United States · Teacher credential tests
The CBEST and CSET are California’s teacher tests, set by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) and run by Evaluation Systems, part of Pearson. The CBEST checks basic reading, math and writing. The CSET checks the subjects you’ll teach, and elementary teachers usually take CSET: Multiple Subjects. Before you book anything, check whether you need the CBEST at all. A bachelor’s degree now meets the basic skills requirement for most credentials. This guide covers the format, scores, fees and retakes, and there’s a free CBEST-style practice test further down.
Key facts
How it works
Topics
Judging what a writer argues: their viewpoint, their evidence, and whether the reasoning holds up.
Understanding what a passage says and finding information in books, tables and graphs.
US units, perimeter, estimating before you compute, and basic statistics like averages, probability and percentiles.
Whole numbers, fractions, decimals and percents in everyday word problems, plus simple equations.
Comparing and ordering numbers, percent change, equivalent forms, logic words and reading tables and graphs.
Two essays in 1 hour 30 minutes: one analyzing a situation or statement, one about a personal experience.
The subject matter exam for elementary teachers: three subtests covering seven content areas.
Free practice test
Here are 20 questions in the style of the CBEST: seven reading, nine math and four on writing, each with five choices like the real test. They’re our own questions, not Pearson’s. The real CBEST has 50 questions each in Reading and Math, and Writing is two essays, so our writing questions practice what essay scorers look for. The CBEST uses scaled scores rather than a percentage, so we use 70% as a practice target: 14 right hits it. That’s a goal for practice, not the official pass mark. After each answer you can ask the tutor to explain it another way, and anything you miss comes back at the end.
Sample of the test: same format, 20 questions.
Test day
Study options
The best place to start is free and official: full-length CBEST practice tests for each section, and for CSET a test guide, sample questions and practice tests for every subtest. If you want more, we’ve compared the official paid prep, apps and classes people use, with prices checked in October 2026.
| Option | Price | Free to use | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| Official and free | |||
Official CBEST practice tests and test specificationsOfficial · PDFFull-length practice tests from the people who make the CBEST: 50 questions each for Reading and Math, with answer keys and a worksheet that shows your score by skill area. The Writing practice test has two essay topics, the official score scale and sample essays. The test specifications list every skill tested. | Free | Everything | |
Official CSET: Multiple Subjects test guide and practice testsOfficial · PDFA test guide, the Subject Matter Requirements, sample questions with scored responses and a full practice test for each of the three subtests. The test guide also lists suggested books for each content area. Other CSETs have their own materials on their test pages. | Free | Everything | |
CTC basic skills and subject matter guidanceOfficial · web leafletsBefore you study, check whether you need the test at all. CTC’s leaflet CL-667 lists every way to meet the basic skills requirement, including a bachelor’s degree, college coursework and SAT, ACT or AP scores. CL-674M explains the CSET: Multiple Subjects route to subject matter competence. | Free | Everything | |
| Apps and websites | |||
Pearson Right Start (CBEST and CSET: Multiple Subjects)Official · interactive online coursePearson’s own interactive prep courses, sold on the CTC exams site. There’s one for the CBEST covering reading, writing and math, and one for CSET: Multiple Subjects. You can choose automatic renewal at checkout. | $35 for 30 days or $70 for 90 days, renewable in 30-day steps | Nothing, but the free official practice tests cover the same tests | |
Khan AcademyWebsite and appNot made for the CBEST, but its arithmetic, pre-algebra and statistics lessons cover most of what CBEST Math tests: fractions, decimals, percents, averages, probability and simple equations. Useful if math is your weak section. | Free | Everything | |
CBEST Practice Test 2026App · iPhone and iPadA CBEST practice question app from an independent developer. It has a 4.9 rating from 118 ratings on the US App Store. Oddly, the yearly plan is listed for less than the quarterly one, so check the price before you subscribe. We didn’t find an Android version. | Free to download. Subscriptions $4.99 a week, $9.99 a month, $39.99 a quarter or $29.99 a year | A free trial; the App Store listing doesn’t say how long or what’s included | |
CSULB free CBEST online prep courseUniversity program · onlineCal State Long Beach’s Teacher Preparation Advising Center and Impact Teach program offer a free online CBEST course from Longsdale Publications, with practice tests. You request access with a form and get a login by email. It’s meant to go alongside your own study. | Free for students | The online course and practice tests | |
| In person | |||
Teachers Test PrepLive classes on Zoom · tutoring · online prepLive CSET: Multiple Subjects classes on Zoom, listed on CTC’s education opportunities board, with evening sessions on Thursdays and Fridays. You can retake a class free within a year if you don’t pass. They also offer CBEST classes, one-to-one tutoring and self-paced online prep; check their site for those prices. | CSET: Multiple Subjects classes $175 for Subtest I or II, $95 for Subtest III | Free online practice tests and study guides with a free account | |
Prices and ratings checked October 2026.
Explore
FAQ
Each section is scored from 20 to 80, and 41 is a pass. You can also pass with a total of 123 across all three sections, as long as no section is below 37. So a 37 in Math can still pass if Reading and Writing make up the difference. If you retake a section, your highest score on each section counts toward the total.
220 on every subtest. CSET scores run from 100 to 300, and each subtest is scored on its own. You need to pass all the subtests for your subject, and each passing score has to be used toward a credential within 10 years.
As of October 2026, it’s $30 per section, so $90 for all three. You register and pay for each section separately. CSET subtests are $99 each, CSET: Multiple Subjects is $247 for all three subtests together at a test center, and CSET: Writing Skills is $63. The state fee waiver program ended on June 30, 2024.
Often, no. CTC says a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited school now meets the basic skills requirement for most credentials. You can also qualify with B grades or better in college reading, writing and math courses, with certain SAT, ACT or AP scores, CSU placement results, passing CSET: Multiple Subjects plus Writing Skills, or an approved out-of-state exam. Check CTC’s leaflet CL-667 for the details.
Yes. All three CBEST sections can be taken online at home with a remote proctor, during one-week testing windows each month. You need a desktop or laptop with a webcam and one monitor, and there are no breaks. You can also test at a Pearson VUE center by appointment, Monday to Saturday, all year.
Create an account on the CTC exams site (ctcexams.nesinc.com), register and pay, then pick a time at a test center or an online slot. Test-center appointments are first come, first served. If you need to retake a test, you have to wait 45 days from your last attempt.
When Riverside Elementary moved its library hours from after school to the first thirty minutes of the morning, the change was meant to help working parents, who could now drop their children off early. The checkout records tell a fuller story. In the first semester, the number of books checked out rose by nearly a third, and the biggest increase came from students in the upper grades, who had rarely visited the library before. Teachers noticed that many of these students arrived in class already reading. Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage?
Moving the library hours to the morning had a benefit beyond the one it was planned for. The passage starts with the reason for the change (helping parents), then turns to what the records showed: more checkouts, mostly from older students who hadn’t used the library before. The point is that the change did more good than planned.
When Riverside Elementary moved its library hours from after school to the first thirty minutes of the morning, the change was meant to help working parents, who could now drop their children off early. The checkout records tell a fuller story. In the first semester, the number of books checked out rose by nearly a third, and the biggest increase came from students in the upper grades, who had rarely visited the library before. Teachers noticed that many of these students arrived in class already reading. Which of the following conclusions is best supported by the passage?
For some students, the morning hours made the library easier to use than the after-school hours had. Older students who had rarely visited the library started checking out books once it opened in the morning. The most reasonable conclusion is that the new time suited them better than the old one did.
The committee’s report was deliberately terse: two pages, no charts, and only the three recommendations the board had asked for. As used in this sentence, the word “terse” most nearly means:
brief and to the point The words after the colon explain “terse”: only two pages, no charts, nothing beyond what was asked. That describes something short and focused.
A teacher wants to find every page in a 400-page reading handbook that mentions “phonemic awareness.” Which part of the book is the quickest place to look?
The index An index lists topics and terms in alphabetical order with the page numbers where each one appears. It’s built for exactly this kind of search.
(1) The city opened its first public swimming pool in 1931. (2) Today the pool serves more than 40,000 swimmers each summer. (3) It is the most important building in the neighborhood. (4) Its original tile mural was restored in 2019. Which sentence states an opinion rather than a fact?
Sentence 3 “The most important building” is a judgment. People could reasonably disagree about it, and there’s no record you could check to prove it. The other sentences give dates and numbers that could be looked up.
A principal argues: “Students who eat breakfast at school score higher on morning quizzes than students who don’t. So our free breakfast program is raising quiz scores.” Which of the following, if true, would most weaken the principal’s argument?
Students who eat breakfast at school also arrive early and get extra review time with teachers before the quizzes. The principal assumes breakfast causes the higher scores. If the same students also get extra review time, that could explain the scores instead. A second possible cause weakens a cause-and-effect claim.
Some critics call the new science standards too demanding. Yet the same critics said that about the reading standards ten years ago, and those standards are now taken for granted. Ambitious goals have a way of looking reasonable once students begin meeting them. Which of the following best describes the author’s attitude toward the new science standards?
It is confident they will prove workable. The author answers the critics by pointing to the reading standards, which once looked too hard and are now normal. The last sentence says ambitious goals start to look reasonable once students meet them. That’s a confident, supportive view.
On five quizzes, a student scored 72, 90, 85, 88 and 80. What is the student’s mean (average) score?
83 Add the scores: 72 + 90 + 85 + 88 + 80 = 415. Divide by the number of quizzes: 415 ÷ 5 = 83.
A classroom bulletin board is 8 feet wide and 4 feet tall. Border trim comes in rolls that are each 36 inches long. How many rolls are needed to go once around all four edges of the board?
8 rolls The distance around the board (the perimeter) is 8 + 4 + 8 + 4 = 24 feet. Each roll is 36 inches, which is 3 feet. 24 ÷ 3 = 8 rolls.
A bag holds 6 red, 4 blue and 10 green counters. A student takes one counter without looking. What is the probability that it’s blue?
1/5 There are 6 + 4 + 10 = 20 counters, and 4 of them are blue. The probability is 4/20, which simplifies to 1/5.
A teacher orders 3 packs of markers at $4.75 per pack and 2 boxes of paper at $12.50 per box. Shipping is a flat $6.00 for the whole order. What is the total cost?
$45.25 Markers: 3 × $4.75 = $14.25. Paper: 2 × $12.50 = $25.00. Add shipping once: $14.25 + $25.00 + $6.00 = $45.25.
A school had 480 students last year and 528 students this year. By what percent did enrollment increase?
10% The increase is 528 − 480 = 48 students. Percent change compares the increase with the starting number: 48 ÷ 480 = 0.10, which is 10%.
A class has $150 for a field trip. The bus costs $90, and each student entry ticket costs $4. What is the greatest number of tickets the class can buy with the money left after paying for the bus?
15 After the bus, $150 − $90 = $60 is left. Each ticket is $4, so $60 ÷ $4 = 15 tickets.
A class art project uses 3/4 cup of glue for each batch. How much glue is needed for 2 1/2 batches?
1 7/8 cups Multiply: 3/4 × 2 1/2 = 3/4 × 5/2 = 15/8. As a mixed number, 15/8 is 1 7/8 cups.
Which of the following numbers is between 2/5 and 1/2?
0.45 As decimals, 2/5 = 0.4 and 1/2 = 0.5. The only choice between 0.4 and 0.5 is 0.45.
At a school, every student is placed in exactly one group, Group A or Group B. The rule is: “All students who pass the reading screener are placed in Group A.” Maria is in Group B. Which of the following must be true?
Maria did not pass the reading screener. If Maria had passed, the rule would have put her in Group A. She’s in Group B, and a student can be in only one group, so she can’t have passed.
A writer is answering this essay prompt: “Should high schools require community service for graduation? Take a position and support it.” Which sentence would make the clearest central idea (thesis) for the essay?
Requiring community service would help students by connecting what they learn in class to real problems in their own town. A clear thesis takes a position and gives a reason the essay can develop. This one says yes, it should be required, and why. CBEST scorers look for a central idea that is clearly stated and kept in focus.
Which of the following sentences is punctuated correctly?
When the bell rang, the students lined up quietly. “When the bell rang” is an introductory clause that can’t stand on its own. A comma goes after it, before the main clause “the students lined up quietly.”
A writer’s paragraph begins: “Small classes help children who are just learning to read.” Which sentence would best support this claim?
In my second-grade class of fifteen, our teacher could hear each of us read aloud every day and fix mistakes right away. This sentence gives a specific example that shows how a small class helped beginning readers: daily reading aloud and quick correction. CBEST scorers reward support that is relevant, specific and detailed.
Which word or phrase best fills the blank? “The first plan was cheaper. ______, it would have taken two years to finish, so the board chose the second plan.”
However The second sentence gives a drawback that works against the first plan’s advantage. “However” signals that kind of contrast.