How the APUSH exam is scored
The 2027 AP US History exam is on Friday, May 7, 2027 (Session 1, usually morning), and AP scores come out in July.[5][6] AP US History is a fully digital exam in Bluebook. It opens with 55 multiple-choice questions and three short-answer questions, then moves to the two essays. Starting in 2027, the third short-answer question is required rather than a choice between two.[1]
| Part | Questions / points | Time | Share of score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple choice | 55 questions | 55 min | 40% |
| Short answer (SAQ) | 3 questions, 3 points each | 40 min | 20% |
| Document-based question (DBQ) | 1 essay, 7 points | 60 min incl. 15-min reading | 25% |
| Long essay (LEQ) | 1 essay, 6 points | 40 min | 15% |
The DBQ gives you seven documents and a recommended hour, including 15 minutes of reading, and is scored out of 7 points. The LEQ is a 40-minute essay scored out of 6. Each short-answer question is worth 3 points. Together, the essays are 40% of the score, as much as all 55 multiple-choice questions.[4]
APUSH score distribution
In 2026, 74% of APUSH students scored 3 or higher and 14% earned a 5.[2] In 2025 the figures were 73.7% and 14.2%, from 516,738 students with a mean score of 3.3.[3]
| AP score | 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 14% | 14.2% |
| 4 | 37% | 36.2% |
| 3 | 23% | 23.3% |
| 2 | 18% | 18.4% |
| 1 | 8% | 8% |
How this APUSH score estimate works
The 1–5 uses the share of the composite each score needed on College Board’s 2006 APUSH chart, the last one released.[7] See where the cut points come from.
| AP score | At least |
|---|---|
| 5 | 61.7% |
| 4 | 50.6% |
| 3 | 42.2% |
| 2 | 31.7% |
Example
65% of the multiple choice plus the 2025 average free-response scores gives 56.9%: an estimated 4.
Because the DBQ alone carries 25% of the exam, one extra DBQ point is worth about 3.6% of the total, as much as about five multiple-choice questions. In 2025 the average DBQ score was 3.75 out of 7 and the average LEQ 3.35 out of 6.
Other AP score calculators
Taking more than one exam? Try the AP World History score calculator, AP Gov score calculator or AP Lang score calculator. Every calculator uses that exam’s own section weights.
Frequently asked questions
How is the APUSH exam weighted?
Multiple choice 40%, short answer 20%, DBQ 25% and LEQ 15%.
How many points is the APUSH DBQ?
7 points. The LEQ is 6 points and each short-answer question is 3.
What percent of students get a 5 on APUSH?
14% in 2026, and 74% scored 3 or higher.
Sources
- AP United States History: Assessment
- 2026 AP Score Distributions
- Student Score Distributions, AP Exams, May 2025
- AP Scoring Statistics, 2025 Free-Response Questions (one file per exam)
- 2027 AP Exam Dates
- AP Calendar (score release and deadlines)
- APUSH scoring worksheet for the 2006 Released Exam (composite → AP score chart)