MPRE requirements vary by state, and the headline number is the passing score: minimum scores range from 75 to 86 on a 50-to-150 scale, with most jurisdictions landing at 85.1National Conference of Bar Examiners. MPRE Bar Exam Scores A handful of jurisdictions skip the exam entirely. Beyond the cutoff, each state also sets its own rules on how long a passing score stays valid and whether you must pass before sitting for the bar. Those three variables — score, validity, and timing — are what you need to confirm for your jurisdiction before you register.
States That Do Not Require the MPRE
Wisconsin does not require the MPRE for bar admission.2National Conference of Bar Examiners. Non-Uniform Bar Examination Jurisdictions – MPRE Wisconsin has long allowed graduates of its two ABA-accredited law schools to gain admission through diploma privilege, bypassing both the bar exam and the MPRE. Puerto Rico also does not use the MPRE in its admission process.3National Conference of Bar Examiners. Jurisdictions Maryland eliminated its MPRE requirement and replaced it with an experiential learning course on professional conduct.
Rules do change. If you are applying in any of these jurisdictions, confirm the current requirement directly with the admitting authority before you assume the MPRE is off the table.
Passing Scores by State
Each jurisdiction sets its own minimum independently. The differences are real: a score that qualifies you in one state can fall short in another. Cutoffs cluster into a few tiers.
Score of 85
The largest group of jurisdictions requires an 85. This group includes California, New York, Florida, Arizona, Colorado, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, along with many others. If you don’t yet know where you’ll practice, 85 is a safe benchmark to aim for, because clearing it qualifies you in the vast majority of states.
Score of 80
A sizable group sets the bar at 80. Texas, Illinois, Georgia, Iowa, and Kansas fall into this category, among others. The gap between 80 and 85 can represent just one or two more correct answers on the scored portion of the exam, so there is little reason to aim for the lower threshold unless you are certain of your jurisdiction.
Score of 75
A smaller group accepts a 75, including Alabama and Alaska. These are the lowest commonly required passing scores in the country.
Outliers
Utah sits alone at 86, the highest minimum required by any jurisdiction. Because cutoffs can shift, verify your target jurisdiction’s current requirement through the NCBE’s jurisdictions page before test day.1National Conference of Bar Examiners. MPRE Bar Exam Scores
How Long Your Score Stays Valid
A passing score does not last forever in most states, and this is where applicants get caught off guard. Validity windows run from as little as two years to no expiration at all. If your score expires before you finish the admission process, you retake the entire exam no matter how well you originally performed.
California and the District of Columbia treat MPRE scores as permanent. Once you pass, that score never expires. New York gives you four years from the test date, and Texas allows five years. Many jurisdictions fall in a two-to-three-year range, which creates real pressure to coordinate your MPRE timing with your bar exam and character-and-fitness application.
Watch the trigger date, too. Some states measure the validity period from the filing of your bar application rather than from your admission, so the clock can run against the date you apply rather than the date you are sworn in. Check your jurisdiction’s specific rule before scheduling.
When Your State Requires You to Pass
States also differ on when the MPRE has to be in your file. Some require you to pass before you can sit for the bar exam. Others let you take the MPRE concurrently or even after the bar.
Timing matters here because the exam is only offered three times per year, typically in March, August, and November. For 2026, the test dates are March 24–25, August 11–12, and November 12–13.4National Conference of Bar Examiners. Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination If your jurisdiction requires a passing MPRE score before you can register for the bar and you miss a window, your admission timeline can slip by months. Most law students sit for the MPRE during their second or third year, which builds in a buffer in case a retake is needed.
Sending Your Score to the Right State
Licensing boards accept only official score reports sent directly from NCBE.5National Conference of Bar Examiners. MPRE Bar Exam Scores The unofficial score that appears in your NCBE account a few weeks after the test lets you see how you did, but it does not satisfy any bar authority.
During initial registration, you typically select one jurisdiction to receive your official score. If you later need to send the score to additional jurisdictions, you request an official transcript through your NCBE account. Monitor your bar application portal to confirm the score has been received and matched to your file, because a missing score can stall an otherwise complete application without warning.
One practical note on cross-state scoring: if your score cleared one state’s cutoff but not another’s, the lower-threshold state may still take you. Some applicants pass for one jurisdiction without realizing they already meet the bar in another.
If You Fall Short of Your State’s Cutoff
There is no limit on how many times you can take the MPRE. You can retake it at the very next administration, though with only three sittings a year that means several months of waiting. Each retake requires a new $185 fee and a fresh registration.6National Conference of Bar Examiners. MPRE Exam Registration Before you re-register, confirm two things: your target state’s current minimum, and whether the state measures validity from the test date or from your bar application filing. Both numbers can change the math on when you really need to pass.