- The 2025 CBN Pass Rate: What ASMBS Actually Reported
- How the CBN Exam Is Scored (and Why "Pass Rate" Is Misleading)
- Domain-by-Domain: Where Candidates Gain or Lose Points
- Who Actually Sits for the CBN Exam
- Fees, Retake Rules, and What Happens After a Fail
- Building a Study Timeline Around the Data
- Frequently Asked Questions
- In 2025, 41 of 65 CBN examinees passed - the only official cohort figure ASMBS has published.
- The exam uses criterion-referenced passing with statistical equating, not a fixed 70% cutoff.
- Perioperative and Follow-up domains each carry 25.3% of the 150 scored items - the two heaviest areas.
- 25 of the 175 questions are unscored pretest items you can't identify, so treat every question as real.
The 2025 CBN Pass Rate: What ASMBS Actually Reported
The ASMBS CBN Certification Council, through its published annual aggregate data report, disclosed that 41 of 65 examinees passed the Certified Bariatric Nurse exam in 2025. That works out to roughly 63% of candidates clearing the standard in that testing period. This is the concrete, sourced figure behind this article's title, and it's important to treat it as exactly what it is: one reported cohort, not a rolling average or a guarantee of future results.
There is no larger multi-year trend published publicly beyond this aggregate report, so resist the urge to extrapolate a "typical" CBN pass rate from outside sources. Other credentials share the CBN abbreviation, and their numbers do not apply here - this data point is specific to the Certified Bariatric Nurse credential administered by ASMBS through PSI testing centers.
How the CBN Exam Is Scored (and Why "Pass Rate" Is Misleading)
Before reading too much into any single pass-rate figure, it helps to understand the mechanics behind it. The CBN exam consists of 175 four-option, single-best-answer multiple-choice questions delivered in a 3-hour session at PSI assessment centers. Of those 175 questions, 150 are scored and 25 are unidentified, unscored pretest items being evaluated for future exams. Because you cannot tell which questions are which, every item deserves full attention.
Passing is determined using a criterion-referenced standard with statistical equating. In plain terms: ASMBS sets a fixed level of competency required to pass, and statistical equating adjusts for minor difficulty differences between exam forms so that no candidate is penalized or advantaged by which version they receive. All scored items carry equal weight**, and there is no penalty for guessing - so leaving an item blank never helps you.
This scoring model is exactly why a raw pass rate like 41/65 can't be reverse-engineered into "you need to get X% correct." The passing threshold is criterion-based, not percentage-based, and it doesn't shift just because one test date's group performed better or worse. For a full breakdown of how the cut score is actually built, see CBN Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass.
Key Takeaway
Don't chase a percentage target. Study to master the blueprint domains completely - criterion-referenced scoring rewards broad competency, not narrow point-chasing.
Domain-by-Domain: Where Candidates Gain or Lose Points
The CBN blueprint, based on the 2022 practice analysis and detailed in the 2025-2026 Candidate Handbook, divides the 150 scored items across five domains. Two of them - Perioperative and Follow-up care - are tied for the largest share of the exam, which means weak preparation in either area disproportionately affects your overall result.
Domain 1: Clinical Management - Preoperative (Pre-hospital) - 21.3% (32 items)
Covers screening, patient education, and readiness assessment before surgery.
- Preoperative nutritional and psychological evaluation criteria
Domain 2: Clinical Management - Perioperative (Hospital) - 25.3% (38 items)
The single heaviest domain tied with Follow-up; focuses on inpatient surgical and nursing care.
- Postoperative complication recognition and early intervention
Domain 3: Clinical Management - Follow-up (Post-discharge & longer term) - 25.3% (38 items)
Equally weighted with Perioperative; addresses long-term patient management after discharge.
- Nutritional deficiency monitoring and long-term weight trajectory support
Domain 4: Professional and Community Collaboration - 14.7% (22 items)
Involves interdisciplinary coordination and patient advocacy within the care team.
- Communication across surgical, dietary, and behavioral health teams
Domain 5: Program Quality - 13.3% (20 items)
The smallest domain, focused on program-level outcomes and quality metrics.
- Accreditation standards and outcomes reporting for bariatric programs
Together, Perioperative and Follow-up account for over half of all scored items. A candidate who under-prepares either domain is putting a large share of the exam at risk. For a deeper walkthrough of each content area, including subtopics and sample task statements, read CBN Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 5 Content Areas.
| Domain | Weight | Scored Items |
|---|---|---|
| Preoperative (Pre-hospital) | 21.3% | 32 |
| Perioperative (Hospital) | 25.3% | 38 |
| Follow-up (Post-discharge) | 25.3% | 38 |
| Professional & Community Collaboration | 14.7% | 22 |
| Program Quality | 13.3% | 20 |
Who Actually Sits for the CBN Exam
Pass-rate data is easier to interpret once you know who is eligible to test in the first place. ASMBS requires candidates to hold a current, unencumbered RN license (or an approved international equivalent), have at least two years of experience as an RN in good standing, and document 2,000 hours of obesity and/or metabolic and bariatric surgery nursing practice within the previous four years. Candidates must also attest to following the ASMBS Code of Ethics and the CBN Standards of Conduct.
This is not an entry-level credential - the eligibility bar already filters for nurses with substantial bariatric-specific practice hours before they ever sit for the exam. That context matters when interpreting a pass rate near two-thirds: these are experienced nurses, and the exam still requires deliberate content review beyond daily clinical routine. If you're unsure whether your current hours and license status qualify you, the full breakdown is in CBN Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify.
Employers hiring for bariatric surgical units, metabolic and bariatric surgery accredited programs, and integrated health teams frequently look for this credential specifically because it verifies both the practice-hour threshold and passage of a standardized, blueprint-driven exam. Browsing current openings gives a sense of how the credential is used in hiring - see CBN Jobs for examples.
Fees, Retake Rules, and What Happens After a Fail
Because roughly a third of the 2025 cohort did not pass, it's worth understanding the retake mechanics before you register. Exam fees vary by membership status and registration timing:
- ASMBS members: $250 early / $300 regular
- Qualifying IFSO members testing through chapters outside the United States: $300 early / $350 regular
- Nonmembers: $350 early / $400 regular
If you don't pass, ASMBS requires you to skip the next full testing window before retesting - you cannot simply rebook for the following month. A one-time 25% retest discount can be requested for the first subsequent window in which you become eligible again, which softens the financial hit but not the waiting period. This makes first-attempt preparation especially valuable, since a fail doesn't just cost the retest fee - it costs an entire testing cycle of lost time. A full cost breakdown, including renewal fees, is available in CBN Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.
Once earned, the credential is valid for four years. Renewal requires maintaining qualifying RN licensure, logging 1,000 specialty practice hours within the previous four years, and either retaking the exam or accumulating 80 continuing-education/professional-development points within 48 months, of which at least 40 points must be specialty-specific CE contact hours. Renewal fees run $250/$350/$450 (early/regular/late) for ASMBS/IFSO members and $350/$450/$550 for nonmembers.
Building a Study Timeline Around the Data
Given that Perioperative and Follow-up together make up over half the scored items, your preparation calendar should reflect that weighting rather than splitting time evenly across all five domains. A simple way to structure the final weeks before your PSI appointment:
Perioperative & Follow-up (50.6% combined)
- Review postoperative complication protocols and long-term nutritional monitoring, since these two domains alone account for 76 of 150 scored items
Preoperative (21.3%)
- Focus on screening criteria, patient education, and readiness assessment content
Professional Collaboration & Program Quality (28% combined)
- Cover interdisciplinary communication and quality/accreditation topics, then run full-length timed practice under 3-hour closed-book conditions
Spacing review sessions this way - heaviest domains first while your study stamina is highest - mirrors how the scored items are actually distributed. For a complete week-by-week plan and resource list, see CBN Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt, and for an honest assessment of how the exam compares to other nursing certifications, read How Hard Is the CBN Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026. Running timed, full-length simulations on our practice test platform before test day is one of the most direct ways to rehearse the pacing this exam demands.
Key Takeaway
Allocate roughly half your review time to Perioperative and Follow-up content - together they represent 76 of the 150 scored questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
ASMBS's annual aggregate data report shows 41 of 65 examinees passed the CBN exam in 2025, which is approximately 63%. This is the most recent publicly documented cohort figure.
No. The CBN exam uses a criterion-referenced passing standard with statistical equating across exam forms, not a flat percentage cutoff. All 150 scored items carry equal weight and there's no penalty for guessing.
Perioperative (Hospital) and Follow-up (Post-discharge) are tied as the largest domains at 25.3% each, totaling 76 of 150 scored items combined. These deserve the largest share of study time.
You must skip the next full testing window before retesting. A one-time 25% retest discount is available for the first subsequent window in which you become eligible to retest.
Of the 175 total questions, 150 are scored and 25 are unidentified, unscored pretest items. Since you can't distinguish them, every question should be treated as if it counts.
For a broader orientation to the credential itself - including what the acronym stands for and how it's structured - see What Is CBN Certification? or explore whether pursuing it fits your career goals in Is the CBN Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026. You can also start rehearsing exam-style questions anytime on our CBN practice test site.