NCLEX whiteboard, calculator and scratch-paper rules

What the test center gives you

The 2026 Candidate Bulletin says an on-screen calculator is available during the exam, and NCLEX.com's exam day page adds that an erasable noteboard and marker are provided for notes. There is no paper scratch sheet. The test administrator hands you the noteboard and marker before you enter the testing room.

If the board fills up, raise your hand and ask for a clean one; the candidate rules allow this during the exam. Earplugs are also available from the administrator on request, but you may not bring your own. Everything else you might want stays in your locker.

What you cannot bring or do

The bulletin lists handheld calculators, conversion tables and dictionaries as prohibited aids, alongside phones, smart watches and other devices. Bringing study notes into the center, or looking at them on a break, also counts as misconduct and can lead to dismissal with no refund.

The noteboard has its own rules. You may not use it to cover any part of the screen, and you may not copy exam items onto it word for word. Writing on anything other than the noteboard, including your hand, creates a case and puts your results on hold. The administrator collects and counts the board when you finish.

Can you write on the board before the exam starts?

The candidate rules do not set a moment when writing may begin, and they do not ban it before the first item. What they do say is that the five-hour exam time includes the introductory screen and all breaks, so anything you write once the session starts comes out of those five hours.

Two practical points follow. A short list costs a minute or two, not ten. And the test administrator gives the orientation at check-in, so follow what you are told there; if you are unsure, ask then, not after you are seated.

What is worth writing down first

Write only what you would otherwise recompute under stress. For most candidates that means a few conversions, such as 1 kg equals 2.2 lb, 1 tsp equals 5 mL, and 1 g equals 1000 mg, plus the dose formula (desired over have, times quantity) and the drip rate formula (volume times drop factor, divided by minutes).

Medication math sits with pharmacology, which the 2026 RN test plan sets at 13 to 19 percent of items and the PN plan at 10 to 16 percent. That is enough to matter, not enough to justify a full page of notes. Leave room on the board for working out each problem.

Practice with the same tools

NCSBN offers a free candidate tutorial on its Prepare page that walks through the Pearson software and item types. Use it before test day so the on-screen calculator and item layouts are familiar, rather than discovering them on question one.

When you do practice questions, put your phone calculator away and use an on-screen one, and work on a small dry-erase board instead of paper. Erasing and running out of space feel different, and rehearsing that removes one surprise from the day.

Sources

2026 NCLEX Examination Candidate Bulletin (rev. April 2026), NCSBN and Pearson. On-screen calculator, prohibited aids, noteboard rules (Candidate Rules 6.0, April 2026), earplugs, five-hour time includes intro screen and breaks, 2026 test plan percentages

Exam Day, NCLEX.com. On-screen calculator and erasable noteboard and marker provided

Prepare, NCLEX.com. Free NCLEX candidate tutorial for the Pearson exam software