The RN licensure exam
NCLEX-RN: what it is, and how to practice for it free
10,000+ original practice questions. Every answer explained and cited.
The NCLEX-RN is the exam every Registered Nurse candidate must pass to get licensed in the U.S. This page explains how the exam actually works — who takes it, how it’s scored, and how to register — then hands you a free, growing bank of original NCLEX-RN-style questions to practice with, no signup required to start.
10,455
original NCLEX-RN-style practice questions, every answer explained and cited
3.39M
Registered Nurses employed in the U.S. (BLS)
~318,000
candidates sit the NCLEX-RN each year (NCSBN)
85–150
items per exam — a Computerized Adaptive Test, not a fixed form
The exam, explained
What is the NCLEX-RN?
The NCLEX-RN is the licensure examination every candidate must pass to become a Registered Nurse (RN) in the United States, its territories, and Canada. It's developed and owned by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), and each U.S. state or territory's own Board of Nursing is the licensing authority that requires a passing result before issuing an RN license.
The exam is delivered as a Computerized Adaptive Test (CAT) at Pearson VUE test centers: every candidate answers a minimum of 85 questions and a maximum of 150, with the test engine selecting each next question based on performance on the ones before it, and candidates have up to five hours to finish. The current Next Generation NCLEX (NGN) design adds case-study, bowtie, matrix, and extended-drag-and-drop item types built to measure clinical judgment rather than recall alone. The CAT engine stops a candidate's exam under one of three rules: it reaches 95% confidence in a pass/fail call, the candidate runs out of allotted items, or the candidate hits the maximum exam length.
To sit for the NCLEX-RN, a candidate first completes an approved nursing education program (an ADN or BSN), applies for licensure with their state Board of Nursing, and — once the board confirms eligibility — registers with Pearson VUE (a $200 exam fee, non-refundable) to receive an Authorization to Test (ATT) before scheduling a seat. RN is the top rung most nursing-career climbers are working toward: it's the highest-paid destination among the CNA → HHA → LPN/LVN → RN progression, which is why our practice bank is built here first and grows continuously.
Where RN sits on the ladder
RN is the top rung of the nursing career ladder
Nursing careers commonly climb from CNA to LPN/LVN to RN over several years, each credential building on the last. RN is the highest-paid destination in that climb — the reason our practice bank is built here first, and why we grow it continuously.
- CNAin development
- LPN/LVN
- RN
Want the full picture of the ladder and every credential along it? Read the nursing career ladder & exams guide.
Eight topics, four formats
The nursing topics our questions cover
Practice one topic at a time, or mix all eight into a full-length exam. Every question format the exam uses is represented: multiple choice, select-all-that-apply, ordered response, and dosage-calculation fill-in.
PHARM
Pharmacology
Drug classes, safe dosing, and the side effects that show up on every exam.
MEDSURG
Medical-Surgical
Adult health across body systems — the core of NCLEX-style practice.
PEDS
Pediatrics
Growth, development, and family-centered care from infancy to adolescence.
OB
OB & Maternity
Antepartum through postpartum, labor, and newborn assessment.
PSYCH
Mental Health
Therapeutic communication, crisis care, and psychiatric conditions.
FUND
Fundamentals
Safety, infection control, mobility, and the basics done right.
DOSE
Dosage Calculations
Fill-in dosage problems with worked solutions, step by step.
LEAD
Leadership & Management
Delegation, prioritization, and assignment questions.
Take the full mixed practice exam
A full-length practice test pulled from all eight topics at once, in every NCLEX-style format — the closest free rehearsal to test day.
Go to the practice exam →Read a study guide first
Prefer the concepts before the quiz? Our free study guides distill each topic into high-yield facts and common test traps.
Browse study guides →Common questions
NCLEX-RN, explained
- What is the NCLEX-RN?
- The NCLEX-RN is the national licensure exam that every candidate must pass to become a Registered Nurse in the U.S., its territories, and Canada. It's developed by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN); each state's own Board of Nursing issues the actual RN license once you pass.
- How many questions are on the NCLEX-RN?
- It's a Computerized Adaptive Test: every candidate answers at minimum 85 and at maximum 150 questions (including Next Generation NCLEX case-study items), and the exam ends as soon as the engine reaches 95% confidence in a pass or fail result, or when a candidate reaches the maximum length or runs out of allotted items. Candidates have up to five hours to finish.
- How many NCLEX-style practice questions does NursingCEA have?
- The live count is shown at the top of this page and pulled directly from our database, so it's always current — every question is original, includes a full rationale, and cites a real clinical source.
- Is NursingCEA affiliated with NCSBN or the real NCLEX exam?
- No. NCLEX® is a registered trademark of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN), which does not endorse or sponsor this site. Our questions are original practice material written to the same style and topic areas — not real exam items.
- Does passing NursingCEA's practice questions mean I'll pass the NCLEX-RN?
- No single practice bank can guarantee that. Practicing helps you find weak topics and get comfortable with NCLEX-style item formats (multiple choice, SATA, ordered response, dosage fill-in), but your real exam readiness also depends on your nursing program, your clinical experience, and dedicated review of areas you're weakest in.
All questions and study material on this site are original, written for practice and study only — they are not medical advice or a substitute for clinical judgment, institutional policy, or a licensed provider. NCLEX® is a registered trademark of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN), which does not endorse or sponsor this site.