Now the new school year of 2025-2026 has started. A lot of you are taking AP Physics 1, either at school or through some online course. Here are a few tips for all of you who will take this course this year, including what you should expect and what you should do to survive this class.

How hard is AP Physics 1 exam?

First, let’s take a look at the score distribution.

The 5-rate for AP Physics 1 in 2025 jumped from 10% last year to 18%, and the pass rate (3 and above) rose from 47% to 66%. AP Physics 1 was once notorious for having the lowest pass rate and 5-rate of less than 8%. I believe this shift comes from the curriculum update that added a new unit on Fluids, which is not as difficult as other units related to mechanics, as well as stabilization in exam style since the pandemic. In recent years, AP Physics 1 went through major changes in course content and exam style, causing a lot of confusion for schools and students. Now that the exam format has stabilized, students are better prepared and performing more strongly.

Does that mean AP Physics 1 is not hard anymore?

The answer is no. AP Physics 1 is still one of the most challenging science subjects in the AP curriculum. While it only covers mechanics, the course requires a deep, comprehensive understanding of mechanics concepts, versatile use of formulas and graphs. It is appropriate as a two-semester class and it is by no means easy.

What is the course content of AP Physics 1?

Here are the topics listed in CollegeBoard’s Course Description. Units 1 through 7 cover typical topics in mechanics. You’ll learn all the basic mechanics concepts, including velocity, acceleration, forces, work, energy, momentum and torque. You’ll learn the laws that explain how force affects motion, how work affects motion, and how momentum affects motion during collisions. You’ll also explore a variety of motions, such as free-fall, projectile motion, circular motion, rotational motion, and simple harmonic motion. For the first seven units, all the topics are related to each other and you’ll be tested on them together rather than individually.

Unit 8 is a new topic added to the AP Physics 1 curriculum last year. You’ll learn about the pressure of solids and liquids, as well as the Bernoulli equation. You will learn Unit 8 at a relatively shallow level, and tests will be much more straightforward compared to the first seven units.

What is the prerequisite for AP Physics 1?

According to CollegeBoard’s Course Description, this is an Algebra-based course, and “students should have completed Geometry and be concurrently taking Algebra 2.” However, that is only the minimum requirement. I wouldn’t really recommend taking AP Physics 1 without completing Algebra 2, since success in AP Physics 1 requires strong foundation in functions, graphs, and equation solving. Also, some knowledge of exponential function and sinusoidal function (sin, cos) will help you in understanding Simple Harmonic Motion (Unit 7: Oscillations) and solving FRQ problems.

Surprisingly, honors or regular physics is not a prerequisite for taking AP Physics 1 in many schools. I’ve encountered many students who take AP Physics 1 as their very first physics class in high school. In my opinion, this is not a good idea unless you can invest a lot of time in this class. If you’re taking multiple AP classes along with AP Physics 1, it can be difficult to balance your time, and it’s very likely that you’ll struggle.

What would be the most challenging part of AP Physics 1?

Based on years of experience, I found that students mostly struggle solving AP-style problems. To solve an AP-style question, you need to read the question, understand what’s happening (a ball falling, a skier flying in the sky, etc.), relate that to a physics concept (kinetics, dynamics, momenum, energy & work, etc), and write an equation or apply a law to solve it. Old AP Physics B, which I took over 10 years ago, was mostly just plugging numbers into physics equations to get an answer. But the new AP Physics 1 curriculum is far more complicated than that. New AP-style problems do not explicitly tell you what concept they are testing you on. That’s why you have to be very familiar with the phenomena related to each concept.

Also, you will need to know how to set up an equation and what to set as a variable. All equations are given and you’re not required to memorize any, but being able to ‘translte’ a word problem to a physics equation is the key. Most students who meet the math prerequisite have no problem solving the equation once they have it. But a lot of them struggle with setting up an equation in the first place.

In short, AP Physics 1 require a very high level of comprehension skills and problem solving skills. If you have trouble understanding word problems in Math class, AP Physics 1 will be very challenging for you. On the other hand, if you are a strong problem solver, for example, an AIME qualifier, you’ll find this class easier than expected.

How can you ace AP Physics 1?

I strongly recommend that you put as much work as possible into the first three months to master the fundamentals, including vector addition and multiplication, velocity and acceleration, and everything about force. These will give you a solid foundation for the rest of the content in AP Physics 1. You will need to know these concepts to understand circular motion, rotational motion, collisions, and oscillations.

Repetition and practice are necessary. Just like muscle memory in playing a sport, your brain needs enough time and practice to instinctively know how to draw a free-body diagram and which kinematics equation to choose. Try to do as many practice problems as possible. I would recommend you to do at least 20 practice problems for each section (not unit).

As for study materials, I personally prefer using a textbook as main resource. When I was in high school studying physics, I used Giancoli – Physics: Principles with Applications, and I still use it as a reference for my teaching. The textbook includes “concept check” questions that test your understanding of the material, as well as math-based problems at three different levels. If you’re aiming for a 5, you should be able to solve the level III problems and the challenge problems at the end of each chapter in Giancoli.

I’ll be posting more AP Physics 1 resources, including blogs and YouTube videos, so stay tuned! I wish you all the best in the upcoming school year.