CPC Exam Requirements: Eligibility, CPC-A & Exam-Day Rules

You don't need a college degree, a specific course, or coding work experience to sit for AAPC's Certified Professional Coder (CPC) exam. The U.S. CPC exam requirements include an active AAPC membership, an exam voucher, and a matching photo ID; passing before AAPC accepts your qualifying work or approved substitutes leads to CPC-A (apprentice).

CPC exam requirements
Requirement	Needed to take the exam?	What it means
College degree	No	AAPC doesn't require one (AAPC). A school or employer may set its own rules.
Coding work experience	No	Qualifying work or approved substitutes affect whether your credential is CPC or CPC-A (AAPC apprentice-removal rules).
An AAPC (or any) prep course	No — optional	AAPC allows independent study (AAPC Help Center).
Medical terminology, anatomy, pathophysiology	Preparation knowledge	AAPC expects this knowledge before CPC training (AAPC CPC). Skipping a course doesn't skip the content.
Current AAPC membership	Yes	AAPC lists current membership as a basic requirement. Its Help Center allows scheduling with an expired membership if the voucher is active, but results are withheld until you renew (AAPC prerequisites, results policy).
Current email and address on your AAPC account	Yes	Part of AAPC's basic exam requirements (AAPC prerequisites).
Valid, unused exam voucher	Yes	Check whether a school, employer or course already gave you one before buying (voucher validity).
Government-issued photo ID	Yes, on exam day	First and last name must exactly match your exam confirmation (AAPC prerequisites).
Approved code books and testing setup	Yes, on exam day	CPT® (AMA Professional edition only), ICD-10-CM and HCPCS Level II; plus at-home or testing-center rules (AAPC Examinee Instructions).
Verified coding experience (or approved substitutes)	No — needed for CPC without the A	This removes the "A" and turns CPC-A into CPC (AAPC apprentice-removal rules).

The exam itself: 100 multiple-choice questions, four hours in one sitting, and you need 70% — at least 70 correct — to pass. You can test online with a live remote proctor or at a testing center (AAPC CPC exam, passing score).

Will you pass as CPC or CPC-A?

Same exam, same passing score. The difference is whether AAPC has accepted your qualifying work or approved substitutes.

CPC versus CPC-A after passing
Your situation when you pass	What AAPC awards	Next step toward full CPC
AAPC has accepted a completed experience route	CPC	Maintain your credential
2+ years of coding work (externships count), not yet verified	CPC-A until verified, then CPC	Submit employment verification covering 2 years (Option 1 below)
At least 1 but less than 2 years of coding work, with no accepted full route	CPC-A	Complete or verify an 80-contact-hour coding course or Practicode (Option 2)
Less than 1 year, or none, with no accepted full route	CPC-A	80-hour course plus Practicode (Option 3), AAPC's Job-Ready pathway (Option 4), or keep working toward Option 1 or 2

A CPC-A is a real certification, not a pass/fail limbo. It tells employers AAPC has not yet verified that requirement as complete. Some coding jobs ask for it, others want the full CPC — that's an employer decision, not an AAPC rule (AAPC CPC-A).

How to remove the "A"

AAPC needs to verify the equivalent of two years of on-the-job coding experience. Work you did before you were certified counts (AAPC apprentice-removal rules).

Ways to remove the apprentice designation
Option	What you combine	Proof AAPC asks for
1	2 years of coding work using CPT, ICD-10-CM or HCPCS Level II	Employer verification letter(s)
2	1 year of coding work + either an eligible coding course of at least 80 contact hours or AAPC's Practicode	Employer letter(s), plus course or Practicode evidence where required
3	An eligible coding course of at least 80 contact hours + Practicode	Course and Practicode completion evidence where required
4	AAPC's Job-Ready pathway	Its coursework, passing the CPC exam, and the remaining required cases after certification (AAPC: how to remove your A)

What counts as proof:

Employer letters come from an employer, supervisor or HR department, on company letterhead, hand-signed and dated, with current contact information and a description of your coding experience and the start and end dates of the employment or externship. You upload them as a non-editable PDF.
Course proof is an instructor letter on school letterhead, a certificate or diploma, or an unofficial transcript showing at least 80 contact hours. CEUs don't count.
Practicode counts after at least 600 cases with an overall score of 70% or higher. Where manual evidence is required, use the Coder's Performance Profile Report.

Submit any required documents through AAPC's Apprentice Removal Application. AAPC says most applications are processed within 2–4 weeks. If you finished AAPC's own CPC prep course online, AAPC credits the 80 hours automatically — no proof needed. For AAPC students, qualifying Practicode completion is also recognized automatically; other students submit the performance report. If your Practicode cases were reset after a non-passing score, the automatic update may not happen; submit the required documentation or contact AAPC (AAPC apprentice-removal rules).

One trap: a course you didn't finish doesn't earn its contact hours. You may be able to sit for the exam before a course is complete, but the hours only count once it is (AAPC Help Center).

Which code books can you bring?

Three books, one copy each:

CPT® — the AMA Professional edition only. No other publisher's CPT is allowed.
ICD-10-CM — any publisher.
HCPCS Level II — any publisher.

Source: AAPC Examinee Instructions. You can also choose AAPC's eBooks instead of print. They're a shared library inside the exam platform with search, but none of your own notes. You can switch between print and eBook up to 48 hours before the exam.

Which year?

AAPC's rules (which year's books):

Exams are based on the current calendar year's code sets and normally update every January. In 2026, HCPCS Level II was an exception: questions switched from the 2025 codes to the 2026 codes on March 2.
Print books can be the current year or the year before — or a mix. AAPC strongly suggests current-year books.
Books older than one year are not allowed. Next year's books are not allowed.
AAPC's eBooks are always the current year.

So for an exam in late 2026, bring 2026 books (2025 are allowed). The current rule would allow 2027 or 2026 books for an exam in 2027. Permission to bring a prior-year book doesn't change which year's codes are tested.

The fall trap. The 2027 ICD-10-CM diagnosis code set applies to encounters from October 1, 2026 (CMS). AAPC's exam still follows the calendar year and bars the upcoming year's books. If you test before January, bring the edition labeled with the current year.

If you might retake across New Year's: a second attempt taken in the next calendar year is that year's exam, not last year's (AAPC). AAPC also runs no exams from December 30 until the second Monday of January (AAPC blackout).

What you can write in them

Handwritten notes and highlighting that help with day-to-day coding, and tabs that only mark pages, are fine. Not allowed: long passages written on blank pages, questions copied from study guides, practice exams or the exam itself, and whiting out or printing over pages to add information (AAPC book-notes rules).

Don't add loose pages, sticky notes, copied material or printed inserts (AAPC notes guidance).

These references are banned outright: study guides, Procedural Coding Expert, any Procedural Professional, CPT Plus! (PMIC), CPT Insider's View (AMA), and ICD-10-CM Easy Coder (AAPC prohibited references).

What you need on exam day

Both settings

A valid government-issued photo ID. Your first and last name must exactly match your exam confirmation, including multiple last names. Temporary, paper, photocopied and digital IDs aren't accepted (AAPC prerequisites).
Your books, if you chose print.
No phone, smartwatch, tablet, second monitor, headphones, paper, pens or pencils (AAPC Examinee Instructions).
An on-screen calculator is provided; physical calculators aren't allowed (AAPC CPC exam).

Testing at home

AAPC's at-home instructions call for (Examinee Instructions, at-home exam day):

A desktop or laptop with the Guardian Browser installed, plus speakers and a microphone
A separate external webcam positioned to show your face, hands, keyboard and surrounding desk area — a webcam built into your laptop or monitor is not allowed
A computer and internet connection that pass the Test It Out equipment check
A closed room with the door shut, windows closed and covered, a desk or table with a chair, and no pets or other people in the room

AAPC's pages don't all list the same hardware numbers. Run the equipment check linked from your exam account on the computer and connection you'll actually use, and follow your appointment instructions (at-home exam day).

Testing at a center

The center supplies the computer. Bring your ID and a printed copy of your confirmation/admission ticket (AAPC: what to bring).

Need an accommodation?

For an at-home exam, AAPC says to get the accommodation approved before you buy or schedule (AAPC accommodations).

What it costs

AAPC's pricing FAQ lists the CPC exam at $425 for one attempt or $499 for two, and $400 / $475 at its student exam price (AAPC exam cost). Confirm whether the student exam price applies to you before paying.

Membership is a separate charge: $229 a year for individuals, or $164 for new student members enrolled in an AAPC certification course, directly or through an approved education partner (AAPC membership).

Exam and first-year membership fees
New individual member	Exam	First-year membership	Exam + first-year membership
One attempt	$425	$229	$654
Two attempts	$499	$229	$728

Those totals cover AAPC's fees only — not code books, a webcam, training, travel or tax. Standard vouchers are valid for one year from purchase (voucher validity).

Before you register

Check your account. Current membership, current email and address, and any voucher you already have. Watch AAPC's exam tutorial video.
Match your ID. Compare the name on your photo ID with your AAPC account. Fix any difference before you book.
Pick a setting you can meet. At home means the external webcam and room rules; a testing center means travel and a printed ticket.
Settle your books. Correct editions for your exam year, and print or eBook — final at least 48 hours before the exam.
Accommodations first. If you need one for an at-home exam, get approval before buying or scheduling.
Plan your "A" route. Decide which removal option fits your history. You don't have to finish it before you test.

When you're ready, our AAPC exam registration guide walks through redeeming the voucher, booking in Meazure Learning, and change deadlines.

Keeping your CPC after you pass

If CPC or CPC-A is your only AAPC credential, you maintain it by renewing your AAPC membership every year and earning and submitting 36 approved continuing education units (CEUs) every two years (AAPC CPC, AAPC CEU requirements). Multiple credentials have different totals and may have subject-specific requirements. Your first CEU requirement may be prorated to match your existing renewal month, so go by the requirement and date in your AAPC account.

The "A" doesn't make the credential expire. A CPC-A who keeps up membership and CEUs stays certified while working toward removal (AAPC CPC-A).

Sources and verification

Last verified: October 20, 2026. We checked AAPC's published exam-entry requirements, independent-study guidance, apprentice-removal options, exam format and passing score, allowed references and book-year rules, ID and at-home requirements, published exam and membership prices, and CEU rules. We also checked CMS's October 1, 2026 effective date for the 2027 ICD-10-CM code set. The supporting official sources are linked beside the rules above. We did not test an AAPC account, buy a voucher, check live appointments or submit an apprentice-removal application. Fees and policies change; confirm in your AAPC account before you pay or book.

The Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team researched and wrote this guide with AI assistance and checked it against AAPC's published sources. It has not been reviewed by AAPC or a credentialed professional. See our editorial standards.

Independence. Castleport Test Prep is an independent exam prep publisher, not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by AAPC or Meazure Learning. Exam and credential names identify their subjects, and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Nothing here guarantees exam admission, a passing score, certification or employment.

Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team