What a pass rate is, and is not
The College Board does not publish a single pass rate. It publishes, for each exam, the share of students at each score from 1 to 5, and the share at 3 or higher is the number most people mean. It describes a 3 as qualified, and says many US colleges grant credit or placement for a 3 or above, but each college decides for itself.
- It counts everyone who sat the exam. A school or a class that differs from the national group will differ from the national figure, and the rate says nothing about how many students sat the exam or how they chose it: the College Board's page for each exam gives the number of students.
- It is not a ranking of difficulty. Calculus BC had 82% at 3 or higher in 2026 against 65% for AB. The students who take BC are a different group from those who take AB, so the rates do not show BC to be the easier exam.
- It says nothing about you. Your own practice scores, and the hours you have, tell you more. See how long it takes to prepare.
Pass rates by exam, 2021 to 2026
Share of students scoring 3 or higher, highest in 2026 first. n/a means the College Board's table for that year does not list the exam, or that the College Board's own pages gave different figures for it and the row was left out. Exams that have a page on Tutix are linked. The 2026 table is rounded to whole percentages and has no student counts yet, so it is shown that way; the years before it are printed to one decimal.
| Exam | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | Scored 5 in 2026 | Students in 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AP Research | 81.5% | 82.7% | 84.4% | 86.1% | 88.5% | 90% | 17% | 43,214 |
| AP Seminar | 85.1% | 82.6% | 85.0% | 85.7% | 83.4% | 88% | 10% | 126,001 |
| AP 2D Art & Design | 87.2% | 86.6% | 83.6% | 82.8% | 83.0% | 85% | 12% | 48,279 |
| AP Chinese Language and Culture | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 89.2% | 85% | 48% | 18,312 |
| AP Drawing | 86.2% | 88.3% | 84.8% | 83.8% | 84.2% | 83% | 16% | 23,107 |
| AP Spanish Language and Culture | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 85.0% | 83% | 21% | 182,670 |
| AP Calculus BC | 75.2% | 76.9% | 78.5% | 80.9% | 78.6% | 82% | 46% | 160,436 |
| AP Precalculus | n/a | n/a | n/a | 75.6% | 80.8% | 82% | 29% | 253,596 |
| AP African American Studies | n/a | n/a | n/a | 72.6% | 79.2% | 77% | 20% | 21,435 |
| AP United States Government & Politics | 50.5% | 48.7% | 49.2% | 73.0% | 71.7% | 76% | 23% | 387,973 |
| AP 3D Art & Design | 71.4% | 73.5% | 72.1% | 72.0% | 71.6% | 75% | 7% | 10,304 |
| AP Chemistry | 51.3% | 54.0% | 75.1% | 75.6% | 77.9% | 75% | 15% | 168,833 |
| AP English Language & Composition | 57.8% | 55.7% | 56.1% | 54.6% | 74.3% | 75% | 15% | 616,294 |
| AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism | 69.5% | 69.4% | 70.2% | 71.6% | 72.9% | 75% | 24% | 29,708 |
| AP European History | 54.7% | 58.9% | 59.4% | 71.6% | 72.6% | 74% | 16% | 86,729 |
| AP Psychology | 53.3% | 58.3% | 59.6% | 61.7% | 70.5% | 74% | 15% | 334,038 |
| AP United States History | 47.2% | 48.3% | 47.5% | 72.2% | 73.7% | 74% | 14% | 516,738 |
| AP English Literature & Composition | 43.8% | 77.9% | 77.2% | 72.4% | 74.2% | 73% | 16% | 416,531 |
| AP Latin | 56.8% | 57.1% | 56.7% | 56.5% | 58.6% | 73% | 20% | 4,336 |
| AP Japanese Language and Culture | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 74.7% | 72% | 47% | 3,245 |
| AP Physics 2 | 65.3% | 69.7% | 69.8% | 70.5% | 72.6% | 72% | 20% | 24,211 |
| AP Physics C: Mechanics | 73.4% | 73.4% | 73.5% | 76.3% | 73.2% | 72% | 20% | 65,980 |
| AP Biology | 59.2% | 67.8% | 64.4% | 68.3% | 70.4% | 71% | 15% | 287,232 |
| AP French Language and Culture | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 73.5% | 71% | 15% | 19,639 |
| AP Spanish Literature and Culture | 64.9% | 64.3% | 67.4% | 67.0% | 70.3% | 71% | 20% | 27,266 |
| AP Comparative Government & Politics | 71.8% | 70.5% | 70.8% | 73.0% | 71.8% | 70% | 15% | 27,150 |
| AP Environmental Science | 50.4% | 53.8% | 53.7% | 54.1% | 69.2% | 69% | 13% | 245,371 |
| AP Italian Language and Culture | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 75.2% | 69% | 19% | 2,241 |
| AP German Language and Culture | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 71.5% | 68% | 24% | 4,213 |
| AP Microeconomics | 59.1% | 59.0% | 68.0% | 67.6% | 68.2% | 68% | 19% | 117,548 |
| AP Physics 1 | 42.1% | 43.2% | 45.6% | 47.3% | 67.3% | 68% | 19% | 174,401 |
| AP Art History | 55.4% | 61.4% | 64.6% | 62.7% | 65.6% | 67% | 15% | 25,584 |
| AP Computer Science A | 65.1% | 67.6% | 68.0% | 67.2% | 67.2% | 66% | 25% | 93,217 |
| AP Human Geography | 52.4% | 53.2% | 54.4% | 56.1% | 64.7% | 66% | 19% | 282,781 |
| AP Macroeconomics | 51.3% | 51.8% | 64.7% | 65.1% | 67.3% | 66% | 19% | 176,356 |
| AP World History: Modern | 52.2% | 62.1% | 64.7% | 63.7% | 64.3% | 66% | 14% | 411,547 |
| AP Calculus AB | 51.0% | 55.6% | 58.0% | 64.4% | 64.2% | 65% | 20% | 285,891 |
| AP Computer Science Principles | 66.6% | 63.5% | 63.1% | 64.0% | 61.9% | 63% | 10% | 175,174 |
| AP Statistics | 57.9% | 60.4% | 60.0% | 61.8% | 60.3% | 62% | 17% | 266,791 |
| AP Music Theory | 61.2% | 61.9% | 60.7% | 60.2% | 60.5% | 59% | 18% | 17,799 |
The highest and lowest rates in 2026
Highest share scoring 3 or higher: AP Research (90%), AP Seminar (88%), AP 2D Art & Design (85%), AP Chinese Language and Culture (85%), AP Drawing (83%).
Lowest: AP Music Theory (59%), AP Statistics (62%), AP Computer Science Principles (63%), AP Calculus AB (65%), AP World History: Modern (66%).
Highest share scoring 5: AP Chinese Language and Culture (48%), AP Japanese Language and Culture (47%), AP Calculus BC (46%), AP Precalculus (29%), AP Computer Science A (25%).
Read these with the first section in mind: a high rate is not a sign of an easy exam, and the lowest rates are not a list of the hardest exams.
Why a rate moves from one year to the next
Between 2021 and 2026, 26 of the 32 exams listed in both years had a higher share at 3 or higher in 2026. The table shows some large moves in a single year:
- AP English Literature & Composition: 43.8% in 2021, 77.9% in 2022 (up 34.1 points)
- AP United States History: 47.5% in 2023, 72.2% in 2024 (up 24.7 points)
- AP United States Government & Politics: 49.2% in 2023, 73.0% in 2024 (up 23.8 points)
- AP Chemistry: 54.0% in 2022, 75.1% in 2023 (up 21.1 points)
- AP Physics 1: 47.3% in 2024, 67.3% in 2025 (up 20.0 points)
- AP English Language & Composition: 54.6% in 2024, 74.3% in 2025 (up 19.7 points)
- AP Environmental Science: 54.1% in 2024, 69.2% in 2025 (up 15.1 points)
- AP Latin: 58.6% in 2025, 73% in 2026 (up 14.4 points)
- AP Macroeconomics: 51.8% in 2022, 64.7% in 2023 (up 12.9 points)
- AP European History: 59.4% in 2023, 71.6% in 2024 (up 12.2 points)
There are two accounts of changes like these, and both come with a source.
- The College Board's account. It says it sets each exam's score standards with evidence from college faculty and from student performance data, and reviews every subject's standards every five to ten years. It says that since 2022 it has used this method (it calls it evidence-based standard setting), that it confirmed the success rates of subjects typically between 60% and 80%, and that it raised the success rates of nine subjects that were below 60% into that range. It adds that the standards remain more stringent than college grades. Its senior vice president for AP has written that the courses' learning objectives and the exams did not change, and that in 2025 rates rose on some exams and fell on others because more or fewer students met the objectives.
- A critic's account. Paul E. Peterson, a Harvard political scientist, argues in Education Next that the new method raised reported performance on nine exams, which he names as English Language, U.S. History, English Literature, World History, U.S. Government and Politics, Psychology, Biology, Human Geography and Chemistry, and that scores on them are therefore a weaker signal of readiness for college work. He reports their average share at 3 or higher rising from about 52% in 2021 to about 71% in 2025.
This page takes no side and gives no cause for any single jump. It shows the published figures, and it asks you to compare years with care: for an exam whose standard was reviewed in between, a 3 or higher in one year may not mean the same as a 3 or higher in another.
The AP exams on Tutix
Seven of these exams are ready-made programs, with live classes, practice questions and, at the deepest level, full practice papers: AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, AP Precalculus, AP Statistics, AP Biology, AP Chemistry and AP Human Geography. Ten more have a page that explains the 2027 format and the score history, and you can start a class on any of them from your own notes today. See all of them on the programs page, or read how AP exams work.
Each program's hours and the price of a pass are on the Programs page.
Questions people ask
What is the AP pass rate?
The College Board does not publish one pass rate. The share of students scoring 3 or higher is what most people mean. In 2026 it ranged from 59% to 90% across the 40 exams the College Board lists.
Which AP exam has the highest pass rate?
In 2026, AP Research, with 90% of students scoring 3 or higher. A rate describes the group that sat the exam, so it is not a ranking of how easy an exam is.
Which AP exam has the lowest pass rate?
In 2026, AP Music Theory, with 59% of students scoring 3 or higher. A low rate describes the group that sat the exam and is not a ranking of how hard the exam is.
Have AP pass rates gone up?
On the College Board's tables, 26 of the 32 exams listed in both 2021 and 2026 had a higher share at 3 or higher in 2026. The College Board says it reviews score standards every five to ten years, so some of the change is a new standard.
Is a 3 a passing score on an AP exam?
The College Board calls a 3 qualified. Many US colleges grant credit or placement for a 3 or above, but each college decides, and some ask for a 4 or a 5.
Why did the pass rate on some AP exams jump?
The tables show jumps of ten points or more for 10 exams in a single year. The College Board says it reviews each subject's score standards every five to ten years and that some distributions changed for that reason; a critic argues the new method raised scores. This page shows the figures and takes no side.
Sources
- AP score distributions, 2026, College Board (2026 results)
- AP score distributions, 2025, College Board (2025 results)
- AP score distributions, 2024, College Board (2024 results)
- AP score distributions, 2023, College Board (2023 results)
- AP score distributions, 2022, College Board (2022 results)
- AP score distributions, 2021, College Board (2021 results)
- Score setting and scoring, College Board (accessed October 23, 2026)
- Updates and information about verifying AP score standards, College Board (July 22, 2024)
- AP Exams Are as Rigorous as Ever (Trevor Packer, College Board), Education Next (accessed October 23, 2026)
- Admissions Officers Beware: Some Advanced Placement Scores Are Inflated (Paul E. Peterson), Education Next (accessed October 23, 2026)
- The AP score scale, College Board (accessed October 23, 2026)
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