Board Certified Behavior Analyst Certification Examination
BCBA® Mock Exam
A BCBA mock exam here is 185 multiple-choice questions in 4 hours, the length and time limit of the BACB's exam (175 scored questions and 10 unscored), weighted across the nine domains of the BCBA Test Content Outline (6th ed.). You can start with a free 25-question diagnostic that needs no account and shows your result by domain.
The free BCBA diagnostic is being prepared and is not open yet. The exam facts and the content outline on this page are current.
The 6th-edition outline has 104 tasks in nine domains, and no single domain dominates: the largest two, Concepts and Principles and Behavior-Change Procedures, are 14% each, and the smallest, Behaviorism and Philosophical Foundations, is 5%. With a spread that flat, no one area carries you.
Four hours is also long enough for attention to be a factor in its own right. A full-length mock tests both things at once: whether you know the material across all nine domains, and whether you can still read a scenario carefully in the fourth hour.
The BCBA exam at a glance
What you are preparing for, in the exam owner's own numbers.
| Questions | 185 (175 scored, 10 unscored) |
|---|---|
| Time limit | 4 hours |
| Exam fee | $125 |
| Delivery | In person on computer at authorized Pearson VUE testing sites (United States, Canada except Quebec and, since July 1, 2026, Ontario, and Australia until January 1, 2027), available continuously with results given on site. The $125 exam appointment fee is paid to Pearson VUE for every attempt and is separate from the $245 certification application fee paid to the BACB. |
| Eligibility | A master's degree or higher, behavior-analytic content (an APBA- or ABAI-accredited/recognized program, qualifying coursework, or the faculty or postdoctoral pathways), and supervised fieldwork in applied behavior analysis (2,000 hours of supervised fieldwork or 1,500 hours of concentrated supervised fieldwork). Once the application is approved, the candidate has two years to pass the exam. |
| Passing standard | Pass/fail. The passing score is criterion-referenced and set with the modified Angoff method by a panel of BACB-certified subject matter experts; the BACB does not publish the cut score. |
| Retakes | Up to 8 total attempts within the 2-year authorization period that follows application approval, with a 30-day wait after each attempt. Each retake requires a $140 retake application fee to the BACB plus the $125 Pearson VUE appointment fee. After 8 failed attempts the candidate must wait until the 2-year period ends and reapply. |
| Outline in force | BCBA Test Content Outline (6th ed.), effective January 1, 2025 |
Exam facts are taken from BACB’s own published material, last checked October 2, 2026. Source. Confirm fees, dates and rules with the organization you register with before you book.
Who takes it
The exam is the final requirement for the Board Certified Behavior Analyst credential. To be approved to sit it, the BACB requires a master's degree or higher, behavior-analytic coursework through one of its recognized pathways, and supervised fieldwork in applied behavior analysis: 2,000 hours of supervised fieldwork or 1,500 hours of concentrated supervised fieldwork. Once your application is approved you have two years to pass.
What the BCBA exam covers
9 content areas and the share of the exam each carries. The bank is tagged to the same outline, so your results come back by area.
| Domain | Weight | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| ABehaviorism and Philosophical Foundations5 tasks | 5% |
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| BConcepts and Principles24 tasks | 14% |
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| CMeasurement, Data Display, and Interpretation12 tasks | 12% |
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| DExperimental Design9 tasks | 7% |
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| EEthical and Professional Issues12 tasks | 13% |
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| FBehavior Assessment8 tasks | 13% |
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| GBehavior-Change Procedures19 tasks | 14% |
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| HSelecting and Implementing Interventions8 tasks | 11% |
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| IPersonnel Supervision and Management7 tasks | 11% |
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How to use the bank for the BCBA exam
- 1
Find your weak domains first
The 25-question diagnostic samples all nine domains. With weights this even, the result by domain matters more than the total: any two weak domains are between 12% and 28% of the exam.
- 2
Work the bank a domain at a time
Use tutor mode, where each question is followed by the reason for every option. Many questions turn on telling two related concepts apart, and the explanations for the wrong options are where that distinction is made.
- 3
Do not leave the smaller domains for last
Experimental Design (7%) and Behaviorism and Philosophical Foundations (5%) are the two smallest domains and together are 12% of the exam, about as much as Measurement, Data Display, and Interpretation on its own.
- 4
Sit full-length mocks under real conditions
185 questions, 4 hours, one sitting, no notes. Take the first about three weeks out and review every miss before the next. The BACB allows a retake only after 30 days and charges for each one, so find out here whether your pace holds.
What is in the paid BCBA bank
The question bank
The BCBA bank is still being written. The live count appears here when questions are published.
Every option explained
A written reason for every option, right and wrong, plus a one-line takeaway, a cited reference and the outline task the question tests.
Tutor mode and timed mode
Tutor mode shows the explanation after each question. Timed mode holds everything back until the end, at exam pace.
A readiness band, by domain
Your first-attempt results weighted the way the exam weights its domains, shown as a band rather than a pass probability: nobody outside the exam owner knows the cut score.
A study plan
Set your exam date and the plan divides the questions you have not seen across the days you have left, weakest domains first, with the mock exams placed in the back half.
BCBA passes
A pass is access for a fixed number of days. You pay once; nothing renews.
60-day pass
$89one-off
- The full BCBA bank for 60 days
- Every mock exam, tutor and timed modes
- Charged once. It does not renew.
180-day pass
$149one-off
- The full BCBA bank for 180 days
- Every mock exam, tutor and timed modes
- Charged once. It does not renew.
Refund within 7 days if you have answered fewer than 50 questions. Pass guarantee: complete 100% of the bank with an average of 80% or better, and if you still do not pass the exam your pass is extended by 90 days at no charge.
How the questions are written and checked
Step 1
Written to the public outline
Each question is written by AI against one task in BACB's published content outline. Nothing is taken from the exam itself.
Step 2
Solved blind by a second model
A different model answers the question without seeing the key. If it does not reach the same answer, the question is not published.
Step 3
Audited for flaws and duplicates
A separate pass looks for item-writing flaws: two defensible answers, a giveaway in the wording, a rationale that contradicts the key. Near-duplicates are removed.
Step 4
Corrected in public
Learners can report any question. Reports and answer statistics flag questions for withdrawal or correction, and every correction is logged.
There is no human subject-matter-expert review in that process, and we do not claim one. What you get instead is a cited reference on every question, so you can check it yourself. Read the full methodology or see the corrections log.
BCBA practice questions: common questions
Is there a free BCBA mock exam?
The diagnostic is free: 25 questions across all nine domains, with no account or email, and every question explained when you finish. The full-length 185-question mock exams and the rest of the bank are part of a paid pass, charged once with no renewal.
Is this mock exam written for the 6th edition?
Yes. Every question is tagged to one of the 104 tasks in the BCBA Test Content Outline (6th ed.), which the BACB has used for the exam since 2025, and mock exams are assembled to that outline's domain weights.
How many questions are on the BCBA exam and how long is it?
185 multiple-choice questions in 4 hours. 175 are scored; the other 10 are unscored questions under evaluation and are not identified.
What is the passing score for the BCBA exam?
The BACB does not publish it. The exam is reported as pass or fail against a criterion-referenced standard set with the modified Angoff method by a panel of BACB-certified subject matter experts. A practice percentage therefore cannot be converted into a pass or a fail.
How much does the BCBA exam cost?
The exam appointment is $125 per attempt, paid to Pearson VUE. That is separate from the $245 certification application fee paid to the BACB, and a retake also needs a $140 retake application fee.
How hard is the BCBA exam?
The BACB publishes the figures. 2025 (BACB Annual Data Report): 51% of first-time candidates and 23% of retake candidates passed. Those are figures for everyone who sat the exam, not for users of this site, for whom we publish no pass rate.
How many times can I take the BCBA exam?
Up to 8 times within the two-year authorization period that follows approval of your application, with a 30-day wait after each attempt. After 8 unsuccessful attempts you must wait for that period to end and apply again.
Who writes the questions?
They are written by AI from the public outline and verified by machine: a second model answers each question blind and must reach the same key, a separate audit checks for item-writing flaws, and near-duplicates are removed. No human subject-matter expert writes or reviews them. Each question cites a reference so you can check it.
BCBA® and Board Certified Behavior Analyst® are registered trademarks of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB). This site is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by the BACB.