Between July 2026 and July 2028, essentially every US jurisdiction either switches to the NextGen bar exam or commits to something else. Which side of a wave your state lands on decides which exam you study for, which passing score applies to you, and — if your timeline straddles the switch — whether a retake means learning a new format.
This post walks the whole timeline. For the live, sortable version with every state's page, use the jurisdictions hub; each state linked below has its own page with dates, scores, and requirements.
The forcing function: the legacy UBE ends in February 2028
The single most important date in this post isn't an adoption date at all. NCBE administers the legacy UBE for the last time in February 2028. After that, a UBE jurisdiction that hasn't adopted NextGen has nothing left to administer — which is why the July 2028 wave is by far the largest, and why even silent states will resolve their status before then.
July 2026 — the first wave (10 jurisdictions)
On July 28–29, 2026, these ten administer the first NextGen bar exam in history:
- Connecticut — passing score announced: 616
- Guam — 612, with local-law questions on day 2
- Idaho — 616
- Maryland — 616, plus Maryland-law outlines with a confirmatory quiz
- Missouri — 610, plus the Missouri Educational Component Test
- Northern Mariana Islands — 615
- Oregon — 615 for July 2026 only, 620 after
- Palau — 612, plus a local three-essay exam
- US Virgin Islands — 616
- Washington — 610, with an open-book online state-law test
Notice the pattern in the notes: several first-wave states pair the uniform exam with a small state-specific component. The NextGen score travels; the local requirement doesn't.
July 2027 — the second wave (13 jurisdictions)
Arizona, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
Candidates in these states face the classic transition question: February 2027 on the legacy UBE, or July 2027 on NextGen? Two honest considerations:
- Prep materials. Legacy UBE prep is mature; NextGen prep is younger but purpose-built. What matters is matching your materials to your exam — not guessing which exam is "easier."
- The retake tail. A February 2027 attempt that doesn't pass leads to a July retake on a different exam in these states. If you're not confident of a first-time pass, jumping straight to the format you'd retake under removes the double-preparation risk.
February 2028 — the small wave (3 jurisdictions)
Delaware, the District of Columbia, and Illinois. This one runs alongside the very last legacy UBE administration — the two exams coexist for exactly one final cycle.
July 2028 — the big wave (23 jurisdictions, 24 counting California's pending adoption)
The bar exam's center of gravity moves here: Alabama, Alaska, California (pending final approval), Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Three things stand out in this wave:
- The giants are here. New York, California, Texas, and Florida together account for a huge share of all US bar candidates. The law-school classes of 2028 in those states are NextGen's first mass cohort — and since Family Law becomes a fully tested subject that same July, they get the expanded scope from day one.
- Transfer restrictions bite before then. New York, Florida, and Hawaii have said they won't accept transferred NextGen scores before their own first administrations. If your plan is "test in a 2026 state, waive into New York," check New York's page first — that route doesn't open until July 2028.
- Some states add components. Texas attaches a state-law component (procedure/evidence, family, wills, property); Alabama adds a 3-hour state essay; Virginia adds a Virginia-law essay component.
Adopted, but no date: Mississippi
Mississippi adopted the NextGen exam in July 2025 but hasn't set its first administration. Until it does, candidates keep taking the current exam.
No announcement yet: Arkansas and Montana
Arkansas has said nothing publicly; its legacy UBE simply sunsets in February 2028. Montana has a petition pending that proposes February 2028. Practically: candidates testing through 2027 in these states study for the UBE; anyone targeting July 2028 or later should expect NextGen by necessity — there is no third option on the table.
The different paths: Nevada, Louisiana, Puerto Rico — and California's asterisk
- Nevada opted out entirely. From 2027 it runs the "Nevada Plan": a Foundational Law Exam of 100 MCQs, a performance exam, and supervised practice — the MBE is gone.
- Louisiana remains the civil-law outlier it has always been, with its own three-day exam. It never used the MBE, so there is nothing to switch from.
- Puerto Rico administers its Spanish-language reválida; no MBE, no UBE, no MPRE.
- California currently runs its own two-day exam and is pursuing NextGen adoption for 2028, pending Supreme Court approval — the July 2028 listing above carries that asterisk until it's final.
How to use this timeline
- Find your state's page on the jurisdictions hub — first date, passing score, UBE cut during the transition, MPRE rule, and any state component.
- Work backward from your realistic date. Bar prep calendars are built in weeks; our free study plan generates one keyed to the exact administrations your state offers.
- If you're in a 2027–2028 wave state and might retake, read NextGen vs. the legacy UBE before choosing which side of the switch to sit.
- If you're already in a NextGen state, skip the timeline anxiety and start on the format: the complete exam guide and a 10-question diagnostic are the fastest orientation.
Adoption data on this site is sourced from NCBE's published decisions page and refreshed as boards announce — when your state's board says something new, the state page says it too.