Common Questions

Scores for USMLE Step exams are released on Wednesdays. Generally these will include scores for examinees who tested within four weeks before the release date. However, there are many factors that may delay an individual score release. Your registration entity will notify you by email when your score becomes available. When released, your scores will be posted to your registration entity's secure website: for Step 1 and Step 2, either NBME or ECFMG; for Step 3, FSMB. If you have not received your score within eight weeks of your test date, please contact us to determine the status of your score report.

Please note that new scores are not released during the week of 4th of July or the last week of December.

USMLE results are reported on a 3-digit scale.

The current minimum passing scores are as follows:

Step 1: Reported as Pass/Fail only*
Step 2 CK: 214
Step 3: 198

Information on minimum passing scores for USMLE examinations is posted on the Scores and Transcripts page.

The USMLE Management Committee establishes the minimum passing score. The USMLE Management Committee reviews data for each component in the USMLE sequence approximately once every four years and decides whether to change the recommended minimum passing score.

*USMLE Step 1 score reporting is reported as pass/fail only for exams taken on or after January 26, 2022. On the three-digit score scale, the passing standard is 196. Future reviews of the Step 1 passing standard will not be reported in terms of a three-digit score.

In order to ensure that both the processing and scoring of USMLE examinations are done in a secure and accurate fashion, it is necessary to follow a number of quality assurance steps. These steps include monitoring reports from test centers about test delivery problems and about possible security violations. 

The content-based standard used for setting the passing score means that as many as 100% of candidates could theoretically pass, or conceivably 0%. The number is not arbitrarily predetermined. Similarly, the pass rate can vary from one accredited medical school in the United States to another, and from one year to another. Recent performance data for first-time takers and repeaters for each Step are available.

For accredited medical schools in the United States and Canada, performance by medical school is reported by NBME only to individual schools and is available only from those schools. The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG®) has responsibility for reporting scores for students and graduates of international medical schools.

If you pass a Step or Step Component, you are not allowed to retake it, except to comply with certain state board requirements which have been previously approved by USMLE governance. For example, you may retake a passed Step to comply with the time limit imposed by a medical licensing authority for the completion of all Steps or a requirement imposed by another authority recognized by the USMLE program for this purpose. The medical licensing authority must provide information showing that you are an applicant for licensure in that jurisdiction; have fulfilled all requirements for licensure in that jurisdiction; are eligible for licensure except for the out-of-date examination; and have completed the full USMLE sequence, including Step 3. Information regarding retakes allowed to comply with ECFMG requirements is provided at the time of exam application using ECFMG's Interactive Web Applications (IWA).

If you are repeating a previously passed Step or Step Component because of a time limit imposed by a medical licensing authority, you may apply to retake the examination only after the applicable time limit has expired. An exception to this policy can be granted if, at the time of application and testing:

- you are currently enrolled in an LCME- or AOA accredited medical school program leading to the MD or DO degree;

- you have previously passed Step 1 and/or Step 2 but have not passed Step 3;

- you are expected to graduate from the medical school program six or more years after the date you first passed Step 1 and/or Step 2; and

- you are otherwise eligible to retake the examination.

To obtain your USMLE transcript or have it sent to a third party, you must contact FSMB or NBME and pay the associated fee.

Effective August 21, 2024, FSMB produces transcripts for all USMLE examinees (both domestic and international medical students and graduates). To have a transcript sent to a medical licensing authority at any time, submit your request through FSMB.

If you have taken both the NBME Parts exam and the USMLE, you must order your transcripts from NBME. NBME will provide transcripts for both exams in these instances.

Examinees participating in ERAS should continue to follow instructions from ERAS for sending their USMLE transcripts to U.S. training programs.

Information about requesting a score recheck is in the USMLE Bulletin of Information.

Your score report is provided only for your personal use. When you want a third party (e.g., residency programs) to receive an official record of your USMLE scores, request that your registration entity send the transcript (see Requesting a Transcript of USMLE Scores). Under some circumstances, medical schools may receive scores and pass/fail outcomes for their students.

USMLE scores and pass/fail decisions are not determined using a curve, which would necessitate a specific amount/percentage of examinees must fail. Rather, an exam score is determined by an examinee’s performance on the content seen during the test administration. Passing standards are set by the USMLE Management Committee, as a minimum threshold of performance that must be obtained by all examinees. The passing standards are periodically reviewed for each Step. Examinees who perform at or above the minimum threshold (i.e., passing standard) will pass the examination, regardless of the number or percentage of examinees that pass overall.