How many questions are on the NCLEX-PN, and how long you have
Written and reviewed by Rachel Goldberg, MSN, RN, CEN · 4 min read · Updated November 2026
Short answer
The NCLEX-PN has between 85 and 150 questions, and you get five hours to answer them, including the intro screen and every break. Of the minimum 85, NCSBN's 2026 PN test plan says 52 come from the eight content categories, 18 form three clinical judgment case studies, and 15 are unscored pretest items.
Where the 85 minimum comes from
The 2026 NCLEX-PN Test Plan, effective April 2026, sets the minimum at 85 items and the maximum at 150. Every exam includes three clinical judgment case studies of six items each, and those 18 items are counted separately from the category items because one case study can touch several content areas.
The other 67 items on a minimum-length exam are 52 scored category items and 15 pretest items. Pretest items are new questions NCSBN is trying out. They do not count toward your result, and the plan says you cannot tell them apart from scored items, so answer every question as if it counts.
Roughly how many questions per category
The test plan gives each category a percentage range, and applying those ranges to the 52 category items shows the rough count on a minimum-length exam. Coordinated Care, at 18 to 24%, works out to about 9 to 12 items. Safety and Infection Prevention and Control and Pharmacological Therapies, each 10 to 16%, come to about 5 to 8 items apiece.
Psychosocial Integrity and Reduction of Risk Potential, each 9 to 15%, are also about 5 to 8 items. Basic Care and Comfort and Physiological Adaptation, each 7 to 13%, are about 4 to 7. Health Promotion and Maintenance, at 6 to 12%, is about 3 to 6. These are estimates from the percentages, not fixed counts, and longer exams keep the same proportions.
The five-hour clock and the two breaks
NCSBN's 2026 Candidate Bulletin says the five hours cover a short introductory screen, two scheduled optional breaks and any unscheduled breaks you take. The first optional break is offered after two hours of testing and the second after three and a half hours, and the exam clock keeps running during both.
If you had to answer all 150 items, five hours would allow two minutes per item with no breaks at all. That is the worst case to plan for. Use the break offers as checkpoints: at two hours, ask whether your pace would still let you finish 150 items with time to spare.
How many questions you need to pass
No number of correct answers guarantees a pass. The exam is adaptive: after each item the computer updates its estimate of your ability, and it stops once it is 95% confident you are clearly above or below the passing standard, or when you reach 150 items. The test plan states that exam length is not an indication of a pass or fail result.
Running out of time is the one case where the count decides things directly. If the five hours end before you have answered 85 items, the result is a fail. If you have answered at least 85, your final ability estimate decides. You also cannot skip: the exam will not move on until you answer, and you cannot go back after you confirm.
Pacing without rushing
The bulletin warns that rapid guessing can drastically lower your score, because on an adaptive test it gives you easier items, which lowers the ability estimate further. Its advice is to keep a reasonable pace and read each item carefully, and the test plan adds that there is no time limit on any single item.
In practice, give case studies the time they need, since six items rest on one client story, and do not let one stand-alone item take ten minutes. Sit at least one full-length practice session so the two-hour and three-and-a-half-hour break points feel familiar before test day.
Sources
2026 NCLEX-PN Test Plan, effective April 2026 (NCSBN). 85-150 items, five hours including breaks, 52 category items plus 18 case study items plus 15 pretest items, category percentages, stopping rules, length not an indication of result, every item must be answered, partial credit only where more than one key exists
2026 NCLEX Examination Candidate Bulletin (NCSBN). Five-hour limit covers intro screen and all breaks; optional breaks after two and three and a half hours; clock does not stop on breaks; rapid guessing lowers the ability estimate
Common questions
How many questions are on the NCLEX-PN in 2026?
Between 85 and 150. The 2026 PN test plan, effective April 2026, uses the same range as the RN exam, and every exam includes 15 unscored pretest items.
How long is the NCLEX-PN?
Up to five hours, and that includes the introductory screen and all breaks, scheduled or not. You may finish much sooner if the exam stops at the minimum of 85 items.
Does the NCLEX-PN shut off at 150 questions if you fail?
Not necessarily. Reaching 150 means your ability stayed close to the passing standard, so the result comes from your final ability estimate. You can pass or fail at 150.