeking certification (OSC) because of readiness issues.
- First-time assessment rate failures are notable with estimates ranging from 15-50%. These failures are particularly costly for small businesses in terms of lost time and rework expenses.
- Only 42% of contractors have submitted scores to the Supplier Performance Risk System (SPRS) as required.
- The median SPRS score has improved from 20 to 60, but it still sits far below the required score of 110 for CMMC Level 2 certification.
- 69% of companies are claiming DFARS compliance via self-assessment, but only 30% have completed medium/high assessments that confirm this claim.
- Even well-prepared companies are facing delays as a result of the exploding demand for C3PAO assessments that far exceed the limited supply of qualified assessors. Many companies are reporting assessment schedule delays into late 2026 and 2027. This bottleneck will continue to worsen as more government contracts demand CMMC certification and more companies rush to become CMMC compliant.
- The number of contracts requiring CMMC certification continues to increase rapidly. Industry trackers monitoring SAM.gov report more than 120 active DoW solicitations seeking some level of CMMC certification with an increasing number requiring CMMC Level 2. Recent solicitations requiring CMMC Level 2 include activities such as construction projects, IT help, professional services, electronics, microgrids, engineering services, and maintenance efforts. Notably, these CMMC requirements will flow down to subcontractors. The number of contracts requiring a higher level of CMMC certification will continue to rise, and there will be fewer exceptions in DoW solicitations after November 2026.
- A recent GAO report revealed that DoW has not adequately addressed substantial “external risks” to CMMC compliance efforts including third-party assessor shortages, unpreparedness of contractors and vendors, rising costs, and evolving requirements. The report found that these issues could seriously impede the success of CMMC compliance efforts.
Work Closely with a CMMC Expert
As demonstrated by these discouraging statistics in mid-2026, the need for government contractors to achieve CMMC 2.0 compliance quickly and efficiently is clear, but the challenges are daunting. In the face of these significant obstacles, your organization should not attempt to achieve CMMC compliance without the valuable assistance of an experienced CMMC expert like Network Depot.
Your dependable CMMC partner will work with you every step of the way to help you obtain a CMMC certificate customized to the required compliance level of your DoW contracts.
Your trusted IT compliance partner will quickly identify and remediate any cybersecurity gaps and assist you in planning and achieving successful CMMC self-assessments or third-party C3PA0 audits. They will also install the powerful tools as well as implement policies that will make your organization CMMC compliant and help win DoW contracts. Your IT partner will also recommend necessary investments in technology and resources to maintain your hard-won compliance in the event of any changes in the federal government contracting environment.
Don’t be a part of the negative statistics discussed above! Contact Network Depot today and learn how they can effectively guide your company to CMMC certification and keep you compliant.
