Per-state guide
California Bar Exam Prep
California bar exam (California): fees, deadlines, tested subjects, and recommended prep for the July 2026 and February 2027 administrations.
Key dates & fees
Source-of-truth pulled from the NCBE charts and verified state pages, last reviewed April 27, 2026.
July 2026 administration
state_override| Exam type | California |
|---|---|
| Timely deadline | 2026-04-01 |
| Final deadline | 2026-06-01 |
| Late deadlines | 2026-06-01 |
| Standard fee | $878 |
| Attorney fee | $1,650 |
| Repeater fee | $878 (non-attorney repeaters) / $1,650 (attorney repeaters) |
| Late fee | $50 first late tier / $250 final late tier |
| Laptop fee | $153 |
Laptop fee remains listed as $153 in official fee schedules; July 2026 written sessions use personal laptops with ExamSoft.
February 2027 administration
state_override| Exam type | California |
|---|---|
| Timely deadline | 2026-11-02 |
| Final deadline | 2027-01-04 |
| Late deadlines | 2027-01-04 |
| Standard fee | $878 |
| Attorney fee | $1,650 |
| Repeater fee | $878 (non-attorney repeaters) / $1,650 (attorney repeaters) |
| Late fee | $50 first late tier / $250 final late tier |
| Laptop fee | $153 |
Laptop fee remains listed as $153 in official fee schedules; July 2026 written sessions use personal laptops with ExamSoft.
Tested subjects
California essays, one performance test, and a multiple-choice component.
California remains its own exam path. The safest study split is national doctrine first, then California essay subjects such as community property, remedies, professional responsibility, trusts, and wills.
National / UBE overlap
Civil ProcedureConstitutional LawContracts / SalesCriminal Law & ProcedureEvidenceReal PropertyTortsBusiness AssociationsProfessional ResponsibilityTrusts / Estates
State-specific or local focus
Community PropertyRemediesWills and SuccessionCalifornia Civil ProcedureCalifornia Evidence
Cycle-specific cautions
Trusts / Estates
Board note: California subject scope is published by the State Bar of California and should be checked for the specific administration.
National resources to pair with California
Official sources
- State Bar of California dates and deadlines
- State Bar of California bar examination page
- State Bar of California Appendix A schedule
- State Bar of California Refund of Fees Policy
- NCBE CA non-UBE fees and deadlines chart
- NCBE jurisdiction indexOfficial NCBE entrypoint for jurisdiction-specific admission information.
- State Bar of California scope of the California Bar ExaminationOfficial California subject scope for essays, performance test, and MBE topics.
- NCBE help: legacy and NextGen content differencesOfficial NCBE help article noting July 2026 MEE removals and the MPT treatment of family law and trusts and estates.