First-time, U.S.-educated candidates passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses at an 86.6% rate in 2025, with results ranging from 99.4% in Vermont to 78.6% in Florida.
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing’s annual “NCLEX Examination Statistics,” a recently published report, covers the 54,818 first-time, U.S.-educated candidates who took the PN licensure exam between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2025. Of those, 47,470 passed.
The NCLEX-PN is the gateway to licensure for licensed practical nurses and licensed vocational nurses, who typically work under the supervision of registered nurses and physicians. Health systems mainly lean on LPNs and LVNs to staff nursing homes, long-term care and outpatient settings, as well as provide home health services and inpatient care.
Several of the largest states trailed the national average. California — the biggest by candidate volume, with 9,136 test-takers — had an 80.9% pass-rate among first-time candidates, ranking 50th, and Florida, at 78.6%, placed last. Texas, the second-largest state by volume with 4,244 candidates, bucked the pattern with a 91.9% pass rate, one of the strongest showings among high-population states.
The top of the ranking skewed toward smaller states, where a few dozen candidates can swing the rate: Vermont’s 99.4% came from 179 candidates and Maine’s 97.1% from just 35.
Here is each state’s pass rate and candidate volume:
| Rank | State | Pass rate | Candidates |
| 1 | Vermont | 99.4% | 179 |
| 2 | Maine | 97.1% | 35 |
| 3 | North Dakota | 96.1% | 155 |
| 4 | South Dakota | 95.8% | 285 |
| 5 | North Carolina | 95.2% | 1,135 |
| 6 | Arizona | 94.9% | 452 |
| 7 | Nebraska | 94.8% | 325 |
| 8 | Utah | 94.6% | 953 |
| 9 | Wisconsin | 94.4% | 1,069 |
| 9 (tie) | Wyoming | 94.4% | 142 |
| 11 | Iowa | 94.2% | 968 |
| 11 (tie) | Arkansas | 94.2% | 839 |
| 13 | Alabama | 93.7% | 1,474 |
| 14 | Idaho | 93.6% | 249 |
| 15 | Maryland | 93.5% | 309 |
| 16 | Montana | 93.3% | 45 |
| 17 | Delaware | 92.3% | 169 |
| 18 | Texas | 91.9% | 4,244 |
| 19 | Missouri | 91.9% | 1,191 |
| 20 | Indiana | 91.7% | 772 |
| 21 | South Carolina | 91.5% | 836 |
| 22 | Washington | 90.6% | 456 |
| 23 | Massachusetts | 90.2% | 693 |
| 24 | Kansas | 89.4% | 695 |
| 25 | Georgia | 89.1% | 975 |
| 26 | Virginia | 88.6% | 1,528 |
| 27 | Illinois | 88.2% | 1,667 |
| 28 | New Mexico | 88.1% | 219 |
| 29 | Kentucky | 88% | 627 |
| 29 (tie) | Rhode Island | 88% | 309 |
| 31 | Tennessee | 87.9% | 1,345 |
| 32 | Louisiana | 87.7% | 1,073 |
| 33 | Hawaii | 87.3% | 79 |
| 34 | Oklahoma | 87% | 1,136 |
| 34 (tie) | West Virginia | 87% | 440 |
| 36 | Connecticut | 86.3% | 489 |
| 36 (tie) | District of Columbia | 86.3% | 51 |
| 38 | Mississippi | 86.1% | 829 |
| 38 (tie) | Minnesota | 86.1% | 778 |
| 40 | New Hampshire | 86.1% | 223 |
| 41 | Oregon | 84.9% | 558 |
| 42 | Alaska | 84.8% | 33 |
| 43 | Michigan | 84.2% | 1,147 |
| 44 | Colorado | 84.2% | 373 |
| 45 | New York | 83.4% | 2,353 |
| 45 (tie) | Pennsylvania | 83.4% | 2,073 |
| 47 | Nevada | 82.8% | 134 |
| 48 | Ohio | 82.5% | 3,853 |
| 49 | New Jersey | 82.3% | 1,729 |
| 50 | California | 80.9% | 9,136 |
| 51 | Florida | 78.6% | 3,755 |
Access 2025 NCLEX-RN pass rates, here.
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