When Is the Florida Bar Exam? Dates, Costs, and Passing Score

The next Florida Bar Exam is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, July 28–29, 2026, at the Tampa Convention Center. The exam is given twice a year by the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, always on the last consecutive Tuesday and Wednesday of February and July.¹ The February 2026 administration has already taken place, with results scheduled for release on April 13, 2026.²

Upcoming Exam Dates

Florida does not use the Uniform Bar Examination. The Board of Bar Examiners administers its own two-day General Bar Examination each February and July, and the schedule follows a predictable pattern.

July 2026: Tuesday, July 28 and Wednesday, July 29, 2026 (confirmed)¹
February 2027: Not yet officially announced; based on the board’s consistent scheduling, the likely dates are February 23–24, 2027

Confirm the February 2027 dates on the board’s website once posted.

Where the Exam Is Held

Both days of testing take place at the Tampa Convention Center, 333 South Franklin Street, Tampa.¹ Book lodging early. Hotels near the convention center fill up during exam week.

The daily schedule is identical on both days:

8:00–8:30 a.m. arrival
8:00–9:10 a.m. examination room entry and check-in
9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. morning session
1:30–2:00 p.m. afternoon examination room entry
2:15–5:15 p.m. afternoon session

Each session runs three hours, for six hours of testing per day.¹

Registration Deadlines

The board enforces firm filing deadlines, and missing them costs money fast. For the July 2026 exam, the timely deadline is May 1, 2026. For the February 2027 exam, it is November 15, 2026.³

If you miss the timely deadline, late fees apply on a tiered schedule:

$325 late fee if your application is postmarked by June 1 (July exam) or December 15 (February exam)
$625 late fee if received by June 15 (July exam) or January 15 (February exam)

The second cutoff is absolute. All required materials, including your application, supporting forms, proof of fingerprinting, and all fees, must be received by then. There is no extension.¹

What It Costs

Your exam fee depends on when you first registered with the board. Early student registration during law school costs as little as $100.⁴ Fees from there:

$600 if you filed an early student registration and later convert to a full bar application
$1,000 for first-time applicants who never previously registered and apply within 12 months of graduation
$450 for repeat exam takers
$1,600 to $3,000 for attorneys admitted in other states³

Registering with the board during your first semester of law school saves hundreds of dollars compared with waiting until graduation.

If you want to type your essay answers rather than handwrite them, add $125 for the laptop program. The fee is non-refundable, and you must use the board’s approved software, which locks the machine to word processing only. The laptop option covers the essay portion of Part A.⁵

What the Two Days Cover

Day one is Part A, Florida law. It splits into three hours of essay questions and three hours of 100 multiple-choice questions, covering Florida and Federal Constitutional Law, Trusts, Business Entities, Real Property, Evidence, Torts, Wills and Estates, Criminal Law and Procedure, Contracts, Articles 3 and 9 of the UCC, Family Law, ethics, Professionalism, and the Florida Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure.¹

Day two is Part B, the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE). It is 200 multiple-choice questions covering Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Law and Procedure, Evidence, Real Property, and Torts, with roughly 25 questions per subject.¹

The Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) is a separate admission requirement and is not administered as part of the two-day Florida exam.

Passing Score and Results

You need a scaled score of 136 to pass. For applicants taking both parts in the same administration, the board averages the two scores and the average must reach 136.¹

Results come out roughly 10 weeks after the exam. February 2026 results are scheduled for April 13, 2026.² The Florida Supreme Court announces the release date on its website and social media, and scores remain available online for 30 days after the Court orders release.⁶ Plan around that wait before making firm career commitments.

Character and Fitness

Passing the exam alone will not get you admitted. Every applicant must also clear a character and fitness investigation before the Supreme Court of Florida will admit them to practice. The board reviews criminal history, academic record, financial responsibility, and any prior discipline, and will not begin the investigation until you have filed your bar application, authorization and release, and the fee.⁷ Because the investigation runs in parallel with your exam preparation, filing early matters for more than just avoiding late fees. Omissions and false statements on the application are among the most common sources of character and fitness problems, and they are almost always worse than whatever the applicant was trying to hide.

1
Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Exam Information, Test Specifications, Study Guide, and Virtual Tour
2
Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Florida Board of Bar Examiners
3
National Conference of Bar Examiners. Non-Uniform Bar Examination Jurisdictions – Bar Examination Application Deadlines and Fees
4
Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Application Fee Worksheet
5
Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Laptop Program
6
Florida Supreme Court. Bar Scores – Resources
7
Florida Board of Bar Examiners. Admission Requirements