The exam fee is the one licensing cost you will definitely pay - possibly more than once. Verified from official candidate handbooks, the sitting fee ranges from about $32 (Missouri) to $96 (Wyoming) per attempt depending on your state. Here is every state's fee, and the full cost picture around it.
Exam fees by state
Where a state charges different fees per line, the cells show life / health / property & casualty.
| State | Exam fee (per attempt) |
|---|---|
| Alabama | $50 / $50 / $75 |
| Alaska | $89 |
| Arizona | $50 / $50 / $59 |
| Arkansas | $50 |
| California | $55 |
| Colorado | $41 |
| Connecticut | $65 / $65 / $105 |
| Delaware | $90 |
| District of Columbia | $75 |
| Florida | $44 |
| Georgia | $67 |
| Hawaii | $75 |
| Idaho | $65 |
| Illinois | $92 |
| Indiana | $69 |
| Iowa | $44 |
| Kansas | $57 |
| Kentucky | $50 |
| Louisiana | $36 |
| Maine | $55 |
| Maryland | $62 |
| Massachusetts | $37 |
| Michigan | $41 |
| Minnesota | $45 |
| Mississippi | $50 |
| Missouri | $32 / $32 / $40 |
| Montana | $65 |
| Nebraska | $43 / $43 / $47 |
| Nevada | $37 / $37 / $47 |
| New Hampshire | $59 / $59 / $72 |
| New Jersey | $38 |
| New Mexico | $75 |
| New York | $40 |
| North Carolina | $45 |
| North Dakota | $64 |
| Ohio | $49 |
| Oklahoma | $38 |
| Oregon | $45 / $45 / $55 |
| Pennsylvania | $45.00 / $45.00 / $55.00 |
| Rhode Island | $80 |
| South Carolina | $59 |
| South Dakota | $85 / $85 / $95 |
| Tennessee | $55 |
| Texas | $39 / $49 / $49 |
| Utah | $32 / $32 / $44 |
| Vermont | $73 / $73 / $87 |
| Virginia | $35 |
| Washington | $38 / $38 / $55 |
| West Virginia | $84 |
| Wisconsin | $75 |
| Wyoming | $96 / $96 / $113 |
The costs around the exam fee
- **Prelicensing education** - some states require 20-40 hours of coursework before you may sit the exam, others have repealed the requirement entirely (North Carolina did in late 2025, Alabama in 2024, and California's requirement ends under AB 943). Where required, courses typically cost more than the exam itself.
- **Retakes** - in most states, every attempt costs the full exam fee again. Failing twice can double or triple your real cost, which is the strongest financial argument for practicing until your mock scores sit comfortably above your state's passing bar.
- **Fingerprinting and background checks** - commonly $30-$75 where required, paid to a separate provider.
- **The license application itself** - a separate state fee after you pass, submitted through NIPR in most states.
The cheapest insurance you can buy against paying the exam fee twice is free: full-length practice. Our mock exams mirror your state's real question count and time limit, grade against your state's verified passing score, and cost nothing - no registration, no trial limits. Downloadable question-and-answer PDFs are free too.
A worked example: what passing really costs vs failing once
Take Michigan: the exam fee is $41 per attempt. Pass first time and licensing costs you $41 in testing fees plus the state application. Fail once and the testing line doubles - before counting the lost day, travel, and the weeks of momentum a retake costs. In Texas ($39 per attempt) the same math applies with bigger numbers. Across every state we verified, the retake is the single most avoidable cost in the entire licensing process.
Five ways candidates waste money on this exam
- Booking before practicing - sitting the real exam as a "diagnostic" is the most expensive practice test available.
- Paying for question banks - original practice questions with explanations exist free (you are on a site full of them).
- Buying prep for the wrong state - generic national courses skip your state's law questions, which are heavily weighted on the real exam.
- Letting a prelicensing certificate expire - where required, certificates have validity windows; book the exam while yours is current or you may pay for the course again.
- No-show and late-reschedule fees - every vendor forfeits your fee if you miss the appointment or arrive without matching ID.
Frequently asked questions
Is the exam fee refundable if I cancel?
Vendors generally allow free rescheduling up to a cutoff (commonly 24-48 hours before the appointment) and forfeit the fee after it. The exact cutoff is in your state's candidate bulletin.
Do I pay the fee again for a different line?
Yes - each line's exam is a separate sitting with its own fee, though some states offer combined exams (one fee) covering two lines in a single session.
Fees change when states renegotiate vendor contracts - every figure here was verified against the official handbook or bulletin in July 2026, and each state's practice page links its source. Confirm the current fee at booking time. Our process: Sources & Updates.