Best CPA Test Banks | 7 Things To Know (Before Buying)

How to Choose the Best CPA Test Bank for You in 2025

(Scroll down for your Free CPA Test Bank)

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I know the CPA Test Bank market very well.

Before creating NINJA MCQ in 2014, I was the #1 reseller of the Wiley CPA Test Bank.

Between reselling a popular CPA Test Bank and creating my own, a strong case could be made that I know the CPA Test Bank market better than anyone.

Now that the Wiley CPA Test Bank has been sunsetted, the best CPA test bank options are from UWorld CPA, Gleim CPA, and my company, NINJA CPA.

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1. You Need a ‘Second' Test Bank

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Regardless of your current CPA Review course, you need a second CPA Test Bank.

Consider it a “hedge” against an exam day disaster.

Since we accountants like math, here's some mathiness:

For every two people who walk into Prometric to take the CPA Exam, one will pass, and one will fail.

To put it another way: one in two CPA candidates will have wasted eight weeks studying for a failed exam.

You've spent thousands on a course and aren't keen on adding more CPA Study Materials (notes, audio, test bank, etc.). I get it.

Think of a second test bank as a sort of insurance policy.

• Insurance against failing and the emotional hangover that follows. If you've experienced a failing score, you know the temporary panic, depression, and paralyzing despair that a bad score release can cause.
• Insurance against wasting your life with eight weeks of studying down the drain (and the flood of reminders of all the things you skipped to study for those eight weeks… guys' night out… girls' night out…fun nights with the kids…weekends with the kids…Friday night Netflix and Chill sessions (is it still called that when you're married?). GONE. You can't get those opportunities back. And for what? You get to study again.
• Insurance against quitting the CPA Exam. One of the biggest risks of failing isn't the NTS fees or the restudying…those things suck really bad, for sure. The biggest risk is that after enough fails, you'll quit.

Statistically, upwards of 20% just up and quit the CPA Exam and never finish. Why? Failure. Enough is enough.

Who do you want to be five years from now?

A CPA.

Being a CPA is a ticket to doing whatever you want – and making more doing it.

Own your own firm/small business?

Do taxes on the side?

Leverage your CPA credential in another area?

It's completely up to you.

While becoming a CPA will improve your future life, what about the pure misery of the CPA Exam life?

The NINJA Study Framework will cut down on weeks of pointless studying and allow you to actually have a weekend (remember those?) again.

Crazy thought, I know.

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2. Test Banks have Unique Answer Explanations

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Different CPA Test Banks have different questions.

Sure, there is some overlap, but it's not to a material degree

For example, Becker, UWorld, NINJA, etc., had to update their large number of revenue recognition questions a few years back.

The answer explanations were already completely different, but now each question is completely different and tested on a different nuance of the same concept.

Same with Leases.

Same with TCJA.

Same with QBI (REG).

Same with CPA Evolution.

A supplemental CPA test bank may better explain an answer or concept than your “main” course.

These answer explanations are written by people, and some people are better writers (and teachers) than others.

Over time, the questions themselves change due to changing standards/regulations.

A classic example of this is FAR, where each CPA Review Course had to completely rewrite its Revenue questions due to FASB ASC 606.

Consider for a moment all of the “revenue” questions that the AICPA has released over the years.

They all changed.

Everything changed—the questions, the answers, and the answer explanations.

The same thing happened with Leases a few years ago.

The same thing happened with REG and TCJA in 2017 and again in 2021 when the CPA Exam stopped testing numerous tax concepts.

Did the courses simply delete these questions?

No. The courses rewrote the questions and put them in a different blueprint bucket.

Outside of not wanting to spend money (hey, it's cheaper than buying another NTS for a retake), there's no reason not to use another CPA test bank.

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3. Each CPA Test Bank has its Strengths (and weaknesses)

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There are tradeoffs with each of the three supplemental CPA Test Banks.

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NINJA MCQ

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Strengths: NINJA MCQ (my test bank) has the lowest cost, and you get the most with your purchase (the NINJA Supplement includes the Test Bank, Notes, & Audio).

Granted, I have inherent bias here, and I think that's obvious, but as a CPA, I'm also called to be objective.

Objectively, I believe NINJA MCQ is the best CPA Test Bank for the money:

• $67 monthly
• Notes & Audio Included
• Cancel at any time for any reason
• 8,000+ AICPA-Licensed questions & 300+ simulations
• Adaptive Learning
• Trending Score

Weakness: Our simulations are good for preparing you to take the CPA Exam. Other courses like Gleim/UWorld do a better job of emulating the exam day look and feel. Don't get me wrong, our sims will have you ready for exam day – as much as any study software could, but I must tip my hat to Gleim/UWorld for emulating the actual test software better than we do.

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Gleim CPA Mega Test Bank

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Strengths: Gleim has always had great software. In the rare occasion when people have done so many NINJA MCQ that they are memorizing the questions, I refer them to Gleim.

Weakness: Aside from price (you can essentially get 4 months of NINJA MCQ and change sections for the cost of 1 section of Gleim), I question where they are getting their advertised 11,500 questions from. There aren't 11,500 AICPA questions out there. The reason why NINJA, Becker, and UWorld all hover around 8,000 questions, give or take, is because that's about how many AICPA questions there are, leaving room for some instructor-authored/homegrown questions.

I also don't see the value in that many questions. Why? A CPA candidate could not possible do all of them for four sections. Divided by 6 exams, that's 1,900 per exam. Where do these extras come from? I don't know. They are likely a mix of homegrown questions, and questions from other exams (CMA/EA questions, for example). I'm good with homegrown questions. If they are using CMA/EA questions in their BAR/REG/TCP material, then I disagree with that from an editorial standpoint. Why? Those questions are often beyond the scope of the CPA Exam and can cause unneeded worry and frustration. If I'm incorrect on this and reading it wrong – I'm happy to correct.

That said, Gleim is a great CPA Test Bank option and I recommend them to people who are burned out on NINJA MCQ.

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UWorld QBank

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Strengths: UWorld has been kicking but and taking names in their growth as a CPA Review company. They bought Roger CPA Review, Wiley CPA Review, and hired Peter Olinto (formerly – and famously – of Becker). You get their great technology (they are well known the test prep busines – particularly in the medical test prep field), and the Wiley/CPAexcel/RogerCPA full MCQ library.

Weakness: It's more expensive than Gleim and has a shorter access window.

The best bet? Try all 3.

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CPA Test Bank Comparison

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NINJA MCQ vs Gleim Mega Test Bank vs UWorld QBank

On mobile? This table is best viewed sideways in landscape.

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Course	NINJA	Gleim	UWorld
Price (1 Section)	$67	$250	$299
Access	1 Month	18 Months	6 Months
AICPA-Licensed	✅	✅	✅
8,000+ MCQ	✅	✅	✅
Hundreds of Sims	✅	✅	✅
Adaptive Learning	✅	✅	✅
CPA Notes	✅	🚫	🚫
CPA Audio	✅	🚫	🚫
NINJA Study Plan	Yes	Yes	Yes

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4. Adaptive Learning is a MUST

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Adaptive Learning in a CPA test bank was a major feature a few years ago.

Today, most CPA Review courses have some form of adaptive technology.

You can still pass the CPA Exam without it (as people have done for decades), but you could make a case that you're at a disadvantage vs. other CPA candidates using it.

It's like buying a new car without cruise control. It will still get you from point A to B, but it's annoying that it's not there (first-world problems, I get it).

Adaptive Learning allows the test bank to ‘feed' you more questions based on your weak areas. Your strong areas are still tested but less frequently.

Different courses have different names for it, and each company uses its own adaptive algorithm, so they aren't the same.

NINJA MCQ, UWorld CPA Qbank, and Gleim CPA Mega Test Bank are all adaptive.

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5. AICPA Questions are a No-Brainer

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Before purchasing any CPA Test Bank (aside from NINJA, Gleim, or UWorld), ask them the following question:

Does your CPA Exam test bank use AICPA questions?

If the answer is “no, we don't use AICPA questions” (followed by a long creative excuse explanation as to why), go elsewhere. Period.

“But Jeff, I asked them, and they said they had a really good reason…overlap, blah blah.“

I don't care how much they flop around and foam at the mouth trying to explain why they aren't an AICPA Licensee:

Find a different test bank.

When your test bank doesn't use AICPA-Licensed materials, you're at a disadvantage because only AICPA-Licensed courses get critical content updates from the AICPA Examinations Team and can use past CPA Exam questions in their materials (or service).

How can they help you pass the CPA Exam if they don't know what's tested on the CPA Exam?

It's less important for supplements to use AICPA content, but it's still very helpful.

Your main course must incorporate them into the materials.

Not knowing what's testable on the exam can be the difference between a 75 and a heart-breaking 74.

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6. Eight (Thousand) Is Enough

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Remember that '80s show “Eight is Enough?”

We didn't get that memo (that's a joke about us having 10 kids, in case you missed it).

Anyway, NINJA MCQ, UWorld CPA Qbank, and Gleim CPA Mega Test Bank have 8,000+ MCQs, and that is more than enough.

Let's assume that each CPA Exam section has 1,500 questions.

I don't know the exact breakdown section-wise for UWorld Qbank and Gleim Mega Test Bank, but let's assume 1,500 each.

(Yes, I know the math doesn't work out because 1,500 x 6 is more than 8,000). Work with me here.

If your CPA Study Planner is set for 7 weeks per exam and you study 5 days a week, you must answer 43 questions daily to see each question once.

If you take 3 minutes per question in study mode (that's a fairly good pace, given that the material is new and you're taking notes), that's 2+ hours per day on MCQ alone.

As someone famously said, “Ain't nobody got time for that.”

NINJA MCQ, UWorld CPA Qbank, and Gleim CPA Mega Test Bank all have more than enough CPA Exam questions.

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7. Take Each CPA Test Bank for a Test Drive

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Try all three Supplemental Test Banks.

Choose one.

Study your butt off.