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CAEC Practice Test 2026 – Free CAEC Questions

Original questions written from the official Canada (national) handbook, with an explanation for every answer.

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  • 269 questions
  • 11 practice tests
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Practice test 1 · Question 1Score 0/0

Which two areas are shared between the federal and provincial governments?

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All CAEC practice tests

11 sets of 25 questions. Each set is fixed, so you can repeat it until you score 100%.

Exam facts

Key facts: Canadian Adult Education Credential (CAEC)

Free CAEC practice tests for all five subjects: Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. Every question is original and written from the official CAEC test outcomes, the public list of knowledge and skills each test measures. Math questions come with full worked solutions, and every answer is explained. No sign-up, and your progress stays on your device.

The Canadian Adult Education Credential is the high school equivalency test that replaced the GED in Canada. If you are an adult who left school without a diploma, passing the five CAEC tests earns you a provincial or territorial high school equivalency credential that employers, colleges and apprenticeship programs can recognize. Use the subject pages below to practise one test at a time.

What the test covers

Topics and question bank

Every question is tagged to one topic from the official handbook. Pick a topic to drill just that area.

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Sample CAEC questions

Tap a question to see the answer. The full interactive test is at the top of the page.
  1. 1Which two areas are shared between the federal and provincial governments?
    • A. Municipal recycling and local fire services
    • B. Criminal law and national defence of Canada
    • C. Foreign policy and printing of currency
    • D. Agriculture and immigration

    Discover Canada lists agriculture and immigration as shared (the federal elections table also adds the environment). Criminal law and defence are federal, recycling and firefighting are municipal.

  2. 2A 1.2 kg bag of rice costs $5.49 and a 750 g bag costs $3.99. Which is the better buy per kilogram?
    • A. The 750 g bag, about $5.32/kg
    • B. The 750 g bag, about $3.99/kg
    • C. The 1.2 kg bag, about $4.58/kg
    • D. Both cost the same per kilogram

    Unit price = cost ÷ mass. 5.49 ÷ 1.2 ≈ $4.58/kg; 750 g = 0.75 kg, and 3.99 ÷ 0.75 = $5.32/kg. The lower unit price, the 1.2 kg bag, is the better buy.

  3. 3Which sentence best connects a reason to its evidence?
    • A. Bike lanes make roads safer; city data show fewer injuries on streets with protected lanes.
    • B. Bike lanes exist. Some people ride bikes to work, and other people drive cars.
    • C. Bike lanes are good. Our city has a large population and a great many streets.
    • D. Bike lanes are safer, and also bicycles come in many different colours and sizes.

    Good support states a reason and immediately backs it with relevant evidence. The other choices pair the reason with an unrelated fact or no evidence at all.

  4. 4According to the memo about the new shift schedule, why is the warehouse adding a third shift?
    • A. So orders can ship within 24 hours
    • B. Because equipment keeps breaking down
    • C. So staff can work fewer hours each week
    • D. Because the night shift pays more

    The memo states the change is "so that orders can ship within 24 hours." The pay premium is a result of the change, and equipment problems are only mentioned as a handover topic.

  5. 5Who are the Métis?
    • A. Settlers who arrived from Britain after 1900
    • B. The first French colonists of New France only
    • C. A distinct people of mixed Indigenous and European ancestry
    • D. A group of Inuit living only in Nunavut today

    The Métis are a distinct people of mixed Indigenous and European ancestry, most of whom live in the Prairie provinces, with their own culture and languages such as Michif.

  6. 6A map shows Canada's population density. Most people live in which part of the country?
    • A. Spread evenly across the whole country
    • B. In the centre of the Canadian Shield
    • C. Within a few hundred kilometres of the U.S. border
    • D. In the far North above the Arctic Circle

    Most Canadians live in a band near the southern border, where the climate is milder and farmland and large cities are concentrated. The North and the Shield are sparsely populated.

  7. 7In the warehouse story, why does Rosa doubt Dylan's comment "Took me a week"?
    • A. She thinks he is boasting about learning slowly
    • B. She knows he started working only that morning
    • C. She believes the scanner is impossible to learn
    • D. She suspects he said it to make her feel better

    Rosa doubts it but is "grateful he said it," which suggests she sees it as a kind remark meant to comfort her. Nothing says he started that day, that he was boasting or that the scanner cannot be learned.

  8. 8Which item is a need rather than a want?
    • A. A larger television for the living room
    • B. A new video game console
    • C. Tickets to a professional hockey game
    • D. Safe housing

    Needs are things required to live safely, such as food, water, shelter and clothing. A bigger TV, a game console and hockey tickets are wants.

  9. 9Jordan chooses to work an extra shift instead of attending a concert. What is the opportunity cost of his choice?
    • A. The tax he will pay on his weekly pay
    • B. The cost of a bus ticket to work that day
    • C. The money he earned on the extra shift
    • D. The concert he gave up

    Opportunity cost is the value of the best alternative given up. By working, Jordan gives up the concert. The money earned is the benefit of his choice, not its cost.

  10. 10Find the range of these temperatures in °C: −4, 3, 7, −1, 10.
    • A. 11
    • B. 14
    • C. 6
    • D. 15

    Range = highest − lowest = 10 − (−4) = 14. 6 subtracts 4 instead of −4, and 11 uses −1 as the lowest.

About the test

About the Canadian Adult Education Credential (CAEC)

The CAEC is a set of five computer-based tests written in person at an approved testing centre: Reading (50 questions in 75 minutes), Writing (one persuasive writing task in 75 minutes), Mathematics (42 questions in 120 minutes), Science (35 questions in 90 minutes) and Social Studies (40 questions in 90 minutes). The tests are available in English and French. You do not have to write them all on the same day, and there is no deadline for finishing all five.

The math test has two parts. Part I has 12 questions in 30 minutes and no calculator, so you need to work with fractions, decimals, percentages, integers and the order of operations by hand. Part II has 30 questions in 90 minutes with a calculator and covers number sense in money and real-life problems, patterns and equations, geometry and measurement, and data and probability. Part I is worth 25 percent of the math score and Part II 75 percent.

Reading uses literary texts such as story, poem and drama excerpts (20 to 40 percent of the test) and informational texts such as articles, emails, brochures, editorials, tables and workplace documents (60 to 80 percent). It also includes grammar, punctuation and sentence questions. Science focuses on how science works: designing fair tests, variables, hypotheses, measurements, reading data and judging whether a study is reliable. Social Studies covers citizenship and government, economics, Canadian history and geography, often through maps, graphs and short sources.

You need 55 percent on each test to pass it. Results are reported in four bands: Exceeds the minimum standard (80 to 100 percent), Meets (55 to 79), Approaching (40 to 54) and Does not meet (0 to 39). If a test comes back as Approaching or Does not meet, you rewrite only that test. You can write any one subject test once per calendar month and up to three times per calendar year, and you cannot rewrite a test you already passed. Scores for Reading, Math, Science and Social Studies appear in about two business days; the Writing score takes about 20 business days.

Each province or territory runs its own testing centres, eligibility rules and fees, and issues the credential. In Ontario the CAEC is run by TVO's Independent Learning Centre, which replaced the GED with the CAEC on May 3, 2024. To register in Ontario you must be at least 18, have lived in Ontario for at least six months, have no Ontario high school diploma and not be registered in a high school; registration for all five tests costs $100. Passing all five earns the Ontario High School Equivalency Certificate. If you passed some GED subjects before the change, ask your province how they count: Ontario accepts them in place of the matching CAEC subjects until May 2027.

Study plan

How to prepare

  1. 1Start with the subject you feel least sure about, often Math. Take one of our math sets without a calculator to find out which Part I skills (fractions, negative numbers, order of operations) need work, then practise those every day for a week.
  2. 2Read the official CAEC test outcomes for each subject. They list exactly what can be tested, and our topics follow the same headings, so you can see where your gaps are.
  3. 3For Reading, practise both literary and informational texts. Read the question first, then find the evidence in the text before you look at the choices. Many wrong answers are true statements that the text does not actually support.
  4. 4For Writing, practise a persuasive essay in 75 minutes: take a clear position in the introduction, give two or three arguments with specific evidence, answer one objection, and finish with a strong conclusion. Save the last ten minutes to check spelling, punctuation and sentence structure, which count for a third of the mark.
  5. 5For Science and Social Studies, focus on skills more than memorizing. Practise identifying variables and control groups, reading graphs and tables, and telling a primary source from a secondary source.
  6. 6Take the free official CAEC sample test in each subject before you book, so you know the computer platform. When you score comfortably above 55 percent on our subject sets, book that test; you can write the five tests on different days.

FAQ

CAEC test questions people ask

What is the CAEC?

The Canadian Adult Education Credential is a high school equivalency test for adults. It has five tests: Reading, Writing, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. Passing all five earns a high school equivalency credential issued by your province or territory, such as the Ontario High School Equivalency Certificate.

Did the CAEC replace the GED?

Yes. The GED is no longer offered in Canada, and the CAEC took its place; in Ontario the switch happened on May 3, 2024. A GED you already passed in full is still a valid credential. If you passed only some GED subjects, provinces may count them toward the CAEC for a limited time: Ontario accepts them until May 2027, and Alberta lists up to December 2027 through prior learning assessment.

What score do I need to pass the CAEC?

You need 55 percent on each of the five tests. Results of 80 to 100 percent are reported as Exceeds the minimum standard and 55 to 79 as Meets. A result below 55 percent means you rewrite that test only.

How many questions are on each CAEC test?

Reading has 50 questions in 75 minutes, Writing is one persuasive writing task in 75 minutes, Mathematics has 42 questions in 120 minutes (12 without a calculator, then 30 with one), Science has 35 questions in 90 minutes and Social Studies has 40 questions in 90 minutes.

How much does the CAEC cost?

It depends on your province or territory. In Ontario, registering for all five tests costs $100, and a second attempt at failed tests costs another $100. Other provinces charge per test, so check your regional CAEC website before you book.

Can I use a calculator on the CAEC math test?

Only on Part II. Part I has 12 questions in 30 minutes with no calculator, testing fractions, decimals, percentages, integers, simple equations and the order of operations. Part II has 30 questions in 90 minutes with a calculator.

Can I take the CAEC in French?

Yes. The tests are available in English and French; in French the credential is called the CCEA (Certificat canadien de l'éducation des adultes). In Ontario, contact TVO to arrange French testing. Our French edition covers the same five subjects.

How often can I retake a CAEC test?

You can write any one subject test once per calendar month and up to three times per calendar year. You only rewrite the tests you did not pass, and each attempt may have a fee depending on your province.

Are these the official CAEC sample tests?

No. Every question here is original, written from the public CAEC test outcomes. The official sample tests are free on the CAEC platform and are worth taking once to see the real format; use our sets for extra practice with explanations.

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