Students generally want to know how the different sections of the AP Psychology Exam are graded to produce an overall AP score. Here’s a score calculator that you can use to estimate your AP Psychology score based on your performance on the multiple and free response sections, then see below for details on each step of the scoring process.
The Multiple Choice Section
Section 1 of the exam consists of 100 multiple choice questions. Each question has 5 possible answer choices and each correct answer is worth 1 point on your raw score. There’s no penalty for incorrect answers, so guessing can only help your score and you should never leave any questions blank. The multiple choice section is worth a total of 100 points towards your raw score. The maximum raw score is 150 points, so this means that the multiple choice section accounts for 2/3 (67%) of your total score.
The Free Response Section
The remaining third (33%) of your score comes from the free response section. The free response section consists of two free response questions which are worth a total of 50 points on the raw score. Each FRQ is worth a total of 25 raw score points. As mentioned in this post, each free response question contains 7 key terms which must be addressed. The 25 total points for each question is divided evenly for each of these 7, meaning that each correct application is worth 3.57 points on your raw score. There is no partial credit for these answers, so for each term you either earn the 3.57 points or you earn 0 points.
The scoring is the same for both free response questions.
The Raw Score Conversion
After combining all your points from both sections, you’ll receive a raw score out of a maximum total of 150. This score is then converted into an AP score ranging from 1 to 5. The exact cutoff point on the raw score for each AP score from 1 to 5 varies each year, so I can’t tell you exactly what raw score you will need to earn a particular AP score. But I can give you some sample cutoffs from previous years and estimate what percentage of the exam you need to answer correctly in order to earn a particular score.
Below are the cutoff scores for some previous exams. These scores indicate that most years, students need to correctly answer about 75% of the exam questions to earn a 5.
Over 320,000 students now take the exam each year, and in 2023 approximately 17% of students worldwide earned a 5. This means that over 50,000 students earned a 5 on the exam. Will you be one of them this year?
2022 Exam
113-150 = 5
93-112 = 4
78-92 = 3
65-77 = 2
0-76 = 1
2014 Exam
99-150 = 5
81-98 = 4
66-80 = 3
56-65 = 2
0-55 = 1
2013 Exam
110-150 = 5
92-109 = 4
77-91 = 3
65-76 = 2
0-64 = 1
2012 Exam
112-150 = 5
94-111 = 4
79-93 = 3
65-78 = 2
0-64 = 1
2007 Exam
113-150 = 5
93-112 = 4
77-92 = 3
65-76 = 2
0-64 = 1
Struggling to understand some psychology concepts? The Master Introductory Psychology guide can help!
