AP Physics C: E&M past papers and free-response questions
College Board publishes the AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism free-response questions every year, with scoring guidelines, sample student responses and a chief reader report. This page collects every year it currently makes public, 2023 to 2026. The 2025 and 2026 papers have 4 questions in the current format; 2023 and 2024 had 3 longer questions.
On this page
AP Physics C: E&M free-response questions by year
Each file opens from College Board's official site. Preview shows it here, Open in new tab gives you the full screen, and Download saves a copy to print.
2026
- Free-response questionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Scoring guidelinesPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Sample responses and chief reader reportCollege Board usually adds these in the autumn after the exam
2025
- Free-response questionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Scoring guidelinesPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Chief reader reportPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Scoring statisticsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Score distributionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Sample student responsesQ1Q2Q3Q4
2024
- Free-response questionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Scoring guidelinesPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Chief reader reportPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Score distributionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Sample responses and chief reader reportCollege Board usually adds these in the autumn after the exam
2023
- Free-response questionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Scoring guidelinesPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Chief reader reportPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Score distributionsPreviewOpen in new tabDownload
- Sample responses and chief reader reportCollege Board usually adds these in the autumn after the exam
Source: AP Physics C: E&M past exam questions on AP Central. All papers are © College Board.
What each AP Physics C: E&M free-response question tests
Use this index to find past questions on the topics you need to practise. The descriptions are our own summaries.
2026
| Q1 | Two thick current-carrying wires: Ampère's law and magnetic field |
|---|---|
| Q2 | Charged rods along the axes: electric field and potential |
| Q3 | Finding an inductance with charged capacitors: LC circuit experiment |
| Q4 | Square loop in a changing magnetic field: Faraday's law and induced current |
2025
| Q1 | Cylindrical capacitor, then filled with a dielectric: Gauss's law and capacitance |
|---|---|
| Q2 | Rotating conducting loop in a magnetic field: induced emf and current |
| Q3 | Finding resistivity from a graph: circuit experiment |
| Q4 | Charged spheres moving near two current-carrying wires: magnetic forces |
2024
| Q1 | Charged rod and sphere with equipotential lines: flux, field and potential |
|---|---|
| Q2 | Finding a resistance from an LR circuit: experiment |
| Q3 | Square loop moving through a magnetic field: motional emf and induced current |
2023
| Q1 | Measuring the permittivity of free space with charged spheres and a spring: Coulomb's law experiment |
|---|---|
| Q2 | Conducting bar on rails in a magnetic field: motional emf and magnetic force |
| Q3 | RC circuit with two capacitors and a switch: charging over time |
AP Physics C: E&M exam format
| Section | Questions | Time | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section I: multiple choice | 42 questions | 85 minutes | 50% |
| Section II: free response | 4 questions | 95 minutes | 50% |
This is the format from the May 2027 exam onwards (before, 40 multiple-choice questions in 80 minutes and 100 minutes for free response). The four free-response questions are one of each type: mathematical routines, translation between representations, experimental design and analysis, and qualitative/quantitative translation. The 2025 and 2026 papers use these types; the 2023 and 2024 papers had 3 free-response questions of 15 points each.
How to use past free-response questions
- Start with the newest papers. They match the current exam most closely.
- Do one question at a time, timed. Use the timings in the exam format above, with no notes open.
- Mark yourself strictly with the scoring guidelines, point by point, before reading anything else.
- Compare with the sample responses to see exactly what earned or lost each point.
- Read the chief reader report for the mistakes most students made that year, and keep a list of your own.
- Go back to weak topics using the topic index, then redo the question a week later.
Tips specific to AP Physics C: E&M:
- For Gauss's and Ampère's laws, state the symmetry and draw the Gaussian surface or Amperian loop: the setup earns points by itself.
- Use Lenz's law with a clear statement of how the flux changes, then give the direction of the induced current.
- For RC and LR circuits, know the behaviour at t = 0 and as t becomes very large before you write any exponential.
- Keep track of signs in potential: work through V = −∫ E·dr step by step.
Free AP Physics C: E&M practice questions
Ten original multiple-choice questions written by our tutors in the style of the exam. Choose an answer to see if you are right and why.
Answered 0 of 10 · 0 correct
1. Two 1.0 μC charges are 0.10 m apart. What is the force between them? (k = 9.0 × 109)
Show answer
B. F = kq2/r2 = 9.0 × 109 × 10−12/0.01 = 0.9 N.
2. A closed surface encloses 1.0 nC of charge. What is the electric flux through it? (ε0 = 8.85 × 10−12)
Show answer
B. Φ = q/ε0 = 10−9/8.85 × 10−12 = 113 N·m²/C.
3. How much energy is stored in a 10 μF capacitor at 100 V?
Show answer
B. U = ½CV2 = ½ × 10−5 × 104 = 0.05 J.
4. What is the time constant of a 1.0 kΩ resistor in series with a 100 μF capacitor?
Show answer
B. τ = RC = 1000 × 100 × 10−6 = 0.1 s.
5. What is the magnetic field 0.050 m from a long straight wire carrying 10 A? (μ0 = 4π × 10−7)
Show answer
B. B = μ0I/(2πr) = 2 × 10−7 × 10/0.050 = 4.0 × 10−5 T.
6. A 0.20 m rod moves at 3.0 m/s at right angles to a 0.50 T field. What emf is induced across it?
Show answer
B. ε = BLv = 0.50 × 0.20 × 3.0 = 0.30 V.
7. How much energy is stored in a 0.20 H inductor carrying 3.0 A?
Show answer
C. U = ½LI2 = ½ × 0.20 × 9.0 = 0.9 J.
8. Capacitors of 3.0 μF and 6.0 μF are connected in series. What is the equivalent capacitance?
Show answer
A. 1/C = 1/3 + 1/6 = 1/2, so C = 2.0 μF.
9. What is the electric field inside a conductor in electrostatic equilibrium?
Show answer
A. Free charges would move if there were a field, so in equilibrium the field inside is zero.
10. A bar magnet's north pole is pushed towards a loop. The induced current in the loop:
Show answer
B. By Lenz's law the induced current opposes the change in flux that causes it.
Frequently asked questions
Are AP Physics C: E&M past papers free?
Yes. College Board publishes the AP Physics C: E&M free-response questions, scoring guidelines and sample responses free on AP Central. This page links to those official files so you can preview, open or download them.
Why are there no older AP Physics C: E&M papers before 2023?
College Board currently makes the most recent years public on AP Central and removed older years from public access. Teachers can find many older released questions in AP Classroom.
Can I get full AP Physics C: E&M past exams with the multiple-choice section?
College Board does not publish full past multiple-choice sections publicly; complete practice exams are released to teachers through AP Classroom. The free-response questions, which are half of your score, are public, and this page has 10 original multiple-choice questions to practise with.
How is the AP Physics C: E&M free-response section scored?
Each question has its own rubric in the scoring guidelines, which show exactly which statements, equations and steps earn each point.