Short guides to the test, written in plain English. Every one is free to read.
The test has not changed for 2026. You answer 24 questions in 45 minutes. You need 18 right to pass.
Answer 24 questions in 45 minutes. See your score straight away. Your first test needs no sign-up and no email address.
See practice questions with the correct answer marked. Each one has a short reason in plain English.
You need 18 correct answers out of 24. That is 75%. You can get 6 wrong and still pass.
The test costs £50. You pay that fee every time you sit it, so a retake costs another £50.
You need 18 out of 24 (75%) to pass. This page sets out a plan that gives you the best chance of getting there on your first try.
You book the test online on GOV.UK. It costs £50 and you must book at least 3 days before the day you want.
History is the biggest part of the handbook and the part most people find hardest. Here are practice questions with the answers explained.
Questions on Parliament, elections, the courts and how the country is run. Each one below has the answer marked and a short reason.
Democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and tolerance. These questions are among the most straightforward marks in the test.
The four nations, the NHS, schools, and the rules of daily life. These are facts you are likely to use as well as be tested on.
Sport, music, books, festivals and national days. This is one of the larger parts of the test and often one of the more enjoyable.
Food, travel, bank holidays and the practical side of living in Britain. These are the questions closest to daily life.
The Romans ruled Britain for nearly 400 years. The test asks when they came, what they built, and why they left.
After the Romans left, Anglo-Saxons settled and Vikings raided. England became one kingdom for the first time in this period.
1066 is the single most asked date in British history. It was the last time Britain was successfully invaded.
Two families, two hundred years, and more test questions than any other period. This is where the Church of England and Parliament's power both begin.
Britain was the first country in the world to industrialise. The test asks when it began, who the engineers were, and how ordinary life changed.
The First World War ran from 1914 to 1918. Learn both dates, because the test asks for either one.
The Second World War ran from 1939 to 1945. Churchill, Dunkirk and the Battle of Britain come up most often.
From 1945 to today: the welfare state, new arrivals who reshaped the country, devolution, and joining and leaving the European Union.
You do not need every monarch. You need the ones tied to an event the handbook covers. Here they are in order.
Every date the test asks about, in order, from the Roman invasion to leaving the European Union. Read it on a phone in one scroll.
The real test is in English, Welsh or Scottish Gaelic. Our practice tests read every question aloud in your language, so you understand it while you learn the English.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Urdu. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Polish. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Romanian. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Turkish. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Italian. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Bengali. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Farsi. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
Read each question in English and listen to it in Arabic. The free mock test has audio on every question, in a male or female voice.
No website can show you the questions you will get. What we can show you is which topics people who passed say came up for them, and give you practice questions on those topics.
