BLS practice test: free Basic Life Support questions with explanations

Practise for the written exam of a BLS (Basic Life Support) Provider course with original questions written to the 2025 American Heart Association Guidelines for CPR and ECC: adult CPR and AED, child and infant CPR, airway, choking and opioid emergencies, and team CPR. Start with 5 free questions, then take two timed tests of 40 questions in 40 minutes, with an explanation for every answer and your score per part. This is practice for the knowledge part only: a real BLS card always needs an authorised course with a hands-on skills test.

• 5 free questions
• 2 timed tests, 80 questions
• 2025 AHA Guidelines
• Score per part, 84% target
• Practice certificate PDF

BLS exam format and passing score

Source: AHA 2025 Guidelines BLS course FAQ and BLS Course Options, cpr.heart.org, checked 26 October 2026. The American Red Cross runs its own BLS course on 2025 ILCOR evidence, with an adaptive final exam for eligible learners (redcross.org). Course prices are set by each training center.

What changed in the 2025 AHA Guidelines

The AHA published new Guidelines for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care in October 2025, and BLS courses now teach them. The core numbers did not change: compressions at 100 to 120 per minute, at least 2 inches (5 cm) deep for adults but not more than about 2.4 inches (6 cm), about 1.5 inches (4 cm) for infants and 2 inches (5 cm) for children, full recoil, 30:2 for one rescuer and 15:2 for two rescuers with a child or infant. What is new:

• Choking: adults and children get 5 back blows followed by 5 abdominal thrusts; infants get 5 back blows and 5 chest thrusts with the heel of one hand; in late pregnancy, chest thrusts instead of abdominal thrusts.
• Infant compressions: the heel of one hand or the two-thumb encircling technique. The two-finger technique is no longer recommended.
• Opioid emergencies: naloxone is now part of the BLS algorithms. With a pulse: rescue breaths plus naloxone; in cardiac arrest: CPR first, naloxone only if it does not delay CPR.
• AED: it may be reasonable to move a bra aside instead of removing it.
• Chain of Survival: one chain for adults and children, in and out of hospital, ending with recovery and survivorship.

Source: 2025 AHA Guidelines Highlights, Part 6 Pediatric BLS and Part 7 Adult BLS, cpr.heart.org, checked 26 October 2026.

What you practise on MyLevel

Every MyLevel question is an original question written on the 2025 AHA Guidelines, with one correct answer, three wrong ones and a short explanation that names the guideline value. The two full tests have 40 questions in 40 minutes each, MyLevel's own length and pace (the AHA pages do not state a question count or time limit), split into 12 adult CPR and AED, 10 child and infant, 9 airway, choking and opioids, and 9 team and high-quality CPR questions. After each test you see your score per part, so you know what to review before your course.

2 timed BLS practice tests cost $9.99, a one-time payment with no subscription and no time limit, and also unlock every other MyLevel job test. They do not replace the course: only an authorised AHA or Red Cross course with a hands-on skills test gives you a BLS card.

How to pass the BLS exam

• Know the numbers by heart: 100 to 120 per minute, 2 inches adult, one-third of the chest for children and infants, 30:2 and 15:2, 1 breath every 6 seconds (adult) or every 2 to 3 seconds (child and infant) when there is a pulse, pulse check no longer than 10 seconds, switch compressors about every 2 minutes.
• Learn the algorithm in order: scene safe, check response, shout for help and call, get the AED, check breathing and pulse together, then CPR, AED and CPR again right after the shock.
• Learn the 2025 changes: exam questions follow the current guidelines, so older study guides with two-finger infant CPR or abdominal thrusts only for choking adults are out of date.
• Use the open-resource rule well: you may look things up, but there is no time to look up everything. Practise until you know the answers without the manual, and aim for 84% or more in every part.

MyLevel is independent and not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the American Heart Association (AHA) or the American Red Cross. BLS Provider and HeartCode are AHA courses. All questions are original practice questions written by MyLevel on the 2025 AHA Guidelines for CPR and ECC, not real AHA or Red Cross exam questions or answers. A MyLevel practice score or certificate is not a BLS card or CPR certification: a real BLS card requires an authorised course with a hands-on skills test.

Sample question with explanation

Frequently asked questions

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