How Many Questions Are on the CNA Written Test? Format, Passing Score, and Retakes
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In most states, the CNA written (knowledge) exam has 70 multiple-choice questions — but only 60 of them are scored. The other 10 are unscored 'pretest' questions being evaluated for future exams, and you can't tell which is which, so every question deserves the same effort. That's the format used by Credentia's NNAAP exam, the most widely used nurse-aide test in the country.
The catch — and the reason you'll see different numbers online — is that CNA testing is run state by state. Your state's nurse-aide registry picks a test vendor (Credentia/NNAAP, Prometric, or Headmaster/D&SDT are the big three), and the vendor sets the exact question count, time limit, and passing score. Everything in this article describes the common pattern; your state's candidate handbook is the final word, and it's a free download from your test vendor's site.
What the written test covers
Whichever vendor your state uses, the written test draws from the same core job knowledge. The biggest block is physical care skills — daily care like bathing, feeding, positioning, transfers, and taking vital signs. Next comes safety and infection control: hand hygiene, standard precautions, fall prevention, and emergency response. The rest covers residents' rights, communication, and the nurse aide's role — what you may do independently, what you must report to the nurse, and how to treat residents with dignity.
Questions are scenario-style more often than definition-style: they describe a resident and a situation, then ask what the aide should do. When two answers both seem reasonable, the credited answer is almost always the one that keeps the resident safest or best respects their rights.
The passing score, and the oral option
Passing scores are set by each state, and most fall in the 70–80% range of scored questions. That means on a 60-scored-question exam you can typically miss somewhere between 12 and 18 questions and still pass — a more forgiving bar than most people expect, which is why walking in calm matters as much as walking in prepared.
If reading English under time pressure is the hard part, ask about the oral exam option. Most states let you take the written test as an audio exam, with questions read aloud through headphones; you register for it in advance rather than deciding on test day. It covers the same material at the same passing bar — it just removes reading speed from the equation.
Don't forget: the written test is only half the exam
Every state also requires a separate skills evaluation, where you perform a handful of randomly assigned care tasks — handwashing plus several others, like measuring a pulse or transferring a resident — in front of an evaluator. You must pass both parts to be listed on your state's registry, and they're scored independently: acing the written test doesn't buy back a failed skills demo.
Most states give you a limited number of attempts (commonly three) at each part before you must retake your training program, and failing one part usually means retesting only that part, with a retest fee. Check your handbook for your state's exact attempt limit and fees before you schedule.
How to prepare
The written test rewards steady, section-by-section practice more than cramming. Work through physical care skills first (it's the biggest block), then safety and infection control, then rights and role. Read the explanation for every question you miss — the reasoning transfers to other questions in a way memorizing single answers doesn't.
Our free CNA practice test covers all three areas in English, Chinese, and Spanish, with an explanation for every answer and a timed mock-exam mode. No account, no fees — start below.