NCLEX-RN pass rates by state, 2025
In 2025, 86.7% of 192,916 first-time, U.S.-educated candidates passed the NCLEX-RN. The rate in every state and DC, from NCSBN's own figures, and what it does and does not tell you.
Every year the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), which writes the NCLEX, publishes how many people took it and how many passed. In 2025, 192,916 people educated in the United States took the NCLEX-RN for the first time and 167,272 passed: 86.7%. The figures below are for that group, by the state or territory each candidate applied to for a license.
Highest and lowest
The highest first-time rates were in North Dakota (92.9%), Vermont (92.6%), South Carolina (91.6%), South Dakota (91.6%) and Tennessee (90.9%). The lowest were in Alaska (77.8%), Utah (79.1%), Oklahoma (80.5%), Florida (81.8%) and New York (82.3%). The largest numbers of candidates tested for Florida (17,403), Texas (16,454), California (16,255), New York (11,418) and Ohio (8,529).
What the rate tells you, and what it does not
- The test is the same everywhere. The NCLEX-RN is one national exam. A state's rate reflects the graduates who applied there, mostly from that state's schools, not an easier or harder test.
- Your school's rate tells you more than your state's. Boards of nursing publish pass rates for each nursing program in their state. Look up your own program's.
- Your preparation is the part you control. A practice routine that covers the whole test plan, in the NCLEX's question formats, is where to put your effort.
- Small states move a lot. Where only a few hundred people tested, a handful of results shifts the rate by a point or more.
Every state
| Rank | State | First-time candidates | Passed | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Dakota | 647 | 601 | 92.9% |
| 2 | Vermont | 390 | 361 | 92.6% |
| 3 | South Carolina | 3,216 | 2,947 | 91.6% |
| 4 | South Dakota | 740 | 678 | 91.6% |
| 5 | Tennessee | 4,369 | 3,972 | 90.9% |
| 6 | Wyoming | 304 | 276 | 90.8% |
| 7 | Idaho | 1,276 | 1,157 | 90.7% |
| 8 | Montana | 572 | 519 | 90.7% |
| 9 | Delaware | 489 | 443 | 90.6% |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | 7,742 | 7,000 | 90.4% |
| 11 | Nebraska | 1,238 | 1,119 | 90.4% |
| 12 | Kansas | 1,804 | 1,625 | 90.1% |
| 13 | Arizona | 5,020 | 4,514 | 89.9% |
| 14 | New Hampshire | 865 | 777 | 89.8% |
| 15 | North Carolina | 5,236 | 4,696 | 89.7% |
| 16 | Maine | 936 | 840 | 89.7% |
| 17 | Louisiana | 2,593 | 2,321 | 89.5% |
| 18 | Mississippi | 2,146 | 1,918 | 89.4% |
| 19 | California | 16,255 | 14,473 | 89.0% |
| 20 | Oregon | 1,888 | 1,676 | 88.8% |
| 21 | Missouri | 3,661 | 3,246 | 88.7% |
| 22 | Texas | 16,454 | 14,579 | 88.6% |
| 23 | Virginia | 4,987 | 4,413 | 88.5% |
| 24 | Wisconsin | 3,890 | 3,440 | 88.4% |
| 25 | Nevada | 2,052 | 1,811 | 88.3% |
| 26 | Colorado | 2,214 | 1,943 | 87.8% |
| 27 | Hawaii | 507 | 445 | 87.8% |
| 28 | Maryland | 2,856 | 2,501 | 87.6% |
| 29 | Indiana | 4,093 | 3,572 | 87.3% |
| 30 | Alabama | 4,111 | 3,585 | 87.2% |
| 31 | Arkansas | 2,402 | 2,094 | 87.2% |
| 32 | Massachusetts | 3,740 | 3,256 | 87.1% |
| 33 | New Jersey | 4,549 | 3,951 | 86.9% |
| 34 | Connecticut | 2,275 | 1,974 | 86.8% |
| 35 | Iowa | 2,122 | 1,841 | 86.8% |
| 36 | West Virginia | 1,657 | 1,429 | 86.2% |
| 37 | Georgia | 5,468 | 4,704 | 86.0% |
| 38 | Michigan | 4,844 | 4,162 | 85.9% |
| 39 | Washington, DC | 275 | 236 | 85.8% |
| 40 | Kentucky | 3,598 | 3,070 | 85.3% |
| 41 | New Mexico | 1,004 | 855 | 85.2% |
| 42 | Washington | 3,062 | 2,599 | 84.9% |
| 43 | Rhode Island | 790 | 671 | 84.9% |
| 44 | Illinois | 6,351 | 5,383 | 84.8% |
| 45 | Ohio | 8,529 | 7,168 | 84.0% |
| 46 | Minnesota | 3,435 | 2,866 | 83.4% |
| 47 | New York | 11,418 | 9,399 | 82.3% |
| 48 | Florida | 17,403 | 14,240 | 81.8% |
| 49 | Oklahoma | 2,755 | 2,217 | 80.5% |
| 50 | Utah | 4,368 | 3,456 | 79.1% |
| 51 | Alaska | 248 | 193 | 77.8% |
| United States | 192,916 | 167,272 | 86.7% |
First-time, U.S.-educated candidates for the NCLEX-RN, January 1 to December 31, 2025, by jurisdiction. Source: NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics, Table 8. Portions copyrighted by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. All rights reserved. Territories are left out of the table; the U.S. row is NCSBN's own total.
Practise for it
Vibe Nursing has NCLEX practice questions in the exam's formats, including select-all-that-apply, with the reasoning behind every answer, and can turn your own lecture slides into practice questions.
Questions
What was the NCLEX-RN pass rate in 2025?
86.7% for first-time, U.S.-educated candidates: 167,272 of 192,916 passed (NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics).
Which state has the highest NCLEX pass rate?
In 2025, North Dakota had the highest first-time rate for U.S.-educated candidates, 92.9%. Alaska had the lowest, 77.8%.
Is the NCLEX easier in some states?
No. The NCLEX-RN is the same national exam everywhere. The state in these figures is the one each candidate applied to for a license, so the rates reflect who tested there, not a different test.
Sources
- National Council of State Boards of Nursing, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics, Table 8, first-time U.S.-educated NCLEX-RN candidates. Portions copyrighted by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. All rights reserved.