CLEP Chemistry Exam Prep Course
Full course with 500+ practice questions and a practice exam
Self-paced prep for the CLEP Chemistry exam. 17 chapters covering all 9 content areas the exam tests, with a quiz after every subchapter. 75 questions, 90 minutes, with an on-screen scientific calculator and periodic table. A score of 50 earns 6 transferable college credits.
- Backup ACE/NCCRS credit path — earn the credit even if you don't pass
- Lifetime access — no deadlines, no expiry, study at your own pace
- Credits accepted at 2,900+ U.S. colleges
Pricing
$19 for this course with lifetime access, or $29 a month for all 28 CLEP subjects. Every plan also unlocks the ACE/NCCRS course in the same subject.
- All 17 chapters and 83 lessons
- Five-question quiz after every subchapter
- Readiness score tracker
- Worked stoichiometry and equilibrium problems
- Lifetime access, no expiry
- All 28 CLEP prep courses
- Every chapter, lesson and quiz
- Readiness tracker per subject
- Backup ACE/NCCRS credit path
- Cancel or pause anytime
- Lifetime access to all 28 subjects
- All current and future courses
- 12-month ACE/NCCRS backup path
- Pay once, never renew
What are ACE and NCCRS?
Two independent bodies that review online courses and recommend them for college credit. The American Council on Education (ACE) and the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) put courses through faculty panels that assess rigor and learning outcomes, then publish a credit recommendation. When you complete one, the credentialing body issues an official transcript you send to your college — the same kind of transfer credit a student moving from another university would bring with them.
- Reviewed by faculty panels, not by the course provider
- Official transcript issued on completion
- Recognized at 2,100+ colleges, many of which also take CLEP and DSST
Both routes, one plan
Buying CLEP Chemistry prep also opens the ACE/NCCRS course in the same subject — Chemistry I — at no extra cost. So exam day isn't the only way through. If the score doesn't land, the course is already sitting in your account: complete it self-paced, no proctor and no 90-minute timer, and earn three semester hours of credit through coursework instead.
- Chemistry I: 3 semester hours through coursework
- Unlocked automatically — no extra fee, no application
- CLEP can still be retaken after three months
Each college sets its own transfer policy, so confirm yours accepts the route you plan to use.
Check your college's policy before you buy. We keep 280+ school pages listing accepted exams, required scores and credits awarded.
Check your collegeCLEP Chemistry exam format and topics
The exam covers a one-year college course in general chemistry across 9 content areas, and expects you to apply that material to new and unfamiliar problems. About 75 questions in 90 minutes, some of them unscored pretest items. A TI-30XS MultiView scientific calculator and a periodic table are built into the exam software. Pass mark is 50.
| Content area | Weighting | Questions | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Structure of Matter | 20% | ≈15 | Atomic theory and structure; isotopes; electron energy levels and orbitals; periodic trends; nuclear chemistry; ionic, covalent and metallic bonding; VSEPR, Lewis structures, hybridization, resonance, polarity |
| States of Matter | 19% | ≈14 | Ideal gas laws and the mole concept; kinetic-molecular theory; deviations from ideal behavior; liquids, solids and phase diagrams; solutions, concentration and colligative properties |
| Descriptive Chemistry | 14% | ≈10 | Reactivity and products of reactions; periodic relationships; main-group and transition elements; nomenclature; organic functional groups and isomerism |
| Reaction Types | 12% | ≈9 | Arrhenius, Brønsted-Lowry and Lewis acid-base reactions; coordination complexes; precipitation; oxidation-reduction and electrochemistry |
| Equations and Stoichiometry | 10% | ≈8 | Net ionic equations; mass and volume relations with the mole concept; balancing equations, including redox |
| Experimental Chemistry | 9% | ≈7 | Common general-chemistry lab experiments: equipment, observations, calculations and interpretation of results |
| Equilibrium | 7% | ≈5 | Le Châtelier's principle; Kc and Kp; acid-base constants, pK and pH; solubility products; complex ions; the common ion effect and buffers |
| Thermodynamics | 5% | ≈4 | State functions; enthalpy, heats of formation and reaction, Hess's law; entropy and free energy; the link between free energy, equilibrium constants and electrode potentials |
| Kinetics | 4% | ≈3 | Reaction rates; order and rate constants from experimental data; temperature effects; activation energy and catalysts; rate-determining steps |
| 9 content areas | 100% | ≈75 | 90 minutes · calculator and periodic table provided · score 50 for an ACE recommendation of 6 semester hours |
How hard is the exam?
This is a full year of general chemistry in one 90-minute sitting, so it's among the most demanding CLEP exams — and it pays 6 credits for that reason. Questions test recall, application and interpretation of data, and many need a quick calculation. Structure and states of matter make up nearly 40% of the exam, and lab-based questions are another 9%.
- Start with structure of matter and states of matter — nearly 40% together
- Be fast with the mole, stoichiometry and gas-law calculations
- Review common lab procedures for the 9% of experimental questions
Exam fee and booking
Register with College Board for $97. Test centers may add an administration fee. You can test at a center or remotely with a proctor, year-round. Scores are reported immediately for multiple-choice exams, and you send them to your college yourself.
- Passing score 50, for 6 semester hours
- Retake permitted after three months
- Free for active-duty military via DANTES
You won't need to memorize the periodic table — it's in the exam software — but you do need to read periodic trends from it quickly.
Check your collegeCourse chapters and lessons
17 chapters across 71 instructional hours. Expand any chapter to see the lessons inside it.
Chapter 1 Essential Ideas
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1.1 Chemistry in Context
Chemistry in context, classifying matter, physical and chemical properties, measurement, significant figures, and handling measurement results.
- 1.2 Phases and Classification of Matter
- 1.3 Physical and Chemical Properties
- 1.4 Measurements
- 1.5 Measurement Uncertainty, Accuracy, and Precision
- 1.6 Mathematical Treatment of Measurement Results
Chapter 2 Atoms, Molecules, and Ions
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2.1 Early Ideas in Atomic Theory
Atomic theory from Dalton onward, atomic structure and isotopes, chemical formulas, the periodic table, ionic and molecular compounds, and nomenclature.
- 2.2 Evolution of Atomic Theory
- 2.3 Atomic Structure and Symbolism
- 2.4 Chemical Formulas
- 2.5 The Periodic Table
- 2.6 Ionic and Molecular Compounds
- 2.7 Chemical Nomenclature
Chapter 3 Composition of Substances and Solutions
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3.1 Formula Mass and the Mole Concept
Formula mass and the mole, empirical and molecular formulas, molarity and other concentration units.
- 3.2 Determining Empirical and Molecular Formulas
- 3.3 Molarity
- 3.4 Other Units for Solution Concentrations
Chapter 4 Stoichiometry of Chemical Reactions
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4.1 Writing and Balancing Chemical Equations
Writing and balancing equations, classifying reactions, reaction stoichiometry, yields, and quantitative analysis — the equations and stoichiometry area.
- 4.2 Classifying Chemical Reactions
- 4.3 Reaction Stoichiometry
- 4.4 Reaction Yields
- 4.5 Quantitative Chemical Analysis
Chapter 5 Thermochemistry
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5.1 Energy Basics
Energy, calorimetry and enthalpy — the first-law half of thermodynamics.
- 5.2 Calorimetry
- 5.3 Enthalpy
Chapter 6 Electronic Structure and Periodic Properties of Elements
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6.1 Electromagnetic Energy
Electromagnetic energy, the Bohr model, and quantum theory — the electronic structure behind periodic trends.
- 6.2 The Bohr Model
- 6.3 Development of Quantum Theory
Chapter 7 Chemical Bonding and Molecular Geometry
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7.1 Ionic Bonding
Ionic and covalent bonding, Lewis symbols and structures, formal charge and resonance.
- 7.2 Covalent Bonding
- 7.3 Lewis Symbols and Structures
- 7.4 Formal Charges and Resonance
Chapter 8 Advanced Theories of Covalent Bonding
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8.1 Valence Bond Theory
Valence bond theory, hybrid orbitals, sigma and pi bonds, and molecular orbital theory.
- 8.2 Hybrid Atomic Orbitals
- 8.3 Multiple Bonds
- 8.4 Molecular Orbital Theory
Chapter 9 Gases
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9.1 Gas Pressure
Gas pressure, the ideal gas law, gas stoichiometry, and effusion and diffusion — the gas half of states of matter.
- 9.2 Relating Pressure, Volume, Amount, and Temperature: The Ideal Gas Law
- 9.3 Stoichiometry of Gaseous Substances, Mixtures, and Reactions
- 9.4 Effusion and Diffusion of Gases
Chapter 10 Liquids and Solids
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10.1 Intermolecular Forces
Intermolecular forces, the properties of liquids, phase transitions and phase diagrams, and the structure of solids.
- 10.2 Properties of Liquids
- 10.3 Phase Transitions
- 10.4 Phase Diagrams
- 10.5 The Solid State of Matter
- 10.6 Lattice Structures in Crystalline Solids
Chapter 11 Solutions and Colloids
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11.1 The Dissolution Process
The dissolution process, electrolytes, solubility, colligative properties and colloids.
- 11.2 Electrolytes
- 11.3 Solubility
- 11.4 Colligative Properties
- 11.5 Colloids
Chapter 12 Understanding Kinetics
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12.1 Chemical Reaction Rates
Reaction rates and what affects them, rate laws and integrated rate laws, collision theory, mechanisms and catalysis.
- 12.2 Factors Affecting Reaction Rates
- 12.3 Rate Laws
- 12.4 Integrated Rate Laws
- 12.5 Collision Theory
- 12.6 Reaction Mechanisms
- 12.7 Catalysis
Chapter 13 Fundamental Equilibrium Concepts
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13.1 Chemical Equilibria
Chemical equilibria, equilibrium constants, Le Châtelier's principle and equilibrium calculations.
- 13.2 Equilibrium Constants
- 13.3 Shifting Equilibria: Le Châtelier's Principle
- 13.4 Equilibrium Calculations
Chapter 14 Acid-Base Equilibria
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14.1 Brønsted-Lowry Acids and Bases
Brønsted-Lowry acids and bases, pH and pOH, acid strength, hydrolysis of salts, polyprotic acids, buffers and titrations.
- 14.2 PH and pOH
- 14.3 Relative Strengths of Acids and Bases
- 14.4 Hydrolysis of Salts
- 14.5 Polyprotic Acids
- 14.6 Buffers
- 14.7 Acid-Base Titrations
Chapter 15 Equilibria of Other Reaction Classes
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15.1 Precipitation and Dissolution
Precipitation and dissolution, Lewis acids and bases, and coupled equilibria.
- 15.2 Lewis Acids and Bases
- 15.3 Coupled Equilibria
Chapter 16 Thermodynamics
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16.1 Spontaneity
Spontaneity, entropy, the second and third laws, and Gibbs free energy.
- 16.2 Entropy
- 16.3 The Second and Third Laws of Thermodynamics
- 16.4 Free Energy
Chapter 17 Electrochemistry
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17.1 Review of Redox Chemistry
Redox review, galvanic cells, cell potentials, the link between potential, free energy and equilibrium, batteries, corrosion and electrolysis.
- 17.2 Galvanic Cells
- 17.3 Electrode and Cell Potentials
- 17.4 Potential, Free Energy, and Equilibrium
- 17.5 Batteries and Fuel Cells
- 17.6 Corrosion
- 17.7 Electrolysis
Practice exam Practice final exam
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Practice final exam — 100 multiple-choice questions
A full-length practice final that mirrors the exam's content areas and question style. Your score feeds the readiness tracker, so you know when you're ready to book the real exam.
These chapters make up the CLEP Chemistry exam prep class. They cover every content area on the official exam outline, and some topics go further than the exam requires.
Take the CLEP exam for the fastest route to 6 credits. If it doesn't go your way, your plan also includes a backup course that earns the credit through coursework.
See pricingColleges that accept CLEP Chemistry
CLEP is recognized at more than 2,900 U.S. colleges, but each one sets its own minimum score and decides how many credit hours to award. Check yours before you book the exam.
Browse college credit policies
Policies change. Every college page lists the date the policy was checked, and we recommend confirming minimum scores and credit awards with the Registrar before you schedule an exam. TransferCredit.org is an independent education service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the institutions listed.
Practice tests and study guides
Five questions in the style of the CLEP Chemistry exam, drawn from the chapters above. No sign-up needed — see where you stand before you buy.