AP Practice Test

What the AP is and how it works

According to College Board, “AP Exams are scored on a scale of 1 to 5. Many U.S. colleges grant credit and/or advanced placement (that means they let you skip the equivalent course once you get to college) for scores of 3 and above.”^[2]

AP exams are run by the College Board. They are scored on a scale of 1 to 5, and many U.S. colleges grant credit or advanced placement for scores of 3 and above. Each college sets its own policy, so check the policy of the schools you are considering before relying on a particular score.

AP English Literature and Composition is fully digital. You complete multiple-choice and free-response questions in the Bluebook testing app, and all responses are submitted automatically at the end of the exam. The exam lasts 3 hours. The scheduled date is Wednesday, May 5, 2027 (Session 1), and the late-testing date is Monday, May 17, 2027 (Session 1).

You cannot order an AP Exam directly. Exams are ordered through a school's AP coordinator. Homeschooled students, independent-study students, virtual school students and students whose school does not administer AP Exams need to find a school that will let them test. The preferred ordering deadline was October 2, 2026, and the final ordering deadline is November 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET. If you decide after that deadline not to take an exam that was ordered for you, the charge is $40 per exam. Students with significant financial need may be eligible for a $37 College Board fee reduction per exam.

Most scores are available in July, though some take longer. Scores do not expire, and scores from before 2018 are archived and can only be sent to a college, university or scholarship program. Local fees and school deadlines can differ, so confirm details with your AP coordinator and the College Board.

AP Exam at a Glance

What changed for AP in 2026

• Oct 20, 2026: Eligibility changed to Ordered through a school's AP coordinator; homeschooled and outside students must find a school (previously Ordered through a school's AP coordinator; outside students must find a school).^[5]
• Oct 20, 2026: Other (update 2027-04-30) changed to New for 2027: AP World Languages and Cultures students must submit the Personalized Project Reference (PPR) as final by April 30, 2027, 11:59 p.m. ET. (previously New for 2027: AP World Languages and Cultures students must submit the Personalized Project Reference (PPR) by April 30, 2027, 11:59 p.m. ET.).^[8]
• Oct 20, 2026: Validity changed to Scores don't expire; pre-2018 scores are archived (previously Pre-2018 scores archived).^[4]
• Oct 20, 2026: Registration deadline changed to November 13, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET (final ordering deadline; preferred deadline was October 2, 2026) (previously November 13, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET).^[6]
• Oct 20, 2026: Exam fee (Fee reduction) changed to $37 College Board fee reduction per exam (previously $37 fee reduction per exam).^[3]

Worked examples: how to reason through AP questions

These are practice questions written for this site, not questions from the real exam. Each explanation shows why the right answer is right and why the others are wrong.

Example 1

Question: What is the main characteristic of ionic bonding?

1. Electrons are shared equally between atoms.
2. One atom donates electrons to another atom, forming oppositely charged ions.
3. Atoms do not gain or lose electrons.
4. Electrons are transferred but not shared.

Answer: B. One atom donates electrons to another atom, forming oppositely charged ions.

Explanation:

Option B is correct. In ionic bonding, one atom gives up electrons to another, which leaves a positively charged ion and a negatively charged ion that attract each other.

Option A describes equal sharing, which is nonpolar covalent bonding, not ionic bonding. Option C says no atom gains or loses electrons, which would rule out ions altogether. Option D is tempting because it mentions transfer, but it is not the best statement: the defining feature is the formation of oppositely charged ions held together by electrostatic attraction, and the option does not say that.

Rule to remember: transfer of electrons, usually from a metal to a nonmetal, gives ions and ionic bonding. Sharing of electrons gives covalent bonding. When a question asks for the main characteristic, pick the option that names the ions.

Example 2

Question: 10.0 mL of 0.200 M HCl is diluted to a final volume of 500.0 mL with distilled water. What is the pH of the resulting solution?

1. 2.40
2. 1.70
3. 3.10
4. 2.70

Answer: A. 2.40

Explanation:

Option A, 2.40, is correct. HCl is a strong acid, so it dissociates fully and the hydrogen ion concentration equals the acid concentration after dilution. Work out the moles of acid from the 10.0 mL of 0.200 M HCl, divide by the final 500.0 mL, then take the negative logarithm.

Option B, 1.70, is too low a pH. It implies a more concentrated solution, which suggests the dilution was undercounted. Options C and D are too high. They imply a more dilute solution than the numbers support, which usually comes from dividing by the wrong volume or slipping on the logarithm.

Rule to remember: moles do not change on dilution, only the volume does. For a strong acid, find the new concentration first, then convert to pH. A quick check is that diluting an acid must raise its pH.

Example 3

Question: Using Slater's rules, what is the effective nuclear charge (Z_eff) experienced by a 3p electron in chlorine (Cl, Z = 17)?

1. 6.10
2. 7.00
3. 5.75
4. 12.85

Answer: A. 6.10

Explanation:

Option A, 6.10, is correct. Effective nuclear charge is the full nuclear charge of 17 minus the shielding from other electrons. Slater's rules give each electron a weight that depends on its group. Electrons in the same group as the 3p electron shield only a little, electrons in the next shell in shield strongly, and electrons in the innermost shell shield almost completely.

Option B equals the count of outer-shell electrons, a shortcut that ignores how inner shells shield. Option C most likely comes from using a wrong shielding weight for one of the groups. Option D implies far too little shielding for an electron with filled inner shells beneath it.

Rule to remember: write the electron configuration, group the electrons, apply each weight, add up the shielding, and subtract from the nuclear charge.

How to use these practice tests

Start with the official material. Open the College Board page for AP English Literature and Composition, read the exam format description, and look at the sample questions and scoring guidelines it provides. That tells you what the real exam asks, so you can judge how closely any practice set matches it.

Then work through our English Literature practice test without notes, in a single sitting, and use the Bluebook app to get used to the digital format. Mark every question you guessed on as well as those you missed. Review each explanation and write down the rule behind it in your own words.

If you are also preparing for other AP subjects, use the Psychology set and the Chemistry sets such as Chemical Bonding and Molecular Structure or Kinetics and Chemical Equilibrium in the same way: attempt, review, and retry the questions you missed after a few days.

Closer to test day, practise under timed conditions, then confirm your test date, room and device requirements with your school's AP coordinator. Remember that our questions are written by AI tools and are practice only, so rely on the official materials for the exact exam style.

Sources & last verified

1. College Board — time limit, delivery, next exam date (official source). “Exam Duration 3hrs” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
2. College Board — passing score (official source). “AP Exams are scored on a scale of 1 to 5. Many U.S. colleges grant credit and/or advanced placement (that means they let you skip…” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
3. College Board — exam fee (official source). “If you have significant financial need, you may be eligible for a $37 College Board fee reduction per AP Exam.” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
4. College Board — validity, score release (official source). “If you took your last AP Exam before 2018, your scores are archived. Archived scores are not viewable in our score reporting system and can…” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
5. apcentral.collegeboard.org — eligibility (official source). “Parents and students cannot order AP Exams directly. Students who are homeschooled, independent study, attend virtual schools, or attend schools that don't administer AP Exams…” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
6. apcentral.collegeboard.org — registration deadline (official source). “October 2, 2026: Preferred ordering deadline November 13, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET: Final ordering deadline” Verified Oct 27, 2026 · source checked Oct 27, 2026.
7. apcentral.collegeboard.org — next exam date (official source). “Late-Testing Schedule: May 17–21, 2027” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.
8. College Board — other (official source). “AP World Languages and Cultures: April 30, 2027 (11:59 p.m. ET), is the deadline to submit your Personalized Project Reference (PPR) as final.” Verified Oct 20, 2026 · source checked Oct 16, 2026.

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