What is CLEP?
CLEP, the College-Level Examination Program, is a set of College Board exams that earn you college credit for an intro course without taking the class. You study on your own, pass one computer-based exam, and your college grants the credit if your score meets its cutoff. Scores run from 20 to 80, and the American Council on Education recommends credit for a 50 or higher.
In more detail
CLEP exams cover intro college subjects in five areas: History and Social Sciences, Composition and Literature, Science and Mathematics, Business and World Languages. The College Board's current list has more than 30 exams, from Principles of Macroeconomics and Biology to College Algebra, Introductory Psychology and Spanish. They are mostly multiple choice, and College Composition adds two required essays that you type on the computer.
The exam fee is $97 per exam. Taking it at home with remote proctoring adds a $30 fee, and most test centers charge their own administration fee, so check the total before you book. Eligible military personnel can have exams paid for through DANTES. Most exams take about 90 to 120 minutes, so one fits into a single morning or afternoon.
Your raw score is the number of questions you answer correctly, with no points taken off for wrong or skipped answers. It is converted to a scaled score from 20 to 80. The American Council on Education recommends credit for a 50 or higher, but every college sets its own cutoff, credit limit and list of accepted exams, and the language exams can earn more than one course of credit. If you miss your score, you cannot take the same exam again for three months.
CLEP key facts (College Board, October 2026)
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who runs it | College Board |
| Number of exams | More than 30 |
| Exam fee | $97, plus $30 for remote proctoring or the test center's own fee |
| Length | About 90 to 120 minutes, depending on the exam |
| Score scale | 20 to 80, no penalty for wrong answers |
| Credit-granting score | 50 recommended by ACE, set by each college |
| Retake | The same exam again after 3 months |
| Where | Test center or at home with remote proctoring |
Step by step
- 1
Pick the course you want to skip and check your college's CLEP policy: which exams it accepts, the minimum score and the credit limit.
- 2
Find the exam's fact sheet and topic outline on the CLEP site and compare it with the textbook you study from.
- 3
Study the outline's topics from a college textbook or your own notes, and test yourself with practice questions.
- 4
Take a timed practice test at the exam's real length.
- 5
Register through My CLEP, choose a test center or remote proctoring, and book a date.
- 6
Send your score report to your college.
How StudyPDF helps
Upload your textbook chapters, class notes or the exam's topic outline for the subject you want to test out of, and StudyPDF turns them into flashcards, quizzes and a timed practice exam, with each question citing the page it came from. It tracks which concepts you still miss, so each new quiz goes after the gaps. StudyPDF does not replace the official CLEP exam or tell you what your college accepts. A free account needs no card.
See also
Do it on your own course
Upload your lectures and ask Bo. Cited answers, plus flashcards, exams, and more built from your material.
More questions
How long is the CLEP exam?
Most CLEP exams take about 90 to 120 minutes, depending on the subject. Check the exam's page on the CLEP site for its exact length.
What is a passing score on a CLEP exam?
There is no fixed pass mark. Scores run from 20 to 80, the American Council on Education recommends credit for a 50 or higher, and each college sets its own cutoff, so check your college's policy before you register.