What Is a Good UWorld Percentage?

Nearly every UWorld user checks their percentage correct daily and wonders what it means. The short version is that it is a learning metric, not an exam score, and it predicts less than most people hope.

The short answer

There is no official conversion from UWorld percentage to your exam result. One prep guide reports that average first-pass scores hover around 60 to 65%, and treats UWorld percentages as learning metrics rather than predictions. Use yours as a trend and a weak-area map, not as a number to compare with others.

What do students typically score?

Students commonly start lower in early blocks and improve as they learn, often finishing a first pass higher than they started. One shared score report describes a first pass starting in the 40s and ending in the high 70s, for a 64% overall. That is a single anecdote, but the pattern of rising percentages as you learn is common.

How well does UWorld percentage predict your score?

Research and community data say the relationship is real but modest. One study found that completing the UWorld bank at least once was positively associated with Step 1 scores. A student-reported survey on r/Step2 in 2021 estimated how well different practice measures explained real Step 2 CK scores: UWorld first-pass percentage explained about half of the variation (r² about 0.5), against about 0.6 for UWSA 2 and 0.63 for NBME 10. That survey is self-reported and unvalidated, so treat it as rough.

The practical takeaway matches what prep guides say: timed self-assessments beat raw percentage correct as a predictor. See how many practice exams to take.

Why your percentage depends on how you use it

Mode: tutor-mode percentages run higher than timed ones.
Pass number: a second pass is easier because you have seen the questions.
Block selection: blocks by system you know well inflate the number.
Guessing and fatigue: late-day blocks score lower.

What to track instead

Your timed, mixed-block percentage across the last two weeks.
Your score on full assessments (NBME, UWSA).
The concepts you keep missing, not just how many.
Whether your pace fits the new 20-question, 30-minute blocks. See our timed vs tutor mode guide.

How to raise it

Review every explanation, log the concepts you miss, and re-test them within days, not weeks. MedPrep does that for you: the adaptive engine flags the concept behind each missed question and brings variations back through spaced repetition, so your weak areas improve instead of repeating. Start with the free sample questions: Step 1, Step 2 CK and Step 3. Then try the 7-day free trial.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good UWorld percentage?

There is no official benchmark. One prep guide reports first-pass averages around 60 to 65% and treats percentages as learning metrics, not predictions.

Does UWorld percentage predict my Step 1 or Step 2 CK score?

Only loosely. Completing UWorld at least once is associated with better Step 1 scores, but timed self-assessments predict better than percentage correct.

Is 60% a good UWorld score?

It is in the range commonly reported for first passes, but it depends on your mode, pass number and timing. Track the trend and your weak areas.

Why is my timed percentage lower than tutor mode?

Timed blocks add pace pressure and remove immediate feedback, so scores are usually lower and closer to exam conditions.

Should I redo UWorld questions?

Many students redo missed or flagged questions rather than the whole bank, re-testing weak concepts a few days after first review.

How can I improve my percentage?

Review every explanation, log your misses, re-test them on a schedule and move to timed mixed blocks as the exam nears.

Sources and disclaimers

Figures in this guide come from the USMLE program's published notices and from third-party summaries that we could not check against the primary source, and we say so where that applies. Standards, policies and score data change, so confirm current details on USMLE.org, ECFMG and NRMP before you plan around them. MedPrep Institute is our own product, and is not affiliated with or endorsed by NBME, FSMB, USMLE, ECFMG, NRMP, UWorld or any other company named here. All trademarks belong to their owners.