In 2025, about 86.7 percent of first-time, US-educated candidates passed the NCLEX-RN, according to NCSBN's annual statistics. That was down from about 91 percent in 2024. Pass rates for repeat testers and internationally educated nurses were much lower, which is the part of the data most students should pay attention to.
2025 NCLEX-RN pass rates by group
First-time, US-educated candidates: about 86.7 percent. This is the number most schools and news stories quote, because it describes new graduates sitting the exam for the first time.
Repeat, US-educated candidates: about 52.7 percent. Roughly half of the people who retake the exam pass on the next attempt.
First-time, internationally educated candidates: about 47.3 percent. Many of these candidates are preparing alongside full-time work and adapting to US practice standards, which shows in the numbers.
All RN candidates combined: about 69.1 percent. The overall figure is pulled down by the repeat and international groups, so it is not a fair picture of a typical new graduate's odds.
Why did the pass rate drop in 2025?
NCSBN has not tied the drop to one cause, so be careful with confident explanations you see online. What we do know is what did not change. The passing standard stayed the same, the exam length stayed the same, and the eight content categories kept the same weights. A dip of a few points from year to year is not unusual, and 2024 was a particularly high year.
What 2026 looks like so far
A new NCLEX-RN test plan took effect on April 1, 2026, but it is a light update. The categories and their weights are the same as before, and NCSBN kept the passing standard where it was. It stays in place until at least March 31, 2029. Early quarterly figures for 2026 put first-time, US-educated results close to the 2025 level. Check NCSBN's pass rate dashboard for the latest quarter before you rely on any single number.
Your odds are not the national average
The most useful thing in this data is the gap between first attempts and repeat attempts. A first-time candidate passes at well above 80 percent. A repeat candidate passes at about half that rate. Doing the work before your first sitting is far easier than climbing back after a fail, both on your confidence and on your wallet.
Pass rates also vary a lot between schools and states. If your program publishes its own first-time pass rate, that number tells you more about your preparation than the national one does.
What actually moves your chances
Exam-style questions with rationales, done consistently, are the one habit almost every successful candidate shares. Spread your practice across all eight categories in roughly the proportions the exam uses, and spend extra time on Management of Care and Pharmacology, the two heaviest. When you get a question wrong, write down why: missing knowledge, misreading the stem, or choosing a safe-sounding action over the priority one. The pattern in that list tells you what to study next.
If you want a simple place to start, DrillRN gives you 10 free NCLEX-style questions a day with full rationales.
