CNA study guide: a free plan built on the official content outline

Start with what the test is built from

Three free documents tell you what is tested. Gather them before you buy anything.

1. Your state's candidate handbook. It gives the format, the passing rule, the full skills list and sample questions. Many states use Credentia's NNAAP handbook; others use Prometric or D&S Diversified Technologies. The handbook of the state where you want to work is the one that counts.
2. The 2024 NNAAP content outline, reproduced in every Credentia handbook (South Carolina's copy). It is effective since October 2024 and is based on NCSBN's 2019-2020 job analysis of nurse aides. It lists every content area with its weight and number of scored questions.
3. The federal training curriculum in 42 CFR 483.152(b). Every state-approved course must cover it, and the written test must address each of these course requirements (42 CFR 483.154).

The exam format (70 questions, 2 hours, the oral option) is on our free CNA practice test page, and the differences between states are in how many questions are on the CNA exam. This guide is about how to study.

Where the points are (NNAAP)

The written exam has 70 questions, of which 60 are scored. The content outline splits them like this:

The weights and question counts come from the outline; the right-hand column summarizes its headings and the federal curriculum in plain words. Physical care skills (the first, second and fifth rows) add up to 64% of the scored questions, the role of the nurse aide 26%, psychosocial care 10%.

If your state uses Prometric

Florida's Prometric test has its own outline of 60 questions (Florida bulletin): basic nursing care 24%, promotion of safety 22%, role of the nurse aide 20%, promotion of function and health of residents 20%, and specialized care for residents with changes in health 14%. The topics overlap heavily with the NNAAP; the weights are what change.

What to study in each area

Basic nursing skills (21 questions). Hand hygiene and when to use it, PPE and the order you take it off, standard precautions, fall prevention, what to do for choking or a fall, fire safety, and normal ranges for pulse, respirations, blood pressure and temperature. Learn what must be reported to the nurse right away and what you simply record.

Activities of daily living (13 questions). Bathing, mouth and denture care, perineal and catheter care, dressing a client with a weak side, feeding safely (upright position, small bites), intake and output, toileting and bedpans, skin care and pressure injury prevention, comfort and sleep.

Restorative skills (4 questions). Encouraging clients to do as much as they can for themselves, range of motion, transfers with a gait belt, canes, walkers and wheelchairs, positioning and turning, bowel and bladder training, prosthetic and orthotic devices. The federal curriculum lists most of these under basic restorative services (42 CFR 483.152).

Client rights and legal behavior (8 questions together). Learn them from the source. The federal resident rights rule (42 CFR 483.10) and the abuse and neglect rule (42 CFR 483.12) cover privacy, the right to refuse care, personal possessions, restraints and reporting. On the exam, the right answer usually protects the client's choice and dignity and involves telling the nurse.

Psychosocial care (6 questions). Responding to confusion, agitation and dementia calmly, supporting clients who are grieving or newly admitted, letting a dying client talk about their feelings, and respecting religious and cultural practices.

Communication and teamwork (8 questions). Facing a client with hearing loss, short clear sentences, active listening, what an aide may and may not do, following the care plan, and reporting changes accurately.

Study the skills list too

The written test and the skills evaluation draw on the same knowledge. The NNAAP skills listing in your handbook, such as South Carolina's, breaks each skill into numbered steps, with critical steps in bold. Reading it teaches the exact safety steps that written questions ask about: call signal within reach, bed in low position, gloves before contact with body fluids, feet flat on the floor before standing. Our CNA skills test guide explains how that part is scored.

A four-week plan

This is our suggested schedule, not an official one. It follows the outline weights and assumes you have finished, or nearly finished, your training course.

For every question you miss, write one line: the area, why you missed it, and the rule you will use next time. After two or three practice sets, the list shows you what to review in the last week.

Free and official resources

• Sample questions in your handbook: South Carolina's includes six sample written questions with answers.
• The self-assessment reading test in Credentia handbooks helps you decide whether to take the oral exam (Self-Assessment).
• D&S Diversified Technologies offers a free knowledge question of the day and a free ten-question practice test on its website (Ohio handbook).
• Prometric publishes a clinical skills checklist online for Florida candidates (Florida bulletin).

The vendors' own practice exams are paid (Credentia notes that its practice exam is not an official representation of the real test): Credentia sells 40-question practice exams at $30 for one, $50 for two or $60 for three, and Prometric's 50-question written practice exam is $10 (Florida bulletin). None of them is required.

Practice on our site

Free questions by area: physical care skills, psychosocial care and role of the nurse aide. Our CNA practice pack adds full-length timed tests split by the official weights. All our questions are original, written from the official content outline and federal rules; they are not taken from the real exam and cannot predict your official result. Before booking, check what the exam costs in your state in our CNA exam cost guide.

Sources

• The 2024 NNAAP Written (Oral) Examination Content Outline, South Carolina Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook — Credentia (checked October 3, 2026)
• South Carolina Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook, Sample Questions — Credentia (checked October 3, 2026)
• South Carolina Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook, Self-Assessment — Credentia (checked October 3, 2026)
• South Carolina Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook, Skills (NNAAP skills listing) — Credentia (checked October 3, 2026)
• South Carolina Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook, Introduction — Credentia (checked October 3, 2026)
• Florida Certified Nursing Assistant Candidate Information Bulletin (Rev. 11012025) — Prometric (checked October 3, 2026)
• Ohio Nurse Aide Candidate Handbook, Version 27 (December 2025) — D&S Diversified Technologies (Headmaster) (checked October 3, 2026)
• Practice exams — Credentia (checked October 3, 2026)
• 42 CFR 483.152, Requirements for approval of a nurse aide training and competency evaluation program — eCFR (checked October 3, 2026)
• 42 CFR 483.154, Nurse aide competency evaluation — eCFR (checked October 3, 2026)
• 42 CFR 483.10, Resident rights — eCFR (checked October 3, 2026)
• 42 CFR 483.12, Freedom from abuse, neglect, and exploitation — eCFR (checked October 3, 2026)

NNAAP is a registered trademark of its owner. passmock is not affiliated with or endorsed by Credentia, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), Prometric, D&S Diversified Technologies (Headmaster) or any state nurse aide registry.