U.S. Citizenship Test Study Guide (2026)

Every official civics question, grouped into 42 short topics so you study one idea at a time instead of a wall of 128 flashcards. Pick the version of the test you will actually take — the date USCIS received your Form N-400 decides, not your interview date.

The 2025 test — 128 questions

Applies if USCIS received your Form N-400 on or after October 20, 2025. The officer asks 20 of the 128 questions and you need 12 correct to pass. 26 topics:

  1. The Three Branches — Overview (3 questions)
  2. Principles — System Fundamentals (4 questions)
  3. Principles — Constitution & Amendments (6 questions)
  4. Principles — Declaration & Founding Ideas (5 questions)
  5. Congress — Structure, Counts & Terms (14 questions)
  6. Presidency & Executive Branch (12 questions)
  7. Judiciary & Supreme Court (7 questions)
  8. Federalism — Federal vs State Powers (3 questions)
  9. Current Officeholders & Your State (dynamic set) (8 questions)
  10. Rights — Voting & Resident-vs-Citizen (3 questions)
  11. Rights — Citizenship, Pledge & Oath (3 questions)
  12. Rights — Civic Duties & Participation (4 questions)
  13. Colonial — Peoples & Settlement (3 questions)
  14. Colonial — Revolution & Independence (5 questions)
  15. Colonial — The Founders (6 questions)
  16. Colonial — 1787 Constitution & Federalist Papers (3 questions)
  17. 1800s — Expansion, Civil War & Lincoln (7 questions)
  18. 1800s — Reconstruction Amendments & Suffrage (3 questions)
  19. 1900s — World Wars (4 questions)
  20. 1900s — Great Depression & FDR (3 questions)
  21. 1900s — Cold War & Communism (4 questions)
  22. 1900s — Rights Movements & Suffrage (3 questions)
  23. Recent History & American Heritage (5 questions)
  24. Symbols — Flag, Capital, Statue, Anthem & Motto (6 questions)
  25. Holidays — incl. Memorial-vs-Veterans Trap Pair (4 questions)
  26. English Component — Reading & Writing (M-715) (10 questions)

The 2008 test — 100 questions

Applies if USCIS received your Form N-400 before October 20, 2025. The officer asks 10 of the 100 questions and you need 6 correct to pass. 16 topics:

  1. The Constitution & the Rule of Law (7 questions)
  2. The Declaration & Your First Freedoms (5 questions)
  3. Three Branches, Checks & Balances (3 questions)
  4. Congress: Senate & House (8 questions)
  5. The President: Elections, Powers & Cabinet (9 questions)
  6. The Courts & Federal vs State Powers (4 questions)
  7. The Questions That Change (your officials) (11 questions)
  8. Rights & Responsibilities of Citizens (6 questions)
  9. Civic Duties: Vote, Taxes, Selective Service (4 questions)
  10. Colonial America & Independence (7 questions)
  11. The Constitution's Birth & the Founders (6 questions)
  12. The 1800s: Louisiana, Civil War & Lincoln (7 questions)
  13. The 1900s: World Wars & the Cold War (6 questions)
  14. Civil Rights, 9/11 & American Peoples (4 questions)
  15. American Geography (8 questions)
  16. Flag, Anthem & Holidays (5 questions)

Ready to check yourself? Take the free practice test, or read the citizenship test FAQ.

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