MRCP Pass Mark 2026: Part 1 450, Part 2 444

The MRCP(UK) Part 1 pass mark is 450 and the Part 2 Written pass mark is 444 on the scaled score, applied from the 2026/1 diet; PACES needs a total of 126 plus a minimum in each of seven skills. Scores are equated for difficulty between diets.

Older figures of 540 for Part 1 and 454 for Part 2 still appear on prep pages. This page sets out what changed in 2026, how many questions those standards meant in recent sittings, and the latest pass rates you should use.

What is the MRCP pass mark in 2026?

The MRCP pass mark in 2026 is a scaled ability score. For Part 1 it's 450, and for Part 2 Written it's 444, both applied from the 2026/1 diet. Scores are calculated from the number you answer correctly across the two papers, with equating to adjust for diet difficulty. PACES uses a different standard, a total of 126 with minimums per skill, covered further down.

Those numbers and the scoring method are set out on the Federation's pass marks page, which explains scaled scores, equating between diets, and lists 450 for Part 1 and 444 for Part 2 from 2026/1.

The Federation FAQ says the pass mark will remain at 450 for Part 1 and 444 for Part 2, with equating handling differences in difficulty between exams. So you're chasing stable scaled thresholds, not a fixed raw count.

MRCP pass marks by part, old and new

MRCP pass marks by part are: Part 1 at 450 scaled score from the 2026/1 diet, Part 2 Written at 444 from 2026/1, and PACES at a total of 126 with seven skill minimums set in May 2024 and used from 2024/02. In 2025 the written pass marks were 540 for Part 1 and 454 for Part 2.

These old and new numbers use the same kind of scaled score, but they are not percentages and you cannot linearly map 540 to 450. The Federation applies equating to account for question difficulty across diets, so the scale position can change while the underlying standard is intended to be stable.

A lower scaled figure does not itself mean an easier exam. Treat the scaled shift as accounting, then check the questions-needed counts, which is the practical guide you can feel in a paper. The 540 and 454 numbers are documented in the 2025 annuals for each written part, see the Part 1 2025 report and the Part 2 2025 report.

How many questions do you need to get right?

MRCP raw marks, the number of correct answers you need, are set per diet and published in official performance reports. In January 2026 Part 1 it was 124 correct out of 198 scored questions. In March 2026 Part 2 it was 122 out of 195. In November 2024 Part 2, under the older 454 standard, it was 126 out of 200. The count moves because equating and unscored items vary.

The [January 2026 Part 1 report](https://www.thefederation.uk/sites/default/files/uploads/MRCP(UK)%20Part%201%2026-1%20feedback%20report.pdf) shows 124 out of 198 scored questions to pass, which is about 63% by our arithmetic.

The March 2026 Part 2 report shows 122 out of 195 scored questions to pass, which is about 63% by our arithmetic.

Under the prior standard, the November 2024 Part 2 report shows 126 out of 200 to pass, again about 63% by our arithmetic.

There isn’t a fixed percentage, and you can’t back-solve it from the scaled pass marks. Equating adjusts for each paper’s difficulty, and some questions aren’t scored, so quote the official per-diet performance report for your sitting.

Why does 454 still show up when you search?

The old MRCP Part 2 pass mark of 454 was the standard through 2025, set at a November 2022 review. Over the same period MRCP Part 1 used a 540 pass score from an October 2022 review. Search results still surface 454 because many guides were written for those diets, and not every page states which sitting its number refers to.

One example: Pastest's Part 2 guide is marked "Updated on Jan 28, 2025" and gives a pass mark of 454 with a minimum of 121 correct answers out of 200. See Pastest's Part 2 guide.

Another: Medibuddy's Part 2 guide dated 28 April 2026 still says the pass mark for MRCP Part 2 is 454 and around 121 correct answers from the 200 questions. See Medibuddy's Part 2 guide.

If a page doesn’t name the diet, check the Federation’s own page. The Federation FAQ says the pass marks will remain at 450 for Part 1 and 444 for Part 2, and that equating adjusts for difficulty between diets.

We don’t know why the scale values were reset, and the Federation’s pages don’t say.

MRCP pass rates by sitting and graduate group

MRCP pass rates by sitting and graduate group vary across diets and cohorts. The table below collates the latest percentages for Part 1 and Part 2 written exams in 2025 and 2026, split into all candidates, UK trainees on first attempt, and UK graduates on first attempt. Use these as the current reference points for the written papers.

One quirk: the Federation’s pass rates page lists identical Part 2 figures for both the 2026/01 and 2026/02 diets. The March 2026 Part 2 performance report shows 56.7% for all candidates on its bar chart, so, from what we can tell, the row belongs to March 2026 until that page is corrected.

For the 2025 annual picture, Part 1 first attempts: UK resident doctors 42.8%, 62 of 145, versus other candidates 54.8%. Part 2 first attempts: UK resident doctors 71.3%, 978 of 1,372, versus other candidates 68.3%, 2,237 of 3,273. The Part 1 report covers 3 exams and 11,766 sittings, the Part 2 report covers 3 exams and 6,106 candidates. Training status is self-declared.

Small n caveat: the Part 1 UK trainee first attempt rate swings between diets on small counts (145 UK resident doctor first attempts across all of 2025), so don’t read one diet as a trend. For the clinical exam, see PACES results since 2018.

Where does PACES fit?

MRCP PACES is the clinical exam after the written papers and it is marked differently. You need a total of 126, and a minimum in each of seven skills, A 16, B 14, C 11, D 15, E 20, F 10, G 28, so a strong total cannot cover a single weak skill.

The Federation lists the skills by letter only. PACES23 has run since the 2023/03 diet, the standard was set in May 2024 and used from 2024/02. Pass rates reported by the Federation were 49.3% in 2026/01 and 47.9% in 2026/02.

Start with the scoring basics. For station scoring detail and the minimums in context, see how PACES skills are scored, and if you're planning to practise solo between clinics, rehearsing PACES on your own is the place to start. If you're surveying digital options, AI tools for PACES rehearsal lays out the options.

Diagnosica is an AI clinical simulator for medical students and junior doctors: you take a history from an AI patient by voice or text, order labs and imaging, commit to a diagnosis and management plan, and get a competency scorecard.

The patient appears as a video avatar, it's free to start with no card, it runs on iPhone and Android, and learners outside the US use it. It doesn't rehearse physical examination, so you're practising history taking and communication only, and it promises nothing about results. It won't help with the Part 1 or Part 2 written questions either, so if that's what you need, you'll want to use something else alongside it for those. Then take a history from an AI patient now.

Common questions

Is the MRCP pass mark a percentage?

No, the MRCP pass mark is a scaled score, not a percentage. Scores are equated across diets, so the number of correct answers varies: in January 2026 Part 1 required 124 of 198 for a pass at 450, in March 2026 Part 2 required 122 of 195 for 444, and in November 2024 Part 2 needed 126 of 200 for 454.

Did the MRCP Part 1 pass mark really drop from 540 to 450?

Yes, the scaled Part 1 pass score was 540 across the 2025 diets and is 450 from the 2026/1 diet. That is a change in the reported scale agreed by the standard setting group, not a flat percentage shift, so compare raw counts per diet and remember equating adjusts for difficulty; the Federation states the pass mark will remain 450.

Is the Part 2 pass mark 444 or 454?

Both have been used, but at different times. The MRCP Part 2 pass mark was 454 through the 2025 diets, and it is 444 from the 2026/1 diet. Because scores are equated, the raw count shifts with each paper: for example November 2024 needed 126 of 200 at 454, while March 2026 needed 122 of 195 at 444.

Can a high PACES total make up for one weak skill?

No. PACES needs both a total of 126 and minimum scores in each of seven skills, so a high overall cannot cover a failed skill. The minima are A 16, B 14, C 11, D 15, E 20, F 10, and G 28, carried forward in the PACES23 standard set in May 2024.

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