What Is the Real Estate Salesperson Exam? National Portion, State Portion and Who Writes Each

Your state owns the exam, and a vendor builds and delivers it

There is no single national real estate license. Each state's real estate commission or department decides who may be licensed, and most contract a testing company to develop and give the exam; California's Department of Real Estate gives its own. Arizona's handbook, for example, says the Arizona Department of Real Estate "has contracted with Pearson to develop and administer licensing examinations." New Hampshire's bulletin says its commission "has contracted with PSI Services LLC (PSI) to conduct the examination program."

Pearson VUE and PSI are the vendors behind every handbook checked for this guide. In May 2023 the Louisiana Real Estate Commission said Pearson VUE gave real estate licensing exams in 19 states, and ARELLO, the association of real estate license law officials, lists both Pearson VUE and PSI as accredited examination providers. When people say "the national real estate exam," they usually mean one of these two vendors' national portions.

What the national portion covers

The national portion tests general real estate principles and federal law: property rights, contracts, agency, valuation, financing, disclosures and math. Pearson VUE's outline describes its scope as "real estate general knowledge and federal regulation topics." Both vendors' national portions for salespersons have 80 scored items. Pearson VUE's outline adds 5 unscored pretest items that "look exactly like items that are scored" (Pennsylvania's handbook lists 5 to 10), and PSI's bulletins say a small number of unscored experimental items may be added, 5 to 10 in most of them.

Pearson VUE's outline, effective April 1, 2025, assigns its 80 items to eight areas:

PSI's national outline, implemented October 1, 2023, splits the same ground into eleven areas weighted by percentage. Contracts (19%) and Agency (13%) are the largest, followed by Practice of Real Estate (12%), Property Ownership (10%) and Financing (10%). PSI also gives Property Management (3%) and Land Use Controls (5%) their own areas, where Pearson VUE folds them into other sections.

Even one vendor's national portion isn't printed identically everywhere. North Carolina's 2026 booklet lists Pearson VUE's national section in eight categories with different counts, such as 14 items for Real Estate Practice, so always read your own state's copy. If your state uses either outline, national-portion prep planned for launch is organized by Pearson VUE's eight content areas, with question counts per area.

What the state portion covers

The state portion tests your state's license law and rules: who needs a license, license status and renewal, supervision, trust money, advertising, disclosures and the conduct that leads to discipline. It is written for one state only. Its length varies widely, as these current outlines show:

• Alabama: 40 scored items plus 5 to 10 pretest items (outline effective February 1, 2026)
• Texas: 40 scored items plus 10 pretest items (sales agent outline effective January 1, 2026)
• Arizona: 60 scored items plus 5 pretest items (effective January 1, 2026)
• North Carolina: 60 scored items plus 5 pretest items, developed by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission

In two-portion states you generally must pass both portions to apply for a license. In Texas and North Carolina, for example, each portion has its own passing score, so a strong national score doesn't make up for a weak state score. The format guide lists each state's question counts and time limits.

States that break the two-portion pattern

Several states change the shape of the exam or the license it leads to. Checked on October 28, 2026, against each state's own page or its vendor's handbook:

Prior licensing can change the exam too. Texas's handbook says the national portion may be waived for someone who holds an active license in another state and passed the national portion of an ARELLO-approved exam. Rules like this differ by state, so check yours before you assume.

How to find out which exam you will take

1. Start on your state commission's website. Look for the testing vendor's name and a link to the candidate handbook or bulletin. The commission's page outranks any list on a prep site, this one included.
2. Open the vendor's current handbook for your state and check its date. It gives the question counts, time limits, passing score, fees and retake rules that apply to you.
3. Read the outline titles. "National/General Exam Content Outline for Salespersons" with item counts is Pearson VUE's. A "general portion" or "national portion" outline in percentages, starting with Property Ownership, is PSI's. The state outline follows, with its own effective date.

Once you know your vendor, what the planned national-portion prep covers, and why state law is left out will tell you which part of your exam it fits. For the state portion, your handbook's state outline and your prelicensing course are the sources to use.

Where to go next

If you are still deciding whether to start, the licensing steps guide walks through education, application, the exam and the license in order. If you already have a course and a date, the national-portion study guide turns your vendor's outline into a plan, and the free practice questions show you the question style. For vocabulary-heavy areas, flashcards planned for launch drill estates, deeds, contract terms and agency duties.