# How Long to Study for PLAB 1: Start Dates for the 2026 and 2027 Exams

> How long to study for PLAB 1: 8, 12 and 16 week start dates counted back from the GMC exams on November 5, 2026 and February 11, 2027, with booking dates.

Markdown copy of https://meduniexam.com/blog/how-long-to-study-for-plab-1 (the HTML page), published by MedUni Exam. Published September 21, 2026. Site guide for agents: https://meduniexam.com/llms.txt.

Written by [Nicholas](https://meduniexam.com/about.md). Checked on September 21, 2026.

8 to 16 weeks is the honest range for how long to study for PLAB 1, and your own exam date decides which end you need. For the PLAB 1 on February 11, 2027, a 16 week plan starts on October 22, 2026, a 12 week plan on November 19, 2026 and an 8 week plan on December 17, 2026, counted back from the GMC exam dates, checked on September 21, 2026. The November 5, 2026 test is 45 days out, so a plan of 8 weeks or shorter is what fits it: 8 weeks back was September 10, 2026. PLAB 1 is 180 questions in three hours.

## How long to study for PLAB 1, counted back from your exam date

The PLAB 1 on November 5, 2026 needs a start date of August 13, 2026 for a 12 week plan, July 16, 2026 for 16 weeks and September 10, 2026 for 8 weeks: the exam date minus 84, 112 and 56 days, computed here from the GMC dates, checked on September 21, 2026. That test is 45 days off on September 21, 2026, so February 11, 2027 is the next one a whole plan fits in front of.

| PLAB 1 sitting | 16 week plan starts | 12 week plan starts | 8 week plan starts | Whole fee lost from | Results by 4 pm |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PLAB 1 on Thursday November 5, 2026 | July 16, 2026 | August 13, 2026 | September 10, 2026 | September 24, 2026 | December 17, 2026 |
| PLAB 1 on Thursday February 11, 2027 | October 22, 2026 | November 19, 2026 | December 17, 2026 | December 31, 2026 | March 25, 2027 |
| PLAB 1 on Thursday August 6, 2026, already taken | April 16, 2026 | May 14, 2026 | June 11, 2026 | June 25, 2026 | September 17, 2026 |

Source: GMC, [your results](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/your-results) for the exam and result dates and [fees for doctors](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/managing-your-registration/fees-and-funding/fees-for-doctors) for the 42 day cancellation rule, with the plan start dates and the cancellation dates computed here, checked on September 21, 2026.

All three sittings fall on a Thursday and every result lands exactly 42 days after its exam, on our own check of those rows. The deadlines around exam day are the same subtraction.

| Point in the PLAB 1 calendar | Days from exam day | Weeks from exam day | What happens |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| PLAB 1 booking closes | 14 to 42 days before | 2 to 6 weeks before | The window varies by location |
| PLAB 1 refund cliff | 42 days before | 6 weeks before | Cancel from here on and the whole fee is lost: GBP 283 from April 1, 2026 |
| PLAB 1 venue letter | 7 days before | 1 week before | VICTVS sends UK and EU venue addresses, the British Council sends the rest |
| PLAB 1 exam day | 0 days | 0 weeks | 180 questions in three hours |
| PLAB 1 result day | 42 days after | 6 weeks after | Results by 4 pm, six weeks after the exam |

Source: GMC, [when and where you can take PLAB 1](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/when-and-where-can-i-take-plab-1), [booking a PLAB 1 place](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/information-on-booking-a-plab-1-place), [your results](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/your-results) and [fees for doctors](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/managing-your-registration/fees-and-funding/fees-for-doctors), checked on September 21, 2026.

One row decides money rather than study. Booking closes two to six weeks before the test depending on location, so a place can go early. The refund cliff does not move: cancel more than 42 days out and it costs 10 percent, GBP 28.30 from April 1, 2026, and at 42 days or less the whole GBP 283 is gone.

## How long the PLAB 1 exam day runs, start to finish

PLAB 1 is [180 multiple choice questions](https://meduniexam.com/blog/how-many-questions-are-on-each-medical-exam.md) to be answered within three hours. Each one opens with a short scenario, then five options with one right answer, from the [GMC guide to the PLAB test](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/a-guide-to-the-plab-test), checked on September 21, 2026. Three hours is 180 minutes, so the paper allows one minute a question.

The day is longer than the paper.

- Expect at least four hours at the test center, for a paper that lasts three.
- Arrive more than half an hour late and you are refused entry to the exam room.
- Nobody leaves the room in the first or the last half hour.
- No watch of any kind goes into the hall, not even a plain analog one, and the proctors call the time instead.
- Bring HB pencils, an eraser and a pencil sharpener. Water in a clear unlabeled bottle and a piece or two of fruit are allowed, and for a medical device or medication the GMC points you to its guidance on adjustments; calculators, bags and phones are not.

Those five lines are from the GMC page on [what you can expect on the day](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/what-can-you-expect-on-the-day), checked on September 21, 2026. They set what a plan rehearses: one minute a question, on paper, no watch.

## How long does it take to study for PLAB 1 at 30 questions a day

At 30 questions a day, six days a week, PLAB 1 takes 12 weeks to cover 2,160 questions: 12 full 180 question papers and 36 hours of answering at paper pace, computed here from the GMC format of 180 questions in three hours, checked on September 21, 2026. One study week at that rate is 180 questions, exactly one paper.

| PLAB 1 plan length | Start day before the exam | Study days at six a week | Questions at 30 a day | Full 180 question papers | Answering time at paper pace |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 4 week PLAB 1 plan | 28 days before | 24 days | 720 questions | 4 papers | 12 hours |
| 8 week PLAB 1 plan | 56 days before | 48 days | 1,440 questions | 8 papers | 24 hours |
| 12 week PLAB 1 plan | 84 days before | 72 days | 2,160 questions | 12 papers | 36 hours |
| 16 week PLAB 1 plan | 112 days before | 96 days | 2,880 questions | 16 papers | 48 hours |

Source: this article's arithmetic from the GMC format for PLAB 1, [180 questions within three hours](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/a-guide-to-the-plab-test), checked on September 21, 2026.

Answering time is all the last column counts. Review takes longer than answering, so a 12 week plan is 36 hours plus the review around it. How many a day is enough is argued in [how many practice questions per day](https://meduniexam.com/blog/how-many-practice-questions-per-day.md), and the same counting on another exam is in [how long to study for MRCP Part 1](https://meduniexam.com/blog/how-long-to-study-for-mrcp-part-1.md).

Which row you need depends on starting knowledge, and the GMC pitches PLAB 1 at a doctor entering Foundation Year 2 in the UK. Two months out of internship, the 8 week row is defensible. Two years away from acute medicine, take the 16 week row and expect work to eat two of them.

## What one PLAB 1 study week looks like on a full time job

One PLAB 1 study week on a full time job is six blocks of 30 questions, 30 minutes each at paper pace: 180 questions a week and three hours of answering, plus a full 180 question paper every second week, computed here from the GMC format checked on September 21, 2026. A block that short survives a night shift, which is the point of the shape.

- Monday to Saturday, one block of 30 questions in 30 minutes, timed at paper pace.
- Two of those six days get a second block of questions you already got wrong, which is review and sits outside the 30 a day count.
- Every second week, one full 180 question paper in three hours, mixed across all ten areas.

The GMC groups PLAB 1 questions into ten areas of clinical practice: reproductive health; renal and urology; neurosciences and senses, including skin; musculoskeletal; mental health; gastrointestinal; endocrine, metabolic and clinical hematology; child and adolescent health; cardiorespiratory; and ethics and other. Your result prints your percentage correct in each area next to the candidate average, checked on September 21, 2026.

Ten areas across 12 weeks is one week each, with the last two weeks left for whole papers. Across 8 weeks it is 5.6 days each and nothing spare, so the papers sit inside the area weeks. The closing stretch is covered in [spaced repetition three weeks before an exam](https://meduniexam.com/blog/spaced-repetition-three-weeks-before-exam.md).

Protect the mixed paper above the rest of the week. Work through one area for a week and every question arrives with its topic half given away. A mixed 180 question paper is the only thing that shows whether you can name the topic yourself inside a minute.

## How the 2025 PLAB 1 pass rate should change your start date

The PLAB 1 pass rate was 62.2 percent in 2025: 13,691 candidates took PLAB 1 and 8,513 passed, on the [GMC pass rate page](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/recent-pass-rates-for-plab-1-and-plab-2) checked on September 21, 2026. That is the lowest of the five years the GMC publishes, 2021 to 2025, where the rate runs from 62.2 to 74.1 percent. The year by year table sits in the companion post on the [PLAB 1 pass mark and pass rate](https://meduniexam.com/blog/plab-1-pass-mark-and-pass-rate.md).

Which is harder, PLAB 1 or PLAB 2, is compared year by year in that same companion post. PLAB 2 is a different exam in any case, 16 scenarios of eight minutes each in Manchester.

On the PLAB 1 pass mark the GMC publishes a method rather than a number: each test gets its own, set by the Angoff method with one standard error of measurement added, checked on September 21, 2026. Your result prints your score out of 180, the score that test required and the candidate average, so a good PLAB 1 score beats both of the last two.

The 2025 rate is 8.3 points below 2024 on our own subtraction, which argues for the 12 or 16 week row rather than the 8. The GMC's Influences on pass rates in PLAB examinations 2022 report also found that candidates who passed IELTS or OET have more chance of passing PLAB 1 at the first attempt, checked on September 21, 2026.

## How long is PLAB 1 valid for, and how many times can you take it

PLAB 1 is valid for two years, counted from the day you took the test and not the day the result arrived, and you can take PLAB 1 until you have failed it four times, from the GMC pages checked on September 21, 2026. PLAB 1 is pass or fail: the result prints a score out of 180 next to the score that test required.

| PLAB 1 rule | What the GMC publishes |
| --- | --- |
| How many times can you take PLAB 1 | Until you have failed it four times |
| PLAB 1 after a fourth failure | Apply for one additional attempt, the fifth and final one |
| Wait before that additional attempt | At least 12 months of further learning after the fourth failed attempt |
| Evidence for that additional attempt | 12 months of clinical practice, or a relevant postgraduate qualification |
| How long a PLAB 1 pass is valid | Two years, and PLAB 2 has to be passed inside them |
| Date the two years run from | The day you took the test, not the day the result was issued |
| Booking PLAB 2 after PLAB 1 | From the moment your PLAB 1 result is issued, and not before |
| Registration after passing PLAB 2 | Approved within two years of passing PLAB 2 |

Source: GMC, [booking a PLAB 1 place](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/information-on-booking-a-plab-1-place), [eligibility for an additional attempt](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/are-you-eligible-for-an-additional-plab-1-attempt), [what to do after your results](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/what-do-you-do-after-you-get-your-results) and [the guide to the PLAB test](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/a-guide-to-the-plab-test), checked on September 21, 2026.

That clock reaches back into a study plan. A pass on November 5, 2026 leaves until November 5, 2028 for PLAB 2, counted here, and the six weeks you wait for the result come out of those two years rather than sitting on top of them. An appeal is the only route to a changed result, since the GMC no longer rechecks one by hand.

## What to study for PLAB 1, and whether a course or a question bank is needed

The MLA content map is the GMC's stated guide to what PLAB 1 covers, and the GMC says every topic and skill needed to pass is in it. It covers the common, important or acute conditions a Foundation Year 2 doctor meets, plus long term conditions in primary care, answered against current UK best practice and published evidence rather than local arrangements, from the GMC pages on [what the PLAB 1 exam is](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/what-is-the-plab-1-exam) and [what resources to use](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/what-resources-should-you-use-to-prepare), checked on September 21, 2026. The same map sits behind the applied knowledge test on the [UKMLA page](https://meduniexam.com/exam/ukmla.md).

That map is also the best PLAB 1 resource named by anyone official. On a best PLAB 1 question bank or a best PLAB 1 online course the GMC takes no position: you do not need a study or coaching course to pass, it offers none, and it does not endorse or monitor the quality of courses given by others, checked on September 21, 2026. So how to study for PLAB 1 comes down to the map, timed blocks at one minute a question, and a bank whose explanations you can follow.

What this site adds is the slice a bank cannot cover: questions written from your own notes. Paste in a guideline summary or the ward notes you are already reading, ask for PLAB 1 style items, and each question shows the line it quotes and that line's page number. 60 verified questions run as a guest, 300 a month are free with an account, a 90 day Exam Pass is USD 19.99 and a 500 question pack is USD 5.99, and neither renews. The [sample exam](https://meduniexam.com/sample.md) runs with no account, and the format sits on the [PLAB 1 exam page](https://meduniexam.com/exam/plab-1.md).

## Booking PLAB 1 in February, May, August or November

PLAB 1 runs four times a year, in February, May, August and November, in six UK cities, Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London and Manchester, in two EU cities, Dublin and Madrid, and in 22 overseas cities where the British Council sends the venue details, among them Lagos, Karachi, Dhaka, New Delhi and Dubai, from the GMC page on [when and where you can take PLAB 1](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/plab-1-guide/when-and-where-can-i-take-plab-1), checked on September 21, 2026.

Booking happens in one place, the PLAB booking service in GMC Online, and registrations may close two to six weeks before the test depending on location. GMC Online is unavailable from September 30 to October 6, 2026, with no bookings, changes, cancellations or result viewing that week, so a November 5, 2026 place has to be booked either side of it, checked on September 21, 2026.

Two changes land on the 2027 sittings. Dhaka, Alexandria, Accra and Chennai stop running the exam, and the February 2027 test runs in UK and EU locations only, from the GMC page on [changes to PLAB 1 in 2027](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/join-our-registers/plab/changes-to-plab-1-in-2027), checked on September 21, 2026. A GMC news release of May 20, 2026 on [changes to international exam locations](https://www.gmc-uk.org/news/news-archive/changes-to-international-exam-locations) gives the reason, bookings down 40 percent from 2023 to 2025, and puts the schedule outside the UK or EEA at three sittings a year, down from four.

If your English language evidence expires between February 1 and May 31, 2027 and February was your sitting, the GMC will discuss an extension for the May 2027 test, on a request that reaches it by March 19, 2027. Three sittings instead of four also stretches the spacing from about 13 weeks to about 17, on our own division of 52 weeks.

Book from GMC Online, and check your own exam date on the GMC results page the day you book, because that page carries each sitting and its result date.

## Questions people ask

### Is PLAB 1 hard?

The GMC's own numbers put the PLAB 1 pass rate at 62.2 percent in 2025, from 13,691 candidates, and between 62.2 and 74.1 percent across 2021 to 2025, checked on September 21, 2026. About six in ten passed in 2025, the lowest of those five years. The pressure is pace rather than depth, at the level of a doctor starting Foundation Year 2 in the UK.

### When is the next PLAB 1 exam?

The GMC publishes two upcoming PLAB 1 dates: Thursday November 5, 2026, with results by 4 pm on December 17, 2026, and Thursday February 11, 2027, with results by 4 pm on March 25, 2027, checked on September 21, 2026. Counting back 84 days, a 12 week plan for the November sitting started on August 13, 2026, and a 12 week plan for the February sitting starts on November 19, 2026.

### How long do I need to study for PLAB 1?

8 to 16 weeks of real blocks, which in days before your exam is 56, 84 or 112. At 30 questions a day six days a week, one week is 180 questions, exactly one PLAB 1 paper, so 12 weeks is 2,160 questions and 36 hours of answering at paper pace. Those three figures are computed here from the GMC format of 180 questions in three hours.

### Does PLAB 1 expire?

Yes. A PLAB 1 pass is valid for two years, and PLAB 2 has to be passed inside those two years. The two years run from the date you took the test, not the date your result was issued, and results arrive six weeks after the exam, so that wait sits inside the clock rather than beside it, from the GMC page on what to do after your results, checked on September 21, 2026.

### How much does it cost to cancel PLAB 1?

Canceling more than 42 days before the exam costs 10 percent of the fee, GBP 28.30 from April 1, 2026, and canceling at 42 days or less costs the whole fee, GBP 283. The PLAB 1 fee is itself GBP 283 from April 1, 2026, up from GBP 273, on the GMC fees for doctors page checked on September 21, 2026. Refugee doctors living in the UK pay nothing for their first two attempts.

### How soon can you retake PLAB 1 after a fail?

At the next sitting you can book, provided you still meet the requirements, and PLAB 1 runs four times a year, in February, May, August and November. Candidates keep taking PLAB 1 until they have failed it four times. After a fourth failure you apply for one additional attempt, the fifth and final one, with at least 12 months of further learning behind it: 12 months of clinical practice, or a relevant postgraduate qualification.

### How many questions in Plabable for PLAB 1?

No audited figure exists, because question bank item counts are company claims rather than published numbers. What the GMC does state is that you do not need to attend a study or coaching course to pass PLAB 1, that it offers no courses itself, and that it does not endorse or monitor the quality of courses given by others, checked on September 21, 2026. Judge a bank on how its explanations read.

## Related pages

- [PLAB 1 questions from your own notes](https://meduniexam.com/exam/plab-1.md): PLAB 1 format practice generated from UK guidance the candidate uploads, with the source of the answer treated as the whole problem.
- [PLAB 1 Pass Mark and Pass Rate: 2016 to 2025](https://meduniexam.com/blog/plab-1-pass-mark-and-pass-rate.md): The GMC pass mark for PLAB 1, set per test by the Angoff method, with the four 2019 Angoff totals, the pass mark per diet in 2016 and 2017, and the pass rate for every year from 2021 to 2025.
- [PLAB 1 Exam Dates 2026: Results, Fees, Centers](https://meduniexam.com/blog/plab-1-exam-dates-2026-2027-fees-and-results.md): Ten published PLAB 1 exam dates with the GMC result date for each, the day of the week they fall on, both fee columns from April 2025 and April 2026, every exam city by country, and what changes in 2027.
- [Spaced Repetition Schedule: 3 Weeks to Exam](https://meduniexam.com/blog/spaced-repetition-three-weeks-before-exam.md): How to build a spaced repetition schedule for an exam three or four weeks away: count sessions backward from the date, make every repetition a retrieval attempt, and let the questions you missed choose the next session.
- [Articles](https://meduniexam.com/blog.md): The article index: every post, newest first.