The national steps first, then what your state adds. Every state uses the same exam, the NPTE, and the same passing score; the license itself comes from your state's board.
Every state requires a Doctor of Physical Therapy from a program accredited by CAPTE (the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education). Educated outside the U.S.? A credentialing agency must find your education substantially equivalent first.
Apply to your state board
Fill out your state's license application, pay its fee and send what it asks for (transcripts, often fingerprints and a background check). Some states want a jurisprudence exam first. You pick one jurisdiction when you register for the exam; your score goes there.
Register and pay for the NPTE
Register with FSBPT and pay the $485 exam fee by the deadline for the date you want. Your state then approves you to sit; the day after, FSBPT emails your Authorization to Test (ATT). If the state does not approve you by its deadline, the registration closes and you get the fee back minus $50.
Schedule at Prometric
Use the ATT to book a seat and pay Prometric's $112 sitting fee (PT). The exam runs on fixed dates four times a year; in 2026 the PT dates were January 27-28, April 28-29, July 28-29 and October 27-28. Seats fill fast, so book the day the ATT arrives.
Take the exam
225 questions (45 of them unscored pretest items) in 5 sections of 45, 5 hours of testing, a 15-minute break after section 2. Bring two IDs whose names match your ATT exactly. No phone at any point, even on breaks: touching it ends the exam and the attempt counts.
Get your score
Scores run from 200 to 800; 600 passes. About five business days after the testing window, FSBPT sends your score to your state and your pass/fail shows on your dashboard; a free score report follows about ten business days after the date, for 30 days.
Finish your state's extras, get licensed
Pass any jurisprudence exam or module your state requires, then the board issues your license. Moving later? Most states have joined the PT Compact, which lets a licensed PT buy a privilege to practice in other member states instead of a full new license.
Physical therapist assistant? The steps are the same with a CAPTE-accredited PTA program (usually a two-year associate degree) and the NPTE-PTA: 180 questions (140 scored) in 4 hours, $485 to FSBPT plus $92 to Prometric, on its own fixed dates (2026: January 6-7, April 7-8, July 8-9, October 6-7). Practice for the NPTE-PTA.
The numbers
Item
PT exam
PTA exam
Questions
225 (180 scored + 45 pretest), 5 sections of 45
180 (140 scored + 40 pretest), 4 sections of 45
Time
5 hours (5 h 30 min appointment)
4 hours (4 h 30 min appointment)
Passing score
600 on a 200-800 scale, same in every state
600 on a 200-800 scale
Fees
$485 FSBPT + $112 Prometric, plus your state's fees
$485 FSBPT + $92 Prometric
Attempt limits
3 in 12 months, 6 in a lifetime; two scores under 400 end eligibility
Same
Dates
Fixed, four times a year (January, April, July, October)
Fixed, four times a year, earlier in the month
If you don't pass
Register again for the next date (you cannot test more than three times in a row in 12 months; then skip a date). FSBPT sells a performance feedback report that shows your weak areas. Our score report does the same thing for free on practice questions: it lists the outline cells you miss.
Your state
Every state and DC, each checked against that state's own board pages and rules:
Alabama: $100, AL JAM ($48), Fieldprint fingerprints; PT Compact member