- What the Passing Score Actually Is
- How 26-of-35 Is Built From Ten Question Groups
- Where Most Points Live: G1, G2, and G4
- The 2023-2027 Pool, Withdrawn Questions, and 2026 Rule Changes
- Session-Day Mechanics That Affect Your Score
- Studying in Proportion to the Score, Not Alphabetically
- Element 3 Scoring at a Glance
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Element 3 has 35 multiple-choice questions; you need 26 correct to pass - no partial credit for domain performance.
- Ten question groups (G1-G0) feed the exam using fixed allocations, with G1, G2, and G4 each contributing 5 questions.
- The current pool runs July 1, 2023-June 30, 2027 and excludes eight withdrawn questions, including G1A04 and G6B09.
- An adult Technician-to-General upgrade through ARRL ordinarily costs $15 for the session, with no FCC application fee for a class-only upgrade.
What the Passing Score Actually Is
The FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL upgrade hinges on one number: 26. Element 3, the written General class examination, consists of 35 multiple-choice questions drawn from the current question pool, and a Volunteer Examiner team scores your answer sheet against a simple threshold - get at least 26 correct and you pass. There's no weighted scoring by exam domain, no minimum-per-section requirement, and no partial credit for showing your work. It's a flat percentage: 26 out of 35 is roughly 74%, and every question counts the same whether it comes from Commission's Rules or Antennas and Feed Lines.
That simplicity matters for how you prepare. You don't need to master every corner of the pool equally - you need enough correct answers across the ten question groups to clear 26. That's a very different planning problem than "know everything," and it's why understanding the group allocations below is more useful than grinding through questions in random order.
How 26-of-35 Is Built From Ten Question Groups
The 35 questions on your exam aren't pulled at random from the whole pool - they're assembled one question from each subelement group according to fixed allocations set by the question pool committee. Mock exams built for the current cycle follow the same rule: one question per group, matching official proportions, so your practice sessions mirror the real distribution instead of over- or under-sampling any topic.
| Subelement | Topic Area | Questions on Exam |
|---|---|---|
| G1 | Commission's Rules | 5 |
| G2 | Operating Procedures | 5 |
| G3 | Radio Wave Propagation | 3 |
| G4 | Amateur Radio Practices | 5 |
| G5 | Electrical Principles | 3 |
| G6 | Circuit Components | 2 |
| G7 | Practical Circuits | 3 |
| G8 | Signals and Emissions | 3 |
| G9 | Antennas and Feed Lines | 4 |
| G0 | Electrical and RF Safety | 2 |
That table adds up to exactly 35, which is the whole exam. If you want a plain-language walkthrough of what each group actually tests, the FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Exam Domains 2026 guide breaks down every one of the ten content areas in detail, and it's worth reading before you commit to a study order.
Where Most Points Live: G1, G2, and G4
Three subelements - Commission's Rules (G1), Operating Procedures (G2), and Amateur Radio Practices (G4) - are jointly the largest groups on the exam, each supplying 5 of the 35 questions. Together they account for 15 questions, close to half of what you need to reach 26. Treat these three as your foundation, not an afterthought.
Commission's Rules (G1)
Covers General-class frequency privileges, station identification, and the regulatory framework that separates what a General licensee can do from what a Technician can do.
- New HF band segments unlocked at General
- Power limits and control-operator responsibilities
- Current 60-meter channel rules, which changed for 2026
Operating Procedures (G2)
Focuses on the practical skills of getting on HF: net procedures, band plans, and the operating conventions that differ from VHF/UHF habits many Technicians already have.
- HF net and DX operating etiquette
- Recognizing and avoiding interference situations
- Digital and voice mode operating basics on HF
Amateur Radio Practices (G4)
Tests troubleshooting judgment and station setup knowledge that Technicians rarely need until they add HF equipment.
- Common HF interference and RFI troubleshooting
- Test equipment use for basic diagnostics
- Safe, legal station operation practices
If you're deciding how to allocate limited study time, start with these three groups. The FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Study Guide 2026 lays out a first-attempt study sequence built around exactly this kind of group-weighted prioritization.
The 2023-2027 Pool, Withdrawn Questions, and 2026 Rule Changes
Every question on your exam comes from the public question pool covering July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2027, which includes one schematic diagram question and any current corrections issued during the cycle. That pool is publicly published, which is exactly why targeted practice works so well for this exam - you're not guessing at unknown content, you're studying a known, finite set.
Eight questions have been formally withdrawn from that pool: G1A04, G1C08, G1C09, G1C10, G1E09, G6B09, G8C01, and G9C06, along with G9D13. If a practice source still includes any of these, it's outdated. Withdrawn questions should never appear on a real VE session exam, and they shouldn't appear in your practice sets either, since studying them wastes time on material that can't earn you a point.
Because the pool is static for four years at a time, mastering it group-by-group is a realistic goal rather than an open-ended chase. For a broader look at how demanding that mastery actually is, see How Hard Is the FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Exam?, and for aggregate outcome data, FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Pass Rate 2026 covers what's publicly known about results.
Session-Day Mechanics That Affect Your Score
Passing 26 of 35 questions is only half the equation - you also have to sit for a valid, properly credited session. Volunteer Examiner teams administer Element 3 under a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator, either in person or through supervised remote sessions, and a few procedural details can affect whether your attempt even counts.
- Existing credit: If you're already a Technician licensee, you've passed or received credit for Element 2, so you normally only take Element 3.
- What to bring: An FCC Registration Number (FRN), accepted photo identification, a valid email address, and - if you're claiming credit from a prior attempt - your license or a CSCE, which is valid for 365 days from issuance.
- Closed-book conditions: The exam is closed-book. Calculator memories and stored formulas must be cleared beforehand, and a phone cannot be used as a calculator.
- Fees: ARRL VEC's 2026 session fee is $15 (or $5 for candidates under 18), covering one attempt at each element you sit for. Failing an element means paying again to retake it.
- FCC fees: A class-only upgrade carries a $0 FCC application fee; new licenses and renewals run $35. That's why an adult Technician-to-General upgrade through ARRL typically totals just the $15 session fee before study materials.
For the exact totals broken down by scenario, see FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Certification Cost 2026, and for eligibility details like identification requirements and credit rules, check FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Requirements 2026.
Key Takeaway
A CSCE showing Element 3 credit is only good for 365 days - schedule your final license application or upgrade session before that window closes, or you'll need to retest.
Studying in Proportion to the Score, Not Alphabetically
Generic study advice tells you to review everything evenly. For Element 3, that's inefficient: G1, G2, and G4 are worth five questions each while G6 and G0 are worth only two. A study plan should mirror the exam's own math.
Rules, Operating, Practices (G1, G2, G4)
- Drill the 15 questions covering these three groups first - they're the largest share of the passing threshold
- Pay special attention to the current 60-meter rule and HF band-privilege charts
Propagation, Antennas, Safety (G3, G9, G0)
- Cover HF propagation basics and the antenna/feed-line questions, which together add 7 more points toward 26
- Fold in Electrical and RF Safety since it's compact but easy to miss without review
Electrical Principles, Circuits, Signals (G5, G6, G7, G8)
- Work through the remaining technical groups using full mock exams built with one question per group
- Track accuracy by group so you know exactly which subelement is dragging your score below 26
This progression is the same logic behind the domain-by-domain breakdown in the exam domains guide - study time follows question weight, not gut feeling. If you'd rather keep a condensed reference on hand while you drill, the FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Cheat Sheet 2026 distills the must-know facts from each group onto one page.
Element 3 Scoring at a Glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Total questions | 35 |
| Correct answers needed to pass | 26 |
| Question pool cycle | July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2027 |
| Withdrawn questions excluded | G1A04, G1C08, G1C09, G1C10, G1E09, G6B09, G8C01, G9C06, G9D13 |
| Morse code requirement | None |
| Largest question groups | G1, G2, G4 (5 each) |
| CSCE credit validity | 365 days |
Practicing against this exact format - full-length mock exams that respect the one-question-per-group rule - is the fastest way to know whether you're tracking toward 26 before you ever sit for the real session. You can run through a General ham radio practice test built to this structure on the main practice test site to see your projected score by group.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can miss up to 9 of the 35 questions and still pass, since the threshold is 26 correct answers, not a perfect score.
No. There's no minimum score required within Commission's Rules, Operating Procedures, or any other single group - only the overall 26-of-35 total determines a pass.
No Morse-code test is required to earn the General class license; Element 3 is entirely a written, multiple-choice exam.
You can retake it, but the ARRL VEC session fee covers only one attempt per element, so a retake requires paying the exam fee again.
You must pass or hold credit for both Element 2 and Element 3; existing Technicians already have Element 2 credit, so passing Element 3 completes the upgrade requirement.
Once the scoring mechanics make sense, the remaining work is straightforward repetition: run mock exams built on the current pool, track your accuracy by question group, and close the gaps in whichever subelements are keeping you under 26. For a full walkthrough of everything else involved in the upgrade - from eligibility to the broader value of holding a General license - see Is the FCC-AMATEUR-GENERAL Certification Worth It? or start practicing directly on the practice test platform.