CA Bar Exam Pass Rates: First-Timers, Repeaters, 1390 Cutoff

The most recent California Bar Examination, given in July 2025, had an overall pass rate of 54.2 percent: 4,196 of 7,740 examinees cleared the state’s required score of 1390.¹ That headline number hides a canyon between groups. First-time takers passed at 68.8 percent. Repeaters passed at 12.7 percent.

Pass Rates by Recent Exam Cycle

California gives the exam twice a year, in February and July. July consistently draws a larger and stronger pool because most law schools graduate in May and send fresh graduates straight into the summer sitting. February historically draws a higher share of repeat takers, which pulls the February pass rate well below July’s.

The February 2025 figure breaks sharply from pattern. Prior February exams sat in the low-to-mid 30s: 35.5 percent in 2024, 32.5 percent in 2023, 33.9 percent in 2022.⁵ The jump to 65.2 percent in February 2025 is worth watching as more data emerges.

Going a little further back, July 2023 came in at 51.5 percent across 7,555 examinees and July 2022 at 52.4 percent.⁵ The July rate has drifted upward since: 52.4, then 53.8, then 54.2.

First-Time Takers Versus Repeaters

Whether you’ve sat for the California bar before is the single biggest predictor of whether you’ll pass. The groups aren’t close.

On the July 2025 exam, first-time takers passed at 68.8 percent. Repeaters passed at 12.7 percent, meaning only 255 of the 2,013 repeat takers cleared the score.¹ That repeater number is a steep drop from July 2024, when 23.5 percent of repeat takers passed.

As the number of prior attempts grows, the probability of passing continues to fall. California places no cap on how many times you can retake the exam, but the numbers argue hard for passing the first time. Repeaters also carry burdens the raw statistic doesn’t capture: the weight of a prior failure, the cost of another prep course and registration cycle, and the common reality of studying while working.

First-time takers from ABA-accredited California law schools do better still. On the July 2025 exam, that group passed at 84.4 percent.¹ Several schools cleared 90 percent for first-timers: Stanford at 100 percent, UCLA at 96.4, UC Davis and USC both at 92.9, UC Berkeley at 92.8, and Pepperdine at 90.7.

Pass Rates by Law School Type

California is unusual in letting graduates of several tiers of law schools sit for the bar, not just ABA-accredited institutions. The tier matters a great deal.

ABA-Accredited Schools

Graduates of American Bar Association-accredited programs lead the statistics every cycle. First-time takers from California’s ABA-accredited schools passed at 84.4 percent on the July 2025 exam.¹

California-Accredited Schools

California also recognizes schools accredited by the Committee of Bar Examiners but not by the ABA. These programs meet state standards set under Business and Professions Code Section 6060.⁶ Their graduates pass at substantially lower rates than ABA graduates, with specifics shifting by cycle and school.

Unaccredited Schools

Unaccredited law schools, including correspondence and distance-learning programs, record the lowest rates. On the July 2025 exam, the overall pass rate for their graduates was 10.2 percent. First-time takers from these schools passed at 40 percent; repeaters passed at 2.9 percent.¹ July 2024 told a similar story, with unaccredited graduates posting a 13 percent overall pass rate.⁷

What the 1390 Cutoff Means

California’s pass line is a scaled composite score of 1390. The California Supreme Court permanently lowered the cutoff from 1440 in July 2020, a decision influenced by the pandemic and by study of whether the higher score was necessary for public protection.⁵ The 50-point drop pulled California closer to other large states, though its cut score remains among the country’s highest. The 1390 blends the written and multiple-choice portions into a single number; there’s no separate passing score on either half.

Pass Rates for Attorneys from Other States

If you’re already licensed and in good standing in another U.S. jurisdiction and have practiced actively for at least four years immediately before the exam date, you can sit for the one-day Attorneys’ Examination instead of the general two-day exam. The Attorneys’ Examination covers only the written portion.⁸ It’s a different test with its own pool and its own numbers, so the general bar pass rates above don’t speak to that group. Attorneys without four years of active practice take the full general exam.

What the NextGen Transition Could Change

The pass rate numbers in this article all come from the current exam format. California’s Board of Trustees voted to adopt the NextGen bar exam, developed by the National Conference of Bar Examiners, starting in July 2028, when the current national MBE will no longer be offered. The NextGen format replaces the separate MBE, essays, and performance test with a nine-hour integrated exam of multiple-choice, short-answer, and writing tasks across three sessions. The first NextGen administrations in other jurisdictions begin in July 2026, so two years of out-of-state data will exist before California switches. How that format will shift California’s pass rate is not yet known.

Where the Official Numbers Live

The State Bar of California releases a General Statistics Report after every administration, breaking results down by school type, first-time versus repeat status, and individual law school. The reports post as PDFs on the State Bar website, usually a few weeks after individual results go out.⁹ A historical pass rate summary running back multiple years sits alongside them and is the cleanest place to track long-term trends.⁵

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The State Bar of California. General Statistics Report – July 2025 California Bar Exam
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The State Bar of California. General Statistics Report – February 2025 California Bar Exam
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The State Bar of California. State Bar Announces Results for July 2024 Bar Exam
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The State Bar of California. General Statistics Report – February 2024 California Bar Exam
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The State Bar of California. General Bar Examination Pass Rate Summary
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California Legislative Information. California Code BPC 6060 – Admission to the Practice of Law
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The State Bar of California. 2024 California Accredited and Unaccredited Law School Performance Report
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The State Bar of California. Attorney Applicants
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The State Bar of California. Exam Statistics