The NCLEX, and what the pass rates say
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing publishes pass rates every year, and the 2025 numbers say something worth knowing if you trained in the United States.
| First attempt, 2025 | Candidates | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| US-educated, baccalaureate | 100,258 | 87.6% |
| US-educated, associate degree | 89,549 | 86.1% |
| US-educated, diploma | 2,671 | 83.3% |
| Internationally educated | 52,827 | 47.3% |
What the gap is and is not
The gap says little about ability. It reflects that the NCLEX tests American nursing practice, American drug names, American scope of practice and an American approach to clinical judgment. A program taught inside that system prepares you for the exam it produced. A program taught elsewhere, however rigorous, does not.
So if you did your degree here, you are in the 87.6% column, not the 47.3% one. A great deal of the anxious advice you will find online is calibrated to the second group.
What still applies to you
The sequence is fixed and each step waits on the one before it: apply to your state board, receive authorization to test, register with Pearson, sit the exam.
Timing is where it bites. You cannot work as an RN until the license is issued, and employers set residency start dates months in advance and generally do not move them. Some require verified NCLEX results days before you start.
Register before February 1, 2027
NCSBN announced in August 2026 that the NCLEX registration fee rises from $200 to $350 on February 1, 2027, the first increase since 2000. Candidates who complete registration before that date pay $200.
If your timeline lets you register before then, do it. That is $150 to a December or January graduate, and registering early costs you nothing else.
If you do not pass first time
You may retest, subject to your state’s waiting period. It is not the end of anything, but it does consume time you have less of than a domestic classmate, which is the argument for sitting the exam as early as your authorization allows rather than waiting until you feel ready.
If you are a U.S.-educated nursing graduate looking for an employer that sponsors, apply to inSpring.
Last checked September 9, 2026. Source: NCSBN 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics, and NCSBN fee announcement of August 21, 2026.