Frequently asked questions

Pest Control Tests is an exam prep platform for pesticide applicator certification. Every applicator starts with the National CORE — the EPA-based standards behind certification in every state — and we cover it in depth: 1,000+ practice questions, flashcards by chapter, one-page cheat sheets, and full study guides built from the official national CORE manual. On top of that we build each state's own material (its CORE addendum and specialty category exams); Michigan is fully built, every state's licensing guide is live (all 50 states + DC), and more state category exams are rolling out.

The National CORE is the same across the country, so you can practice it here no matter which state you're in — free. On top of that we build each state's own material: its CORE addendum and specialty category exams. Michigan is fully built, and more states are rolling out. Pick your state when you sign up and you'll get its content as it launches.

No. Pest Control Tests is an independent study tool, not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by any state pesticide regulatory agency or certifying body. Our practice material is drawn from the official, publicly available national CORE manual and each state's published references, but we are a private company. The actual certification exams are administered by your state's regulatory agency.

Yes — a free account is required to save your progress and see your score history. Sign up takes about 10 seconds. You can sign in with Google, Microsoft, an emailed one-time link, or an email address and password. The leaderboard itself is a Premium feature. We don't sell your data, and you can delete your account from the Account page (cancel any paid subscription first).

Every applicator takes the CORE exam first — it's the shared foundation. Beyond that, you take the specialty categories that match your work: general and residential pest control, termite and wood-destroying organisms, mosquito and public-health, agricultural, turf and ornamental, and so on. The exact category names and numbers vary by state; when your state is live here you'll see its specific categories. Most techs start with CORE plus their main category, then add others later.

Premium starts at $1.99/month — $3.99 in states with their own addendum, which includes it — and gives you the full CORE bank (every chapter, unlimited attempts), instant answer explanations as you practice, Sim and Drill Modes, bookmarks, full test history, the leaderboard, and the full label simulator. Where your state adds its own material, higher tiers unlock it — $3.99 covers CORE plus your state addendum, and $7.99 covers everything, including category exams and flashcards. You can try it free first (CORE chapters 1-5, no card), then upgrade anytime — cancel anytime.

No — the free plan already lets you try the product: real CORE practice exams for chapters 1-5 with instant answer explanations, CORE flashcards for those chapters, and all CORE study guides and cheat sheets, no card required. Use it as long as you like. When you upgrade to Premium you're charged right away, get full access instantly, and can cancel anytime from Account → Manage Subscription.

Go to Account → Manage Subscription. That opens the Stripe billing portal where you can cancel, change card, or download invoices. Cancellation takes effect at the end of your current billing period — you keep Premium access until then, no surprise downgrades.

Yes — pest control companies can buy Premium seats in bulk and assign them to technicians. Includes a team dashboard showing each tech's progress and pass-readiness. See the Premium page or contact us for volume pricing.

Each practice exam is 75 questions randomly drawn from that category's pool. Each question is worth one point, no negative marking. You see your score as a percentage, plus a per-chapter breakdown so you know exactly where to focus your next study session. Real exams and their passing scores are set by each state — many use a 70% threshold, but confirm your state's requirement.

Yes — each retake pulls a fresh random selection so you won't see the same exact 75 questions back-to-back. Free accounts practice CORE chapters 1-5 with no daily cap; Premium opens every chapter and category.

Flashcards are organized by chapter. Free accounts get the National CORE flashcards for chapters 1–5; Premium opens every chapter and adds per-chapter filtering for targeted study and still-learning tracking, and where your state has specialty categories, their flashcards too. Each card shows the question, you think about it, flip to see the answer, and mark yourself right or wrong to build a focused review pile.

The real exam is administered by your state's pesticide regulatory agency (or its approved testing vendor), not by us — Pest Control Tests is study prep only. Check your state agency's website for how to register, where to test, and what it costs.

Passing scores are set by each state — many require around 70% on each exam, but confirm your state's threshold. CORE and each category are taken separately, and in most states you can retake just the section you didn't pass without redoing the others. Check your state agency for its exact policy.

Exam length and time limits are set by each state, so your state's format may differ. Our Sim Mode (Premium) replicates a timed, real-exam-style countdown so you can practice under pressure — check your state agency for its exact exam length and time limit.

Not currently. We don't offer CEU (continuing education) credits at this time — the site is exam-prep practice material, not an approved continuing-education provider. If that ever changes, we'll announce it here.

On any question during a practice exam, click the flag icon to report it. Tell us what looks wrong (factual error, typo, ambiguous wording) and we'll review it. Most reports are reviewed and corrected within a few days. You can also email us via the Contact page.

No — there is no daily limit. A free account gives you real CORE practice exams for chapters 1-5 (75 questions each, real exam format) with instant answer explanations as you practice, CORE flashcards for those chapters, all CORE study guides and cheat sheets, the open-book label simulator (capped at 5 questions per label), and your last 3 test results saved in your dashboard. Premium starts at $1.99/month ($3.99 in states with their own addendum, addendum included) and adds the full CORE bank — every chapter, unlimited attempts — plus Drill Mode, bookmarks and still-learning tracking, the full label simulator, the leaderboard, and complete test history. Where your state publishes its own material, higher tiers add it: $3.99 covers CORE plus your state addendum, and $7.99 covers everything, including category exams and flashcards.

You can sign in with Google, Microsoft, an emailed one-time link, or an email address and password. If you use a password it is hashed and stored by our authentication provider (Supabase) — it is never visible to us in plain text. If the sign-in popup is blocked, allow popups for pestcontroltests.com and try again. If you're still stuck, clear cookies for the site or try an incognito window. As a last resort, email us with the email you signed up with.

If you have an active subscription — or you're the billing owner of a business plan — you'll need to cancel or transfer it first; the delete button is disabled until then. Then, from the Account page, click Delete Account. This wipes your test history, bookmarks, picks, and preferences immediately. Your auth identity is fully purged within 30 days. If you've requested deletion but want to back out, email us from the Contact page before the 30-day window closes.

Yes. We use Supabase for the database with row-level security policies that ensure your test history is only visible to you. Sign-in is handled by our authentication provider (Supabase): Google or Microsoft OAuth, an emailed one-time link, or an email and password. Passwords are stored hashed and are never visible to us in plain text. Payments are processed by Stripe; we never store your card details. All traffic is HTTPS.