If you are a student who wants to challenge yourself by taking advanced placement (AP) courses, you may not know you can get a college credit by taking an AP exam after each class is over. One class you can take is chemistry, and you may need an AP chemistry practice test to help prepare for the exam.
Getting a score of three or more on the AP chemistry exam will allow you to miss out on taking chemistry in college. In this article, we will talk about what to expect on the exam, how to prepare for it, and even give you some practice tests that are free to use!
Summary: Use the AP chemistry questions listed below to prepare for your upcoming AP chem exam.
AP Chemistry Practice Test
First things first, you need to know what to look for in a good AP chem practice test. There should be a diverse set of questions for you to answer, an answer key, and detailed explanations for the answers for a practice test to help you best. See some of the ones we found below.
| Name of Test | Number of Questions |
| 2018 Official Exam | 50 multiple-choice, 7 free-response |
| Princeton Review AP Chemistry Practice Test | 75 multiple-choice, 6 free-response |
| College Board AP Chemistry Practice Exam | 75 multiple-choice, 6 free-response |
| 2014 AP Chemistry Exam Questions | 50 multiple-choice, 7 free-response |
| Summer Review Practice AP Chem Quiz | 30 multiple-choice |
| College Board AP Chem Past FRQs | Numerous free-response |
What is the AP Chemistry Exam?
Along with the challenge of taking a harder course, AP classes come with the opportunity for high school students to gain college credit without ever stepping foot on a college campus. But, to pass it and get college credit, you need to know what the exam is going to look like.
AP Chem Format
There are nine units covered throughout your AP chemistry course as well as on the AP chem exam. Though your teacher may teach them in a different order or regroup them for your class, you will see all nine of these principles in class and on the exam:
- Unit one: Atomic Structure and Properties – learn how an atom is structured and discover how the properties interact with other atoms (7-9%)
- Unit two: Molecular and Ionic Compound Structure and Properties – explore chemical bonds and how forces and energy cause different kinds of bonds (7-9%)
- Unit three: Intermolecular Forces and Properties – discover the properties of matter and the laws that govern them as well as what happens when you mix them (18-22%)
- Unit four: Chemical Reactions – familiarize yourself with reactions and the types of chemical reactions as well as how they affect the physical and chemical properties of the reactant (7-9%)
- Unit five: Kinetics – understand how energy works in a reaction and changes the rate of reaction while learning to measure reaction rate (7-9%)
- Unit six: Thermodynamics – link heat to energy reactions (both exothermic and endothermic heat releases) and discover the measurement system for heat (7-9%)
- Unit seven: Equilibrium – explore the balance of the universe, how certain reactions can be reversed, and how to navigate the equilibrium constant (7-9%)
- Unit eight: Acids and Bases – examine acids and bases, how they cause reactions, and how they can balance out the equilibrium (11-15%)
- Unit nine: Applications of Thermodynamics – learn about entropy, free energy, and cellular potential in relation to thermodynamics (7-9%)
Some big ideas that you need to keep at the front of your mind are scale, proportion, and quantity; structure and properties of substances; transformations; and energy.
To succeed on this test, you will want to familiarize yourself with reading graphs, charts, and other forms of data while analyzing them and giving well-supported answers.
About AP Chemistry Questions
Now that you know what topics will be covered in class and on the exam, we can begin explaining the AP chemistry questions
There are a total of sixty-seven questions on the AP chemistry exam. First, you will be asked to answer sixty multiple-choice questions in ninety minutes. That means you have more than a minute per question, so you have plenty of time to complete calculations.
In addition, there are seven free-response questions that you are given one hour and forty-five minutes to answer. There will be three long-answer questions and four short-answer questions. You have more than enough time to formulate well-thought-out and supported answers to the seven questions.
Both of the sections account for half of your score, which means both portions have to be taken seriously if you want to pass the exam. You should spend half your time studying for the multiple-choice questions and half of your time for the free-response questions.
To properly be able to study for each section, you need to know exactly what topics appear where. Here is the best breakdown of the two portions of the AP chemistry exam:
| Answer Type | Score % | Time Given | Questions | Topics | |
| Section 1 | Multiple-choice | 50% | 1 hr 30 min | 60 |
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| Section 2 | Free-response | 50% | 1 hr 45 min | 7 |
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As you can see, those four main ideas of the course a quite important as they appear on both portions of the exam. Since there are seven parts to the four main ideas, you can expect one to be covered per the seven free-response AP chemistry questions.
How to Use an AP Chemistry Practice Exam
The best AP chem practice tests are ones that provide you with diverse questions that cover all the units and give answers for you to check your responses.
With detailed answer explanations, you are able to learn and grow each time you take a practice test. You will not only learn the right answers to the questions and why they are right, but you will learn which areas and units you may need to brush up on.
By taking practice tests for the AP chemistry exam, you become more efficient studiers by figuring out what you need to study most instead of just studying everything on a whim.
This plus our other study methods should help you feel more prepared to take the exam. Check out the next section to see other steps you can take to prepare for the AP chemistry exam.
How Do I Prepare for AP Chem Exam?
With proper preparation for the AP chemistry exam, you will feel much less anxious when starting the exam. There are three main ways to prepare for the exam.
The first way is to create or find flashcards to familiarize yourself with the topics that will appear on the exam. Whether they are digital—on a site like Quizlet—or made with a pen and index cards, be sure to carry them with you to study in all your free moments.
Another great option is by taking AP chemistry test practice. You will be able to make yourself familiar with the AP chemistry questions. By doing so, you will know what questions are asking to save yourself time and understand the breakdown of topics better.
Many of the practice tests are also made of questions that appeared on previous tests. When you see AP chem past FRQs, you can also understand what is expected when you formulate responses to both the long- and short-answer questions.
Finally, your teacher may provide you with an end-of-year review or study guide that you and your peers can use to develop flashcards or review before the day of the test. These three methods should help you feel prepared and relaxed before taking the AP chem exam.
AP Chemistry FAQs
Is 5 on AP chem hard?
Only about 11% of all test-takers receive a 5 on the AP chemistry exam. While it is difficult to get a 5, if you properly prepare yourself, you shouldn’t have any issue passing the exam. Around 56% of test takers pass the exam, scoring 3 or higher.
What percent is 5 on an AP exam chemistry?
As for most AP exams, you need to get around 70% to 75% of the questions correct. However, passing the test should be easy if you utilize the preparation methods listed in this article.
How do I practice for AP chemistry?
The best way to practice for the AP chemistry exam is to take practice tests. Not only do you familiarize yourself with the topics you will see on the exam, but you also get to know how questions will be worded. You can also use flashcards or study guides to review.
