FE and PE Exam

FE Civil · cost · as of Oct 29, 2026

FE Civil exam cost, counting retakes

As of October 2026 each attempt costs $225, paid to NCEES, and some boards charge for their application on top. A failed attempt is paid again, so the honest price is the fee times the attempts an average civil candidate makes in a year: about 1.66.

FE Civil practice test Exam facts

Updated Oct 29, 2026 · Not affiliated with NCEES.

What you pay

Checked Oct 29, 2026. Sources are numbered and listed under Source notes. The fee rules shared by every FE discipline, refunds included: FE exam registration.
FactDetailSourceChecked
Exam fee$225 to NCEESFor each attempt, registrations from January 1, 2024 ($175 before).NCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) · NCEES: new exam prices effective January 1, 2024 [1][2][3]
Board application feeSome boards require their own application and fee before you can sit; amounts vary by boardNCEES: FE exam · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][2]
Reschedule or cancel$50 to Pearson, at least 48 hours before the appointmentCanceling the registration refunds the NCEES fee minus a $50 administrative fee (waived if you already paid Pearson a cancellation fee).NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [2]
RetakesOnce per testing window, at most 3 times in any 12 monthsSome boards are stricter.NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [2]
Official practice examTwo interactive practice exams (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2), 50 questions each, $50 eachBuilt on the July 2020 specifications; retired when new specifications take effect.as of Oct 29, 2026 · NCEES store priceNCEES: FE Civil Interactive Practice Exam Vol. 1 · NCEES exam prep store (product list) [4][5]
Expected attempts in 12 monthsAbout 1.66 attempts within 12 monthsAverage attempts in the first 12 months, when at most 3 are allowed: 1 + 39% + 39% × 68%, from all first-time (61%) and repeat (32%) takers; about 18% would still not have passed after a third attempt.as of Oct 29, 2026 · our estimate from NCEES pass rates for Oct 2024–Sep 2025NCEES Squared 2025: pass rates, fiscal year Oct 2024–Sep 2025 (PDF) · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [2][6]
Expected exam fees in 12 monthsAbout $372 in NCEES fees within 12 months$225 per attempt × 1.655 expected attempts (unrounded) in the first 12 months; board fees, travel and prep not included.as of Oct 29, 2026 · our estimate from NCEES pass rates for Oct 2024–Sep 2025NCEES Squared 2025: pass rates, fiscal year Oct 2024–Sep 2025 (PDF) · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [2][6]

Expected attempts at civil pass rates

The estimate uses one fiscal year of NCEES data, October 2024 to September 2025, for both rates, so the groups match: all first-time takers and all repeat takers. It stops at three attempts because that is the most you can take in 12 months; about 18% of candidates (0.39 × 0.68 × 0.68) have still not passed by then, so read it as the cost of a year of trying, not a guaranteed price of passing.

Calculation steps

  1. 1First attempt: everyone pays1
  2. 2Second attempt: those who fail the first (61% pass)1 − 0.610.39
  3. 3Third attempt: those who fail again (32% of repeaters pass)0.39 × (1 − 0.32)0.265
  4. 4Expected attempts, rounded1 + 0.39 + 0.2651.66
  5. =Expected exam fees, computed from the unrounded expected attempts$225 × expected attempts$372

Source: Squared 2025 annual report, FE table; retake limit from the examinee guide Our estimate, not a published figure. With the higher EAC/ABET rates of the same year the total comes out a little lower.

The rest of the bill

  • State board application. Varies by board; your board’s site lists it.
  • Moving the appointment. $50 each time you reschedule with Pearson VUE, up to the cutoff shown above.
  • Practice exams from NCEES. Two volumes for civil, sold separately in its store; the rehearsal closest to the real interface.
  • Calculator. Any model on the NCEES calculator list; you may already own one.
  • Handbook. Free: the PDF is in your MyNCEES account (civil chapters).
  • Review manual or course. Optional. If you buy one, check it was written for the July 2020 specification: older books date from when construction had half its current question range.

After the FE: the PE Civil

The license exam is a separate bill: $400 per attempt for any of the PE Civil modules, plus board fees. More on the second exam: PE exam.

Source notes

  1. NCEES: FE exam ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
  2. NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
  3. NCEES: new exam prices effective January 1, 2024 ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
  4. NCEES: FE Civil Interactive Practice Exam Vol. 1 account.ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
  5. NCEES exam prep store (product list) account.ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
  6. NCEES Squared 2025: pass rates, fiscal year Oct 2024–Sep 2025 (PDF) ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026

Questions people ask

How much does the FE Civil exam cost?

$225 for each sitting as of October 2026, charged at NCEES registration; a board application fee may come on top.

Is a retake charged in full?

Yes, the full fee each time. At civil pass rates an average candidate makes about 1.66 attempts in a year, which is where the $372 estimate comes from.

Can I get a refund?

Partly. Cancel the registration and you get the fee back less an administrative charge; a Pearson VUE reschedule is a separate charge. The rules: registration.

Civil problems before exam day

FE Civil questions, answers and worked solutions in a study app.

Download on theApp StoreAndroid: practice in the browser Get the FE Civil app

Not affiliated with NCEES.