How long is the AP Environmental Science exam?
The AP Environmental Science exam is 2 hours and 40 minutes long. Section I has 80 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes and counts for 60% of your score. Section II has 3 free-response questions in 70 minutes and counts for 40%. It is a fully digital exam taken in the Bluebook app, and in 2027 it is on Thursday, May 13, in Session 2.
In more detail
Section I gives you 90 minutes for 80 questions, a little over a minute each. Questions are single questions or sets built on a shared diagram, data table, chart, graph, model or text source, so practice reading a graph quickly before you answer.
Section II gives you 70 minutes for 3 questions, about 23 minutes each. One asks you to design an investigation from a scenario with a model or visual, one asks you to analyze and interpret quantitative data from a table, chart or graph, and one asks you to analyze an environmental problem by doing calculations. With only three free-response questions worth 40% in total, each one is worth more than 13% of your score.
Calculators are permitted on the exam, and the College Board lists approved models in its calculator policy. Check-in and instructions come on top of the 2 hours and 40 minutes, and your AP coordinator tells you when and where to report. AP Environmental Science is often shortened to APES.
AP Environmental Science exam timing (College Board, May 2027)
| Section | Questions | Time | Share of score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section I: multiple choice (in Bluebook) | 80 | 1 h 30 min | 60% |
| Section II: free response (in Bluebook) | 3 | 1 h 10 min | 40% |
| Total | 83 | 2 h 40 min | 100% |
Step by step
- 1
Take one full practice exam in one sitting: 90 minutes of multiple choice, then 70 minutes of free response.
- 2
Pace multiple choice at a little over a minute per question and flag the ones you guessed.
- 3
Give each free-response question about 23 minutes, and practice all three types: design an investigation, analyze data and do the calculations.
- 4
Practice the calculations: set up the formula, carry the units through and write the answer with its unit.
- 5
Practice reading graphs and data tables against the clock, since many multiple-choice sets are built on them.
- 6
Score yourself with the official scoring guidelines and review the topics behind your misses.
How StudyPDF helps
Upload your APES textbook chapters, class notes or lecture slides, and StudyPDF builds a practice exam from them in sections, with a timer if you want one and no feedback until you submit. Short answers are self-graded against a model answer, and the report shows your result per section. Labeled diagrams from your slides, such as a nutrient cycle, can also become flashcards that hide each label. A free account needs no card.
See also
More questions
How many questions are on the AP Environmental Science exam?
83 in total: 80 multiple-choice questions and 3 free-response questions.
Is the AP Environmental Science exam digital?
Yes. The College Board lists it as a fully digital exam: you answer both sections in the Bluebook app. Calculators are permitted.
Do it on your own course
Upload your lectures and ask Bo. Cited answers, plus flashcards, exams, and more built from your material.