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NCLEX pass rates, by who is actually taking it
The figure most people quote is 86.7%. That is one group only: first-time candidates educated in the United States. Everyone else faces different odds, and the gap is wide.
| NCLEX-RN candidate group | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| First-time, US-educated | 91.2% | 86.7% |
| Repeat, US-educated | — | 53.1% |
| First-time, internationally educated | 53.8% | 47.3% |
| Repeat, internationally educated | — | 30.3% |
| All candidatesBlends every group above, so it runs well below the first-time figure. | 73.3% | 69.1% |
First-time, US-educated, since 2022
What the numbers rule out
- 328,443 people took the NCLEX-RN for US licensure in 2025.
- The passing standard was 0.00 logits in both the 2024 and 2025 briefs, so the bar did not move.
- The first-time US-educated cohort grew from 186,760 in 2024 to 192,916 in 2025, so the decline is not a shrinking-cohort effect.
- BSN candidates passed at 87.6% and ADN candidates at 86.1% in 2025.
- NCSBN does not offer a cause for the 2025 decline.
If you trained outside the United States
Your group passed at 47.3% first time in 2025, and 51.6% in the first quarter of 2026. That is roughly forty points below US-educated first-timers. It is not a measure of whether you can nurse. It reflects a different exam format, a different clinical training, and often a second language.
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Find a study buddySource: National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics, published June 2026. Figures republished here, not our own analysis. NCSBN publishes a full brief once a year and updates quarterly. Check https://www.ncsbn.org before relying on any figure. Last checked 2026-09-05.