Praxis Tests: The 2026–27 Guide for Future Teachers

"The Praxis" isn't one test. It's a family of exams from ETS that states and educator preparation programs use to decide who gets into a program or earns a license. You'll typically meet one or more of these:

• Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators — basic reading, writing, and math. Three separate tests (Reading 5713, Writing 5723, Math 5733) or one Combined test (5752) that bundles all three.
• Praxis Subject Assessments — content knowledge for what you'll teach: elementary education, biology, English, special education, and many more.
• Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT) — pedagogy: how students learn, instruction, assessment, and professional practice.

Which ones you need depends entirely on your state and, sometimes, your program. Two candidates in neighboring states can face completely different requirements. Before you buy a single prep book, look up your state on the ETS state requirements page and confirm with your program advisor.

All three Core tests are computer-delivered. Here's the current structure from the ETS study companions:

A few details that matter on test day:

• Math gives you an on-screen four-function calculator and a short formula sheet (circle area and circumference, rectangle and triangle area, rectangular box volume).
• Reading has no calculator and no outside knowledge required — everything is in the passage.
• Any Core test may include questions that don't count toward your score. You won't know which ones, so treat every question as live.

For content categories, weights, and worked examples of every question type, see the Praxis Core guide.

Each Praxis test reports its own score, and ETS is blunt about who decides what counts as passing: passing scores are not set by ETS, and they vary by state. Your state or licensing agency sets a qualifying score for each test code. You pass if your score is equal to or higher than that number.

Look up your state's qualifying scores with the ETS qualifying score tool. Don't trust a number from a forum or an old prep book — states can and do set different cut scores for the same test.

When scores arrive

• For selected-response tests, you can see unofficial scores at the end of the test.
• Core Reading and Core Math: official scores within 7 calendar days of the test.
• Core Writing: 20 business days, because trained teachers score the essays.

How the Writing essays are scored

Each Core Writing essay is read holistically — one overall score for quality — on a 1–6 scale. On your score report, points from the selected-response section are reported separately from points on the essays. A strong essay needs a clear position or focus, logical organization, specific support, and control of grammar and sentence variety.

These fees come from the Praxis Information Bulletin for the 2026–27 testing year (August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027):

Some specialized tests cost more, and some states add surcharges. Your registration screen shows the final number.

Should you take the Combined test?

If you need all three Core tests, the Combined test costs $150 versus $270 for three separate registrations. The catch is endurance: you're sitting for all three subtests in one appointment. If one subject is clearly your weak spot, taking it separately gives you more focus — and you only pay again for the part you need to retake.

Fee waivers

ETS offers limited, first-come fee waivers covering up to three Core tests or one Subject test for eligible candidates — generally students receiving financial aid. Details and the request form are on the ETS fees and waivers page.

Retakes

You can retake a Praxis test on a date at least 28 days after your previous test date. There's no benefit to rushing back in — use that month to fix what went wrong.

Praxis tests are offered year-round at test centers, and more than 100 Praxis tests — including the Core tests — are available at home with a live human proctor, seven days a week. ETS says the at-home test is identical to the test-center version.

At-home testing is open to test takers who live in the United States, its territories, or Canada. The requirements are strict, so check them before you choose:

• A desktop or laptop running Windows 11+ or macOS 11+. No tablets, Chromebooks, or phones.
• A working camera and microphone, the ETS Secure Browser, and enough internet bandwidth to pass the equipment check.
• A private, enclosed room with the door closed, a clear desk, and good lighting.
• For notes: one small whiteboard with an erasable marker, or one sheet of paper inside a clear sheet protector. You erase it in front of the proctor at the end.

Full details: ETS at-home testing page.

Subject Assessments cover what you'll teach. Formats range from all selected-response to tests that include written responses, which is why fees split into $130 and $156 tiers. Each test has its own free Study Companion listing the exact content categories — start there, not with a generic book.

Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT) tests measure pedagogy. The grade-band versions (for example, PLT: Grades K–6, test 5622) run two hours and combine 70 selected-response questions with 4 constructed-response questions built on two case histories. ETS also offers PLT: PreK–12 (5625): 100 selected-response questions in 120 minutes, covering Students as Learners, Instructional Process, Assessment, and Professional Development, Leadership, and Community. Your state decides which PLT, if any, you take.

Core tests assume skills you already mostly have. Your job is to find the gaps, refresh rusty math, and get used to the question formats and pace.

1. Week 1: Diagnose. Take a timed practice test for each Core subject you need. Our free Praxis Core practice tests cover all three. Note which content categories cost you points.
2. Weeks 2–4: Fix the weak category. For most people that's Math. Relearn fractions, percents, ratios, basic algebra, and area/volume, then do mixed practice.
3. Writing, throughout: learn the handful of grammar rules that usage questions keep testing (agreement, pronoun case, modifiers, parallelism, verb tense), and write at least two timed 30-minute essays of each type.
4. Final week: take full-length timed practice, review every miss, and confirm your test-day logistics (ID, center, or at-home equipment check).

That's roughly four to six weeks for someone who needs all three tests and has been out of school a while. If a diagnostic shows you're already comfortably above your state's qualifying score, a week or two of format practice may be enough.

• The 2026–27 Praxis Information Bulletin covers tests taken August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027. Fees above come from it.
• The Core test structures described here match the current ETS study companions for 5713, 5723, and 5733.
• Fee-waiver eligibility for this year references the 2026–2027 FAFSA.

ETS notes that fees are subject to change, so confirm on your registration screen.

• Study Companions (free PDFs) — the official content outline and sample questions for each test: Reading 5713, Writing 5723, Math 5733.
• Free Praxis Core prep linked from the ETS site.
• State requirements and the qualifying score tool.
• Understanding your scores.

ETS also sells official interactive practice tests. They're worth it if you want a scored, test-like run on the real interface, but start with the free material.

Check your state's requirements, then take a diagnostic. Start with the Praxis Core practice tests (Reading, Writing, and Math), and use the Praxis Core guide to learn each question type before you drill.