ASVAB Test: Subtests, Scores and Practice Questions
The ASVAB is the test every enlisted applicant to the US military takes, and it matters twice. Your score decides whether you can enlist at all, and it decides which jobs you can be offered. Two applicants with the same AFQT percentile can walk out of the recruiting office with very different job lists because their scores on the technical subtests differ.
This guide covers the computer and paper versions, every subtest, how scores are used, the retest rules and eight practice questions with worked answers. If you mainly want to understand the enlistment score itself, read our separate page on the AFQT score explained.
What the ASVAB Is and Who Runs It
ASVAB stands for Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery. It is a Department of Defense test used by all the services to measure what you know and how well you are likely to do in military training. The official source for everything below is officialasvab.com, the DoD's ASVAB site.
You will normally take the enlistment ASVAB at one of two kinds of location:
- MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station). According to the official site, there are 65 MEPS across the US and Puerto Rico. These are joint-service stations where applicants also do their medical and paperwork.
- MET sites (Military Entrance Test sites). Satellite locations for applicants who live far from a MEPS, often in federal buildings, National Guard armories or Reserve centers.
Your recruiter schedules the session. Bring valid identification, and arrive on time: the official guidance is that late arrivals are turned away and rescheduled.
There is also an unproctored online version called PiCAT. According to the official site it is only available to people who have never taken the ASVAB, you need an access code from a recruiter, and if your scores suggest you are eligible you then take a short proctored Verification Test (Vtest) at a MEPS or MET site within 45 days. The Vtest does not produce a new score; it checks that your PiCAT result is valid.
For an overview of how the ASVAB compares with selection tests used by other armed forces, see our guide to aptitude tests for military selection.
CAT-ASVAB vs Paper-and-Pencil
Most applicants now sit the computer version, CAT-ASVAB. CAT means computerized adaptive testing: the test adjusts to your ability level. Get a question right and the next one tends to be harder; get it wrong and the next one tends to be easier. Because it homes in on your level quickly, it needs fewer questions.
| CAT-ASVAB | Paper-and-pencil | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | MEPS or MET site (plus the unproctored PiCAT) | Only a handful of MET sites |
| Total time | About 2 hours | About 3 to 4 hours |
| Scores | Available right after the session | Mailed to MEPS for scoring, usually a few days |
Two practical consequences of the adaptive format. First, candidates consistently report that you cannot skip a question and come back to it on the CAT, so plan to answer every item when it appears. Second, the early questions in each subtest carry a lot of weight in setting your level, so do not rush the first few to save time for later.
The CAT version may also include tryout questions that do not count toward your score. The official site says each examinee gets them in two to four subtests. You will not know which questions they are, so treat every item as real.
The ASVAB Subtests
The paper-and-pencil version, as published on officialasvab.com, has nine subtests:
| Subtest | Questions | Minutes | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Science (GS) | 25 | 11 | Physical and biological science |
| Arithmetic Reasoning (AR) | 30 | 36 | Math word problems |
| Word Knowledge (WK) | 35 | 11 | Vocabulary, synonyms |
| Paragraph Comprehension (PC) | 15 | 13 | Reading short passages |
| Mathematics Knowledge (MK) | 25 | 24 | Algebra, geometry, number rules |
| Electronics Information (EI) | 20 | 9 | Circuits, current, electrical terms |
| Auto and Shop Information (AS) | 25 | 11 | Vehicles, tools, shop practices |
| Mechanical Comprehension (MC) | 25 | 19 | Forces, levers, pulleys, gears |
| Assembling Objects (AO) | 25 | 15 | Spatial puzzles: how parts fit |
That adds up to 225 questions in 149 minutes of testing time. On the CAT-ASVAB the question counts and time limits per subtest are different, and Auto Information and Shop Information are separate subtests (on paper they are combined into one AS score). The official site lists the current CAT figures; check them there rather than relying on a number you saw in a forum.
Note the timing: on paper, Word Knowledge allows under 20 seconds per word, while Arithmetic Reasoning allows just over a minute per problem.
If the technical subtests worry you, our mechanical reasoning test guide and spatial reasoning test guide cover the same kinds of thinking as MC and AO.
How Your ASVAB Scores Are Used
You get three kinds of scores, and it helps to keep them apart.
Standard scores for each subtest. Each subtest is reported as a standard score compared with a national sample of 18 to 23 year olds. According to the official site, about half of that population scores 50 or higher and about 16% score 60 or higher. A 60 on Mechanical Comprehension is therefore a strong result.
The AFQT percentile. The Armed Forces Qualification Test score is calculated from four subtests: Arithmetic Reasoning, Mathematics Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension and Word Knowledge. It is reported as a percentile from 1 to 99 and decides whether you are eligible to enlist. Our AFQT score explained page covers the categories and percentiles in detail.
Service composites, including line scores. Each service combines subtests into its own composite scores to decide which jobs you qualify for. The Army calls these line scores; the General Technical (GT) score is the one Army applicants hear about most because many jobs and later programs require a minimum GT. The other services use their own composites and cut-offs. The formulas are set by each service and change from time to time, so ask your recruiter for the current requirements of the jobs you want.
Minimum scores by branch
Each service publishes or communicates its own minimum AFQT for enlistment, and those minimums move with recruiting needs and education credentials (high school diploma versus GED). As of November 2026 we could not confirm current minimums on the official branch recruiting sites, so we are not printing a table. Figures repeated across test-prep sites put most branches somewhere in the low to mid 30s for diploma holders, with higher requirements for GED holders, but treat those as unverified and confirm with a recruiter.
What is fixed in federal law (10 U.S.C. 520) is that only a small, capped share of recruits may score between the 10th and 30th percentile, and that non-graduates generally need at least the 31st percentile.
ASVAB Retest Rules
The official retest policy on officialasvab.com is straightforward:
- First retest: one month after the initial test.
- Second retest: one month after the first retest.
- Further retests: six months between each one.
If your AFQT jumps by 20 points or more within six months, that counts as a critical gain and you will be asked to take a confirmation test. The six-month wait after your third attempt is what hurts, so do not treat the first sitting as a trial run.
ASVAB Practice Questions
These are our own questions written in the style of the ASVAB subtests. They are not real ASVAB items. Work them without a calculator.
Practice question 1
Arithmetic Reasoning. A recruit runs 3 miles in 27 minutes. At the same pace, how long will 5 miles take?
A. 40 minutes B. 42 minutes C. 45 minutes D. 48 minutes
Answer: C. 27 minutes for 3 miles is 9 minutes per mile. Five miles at 9 minutes is 45 minutes. Find the unit rate first; it turns most rate questions into one multiplication.
Practice question 2
Arithmetic Reasoning. Boots cost $80. They are discounted by 15%, and then 8% sales tax is added to the discounted price. What is the final price?
A. $73.44 B. $73.60 C. $74.80 D. $68.00
Answer: A. 15% of $80 is $12, so the discounted price is $68. Tax of 8% on $68 is $5.44, giving $73.44. Option B comes from subtracting 15% and adding 8% to the original price in one step (a net 7% off), which is the trap.
Practice question 3
Mathematics Knowledge. If 3x − 7 = 2x + 5, what is x?
A. 2 B. −2 C. 12 D. −12
Answer: C. Subtract 2x from both sides to get x − 7 = 5, then add 7 to get x = 12.
Practice question 4
Word Knowledge. Candid most nearly means:
A. frank B. careful C. hidden D. cheerful
Answer: A. A candid answer is open and honest. With under 20 seconds per word, you will not have time to reason it out, which is why vocabulary has to be built in the weeks before the test.
Practice question 5
Paragraph Comprehension. "Before a convoy departs, each driver checks tire pressure, fluid levels and lights. Problems found during this check are reported to the motor sergeant, who decides whether the vehicle can travel. Drivers may not make that decision themselves."
According to the passage, who decides whether a vehicle with a problem can travel?
A. The driver B. The convoy commander C. The motor sergeant D. The mechanic
Answer: C. The passage says the motor sergeant decides, and it explicitly rules out the driver. Options B and D sound plausible from real life but are not in the text. Answer from the passage, not from what you think usually happens.
Practice question 6
General Science. Which of these is a chemical change?
A. Ice melting B. Iron rusting C. Sugar dissolving in water D. Water boiling
Answer: B. Rusting creates a new substance (iron oxide). Melting, boiling and dissolving change the state or mixture but not the substance itself.
Practice question 7
Electronics Information. A 12-volt battery is connected across a 4-ohm resistor. How much current flows?
A. 0.33 amps B. 3 amps C. 16 amps D. 48 amps
Answer: B. Ohm's law: current equals voltage divided by resistance. 12 ÷ 4 = 3 amps. Option D multiplies instead of dividing.
Practice question 8
Mechanical Comprehension. Gear A has 20 teeth and drives gear B, which has 40 teeth. If gear A turns at 60 revolutions per minute, how fast does gear B turn?
A. 120 rpm B. 60 rpm C. 30 rpm D. 15 rpm
Answer: C. The larger gear turns more slowly in proportion to its teeth. B has twice as many teeth, so it turns at half the speed: 30 rpm. It also turns the opposite way.
A Two-Week ASVAB Preparation Plan
Two weeks will not replace years of missed math, but it removes surprises.
1. Days 1 to 2: baseline
Take a full timed practice test in the CAT style if you can. Note your weakest two subtests and how many AR and MK questions you could not finish or had to guess.
2. Days 3 to 6: math foundations
Thirty to forty minutes a day on AR and MK without a calculator: fractions, percentages, ratios, simple equations, area and perimeter, exponents. Write out every step. Our numerical reasoning practice questions are good extra drill for percentage and rate problems.
3. Days 3 to 14: vocabulary every day
Fifteen minutes daily. Learn word roots and prefixes (bene-, mal-, -cide, pre-), which unlock unfamiliar words. Test yourself on synonyms, not definitions.
4. Days 7 to 10: technical subtests
Cover the basics of Ohm's law, simple circuits, levers, pulleys, gears, common tools and engine systems. These subtests reward plain familiarity more than reasoning.
5. Days 11 to 13: timed mixed practice
Short timed sets that mix subtests, then review every error. Ask why you got it wrong: knowledge gap, misreading or time pressure.
6. Day 14: light review and rest
Review your notes on formulas and word roots, confirm your ID and reporting time, and get a full night's sleep.
For broader practice across numerical, verbal and spatial formats, the free practice tests on our main site are a useful warm-up.
Test Day Tips
Bring the identification your recruiter tells you to bring, arrive early (late arrivals are rescheduled), eat beforehand because MEPS days are long, and write out every math problem on the scratch paper you are given. Two classic mistakes to avoid: preparing only for the AFQT when your job options depend on the technical subtests too, and bringing outside knowledge to Paragraph Comprehension, where the right answer is the one the passage supports.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the ASVAB take?
According to officialasvab.com, the proctored computer version (CAT-ASVAB) takes about 2 hours, and the paper-and-pencil version takes about 3 to 4 hours. The computer version is adaptive, so it uses fewer questions to reach a reliable score.
What is a passing score on the ASVAB?
There is no single pass mark. Eligibility to enlist is based on your AFQT percentile, and each service sets its own minimum. Job eligibility is then based on service-specific composites such as the Army's line scores. Check the current minimum with a recruiter, because these figures change.
Is the AFQT the same as the ASVAB?
No. The AFQT is one score calculated from four ASVAB subtests: Arithmetic Reasoning, Mathematics Knowledge, Paragraph Comprehension and Word Knowledge. The full ASVAB also includes science, technical and spatial subtests that feed into job composites.
How soon can I retake the ASVAB?
Under the official retest policy you can retest one month after your first test, again one month after that, and then six months between each further retest. A large score jump within six months can trigger a confirmation test.
Can I use a calculator on the ASVAB?
No. Calculators are not allowed, so the math subtests have to be done by hand or in your head. Practise without a calculator from day one.
About the author
Ingmar van Maurik is a specialist in test and interview preparation who helps candidates perform better in recruitment processes.
References
Official ASVAB, What to expect: https://www.officialasvab.com/applicants/what-to-expect/ Official ASVAB, Understanding your scores: https://www.officialasvab.com/applicants/scores/ Official ASVAB, FAQ: https://www.officialasvab.com/applicants/faq/ Official ASVAB, PiCAT: https://www.officialasvab.com/applicants/picat/ Official ASVAB, Retest policy: https://www.officialasvab.com/recruiters/asvab-retest-policy/ 10 U.S. Code 520 (Cornell LII): https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/520