How much does the Illinois real estate exam cost?

Sources: PSI's Illinois booklet, June 24, 2026, printed page 3 and the IDFPR Licensing and Education Unit brochure, March 2025, initial-licensure fee panel. Both published amounts were rechecked on October 21, 2026.

These are separate payments to separate organizations. The exam charge does not include an IDFPR application, and paying it does not issue a license. Keep the exam receipt and use the instructions in your passing report for the license application after passing.

Start with the two published fees, then add your actual quotes. A statewide tuition estimate will not tell you whether a specific school includes materials, extensions or course-final attempts. Keep any payment-processing charge shown at checkout as a separate line if one appears.

For tuition, ask for an itemized total, the access deadline and cancellation terms. For study tools, try the explanations before paying. A question count alone says little about how well a resource helps you correct mistakes. You can start with our free practice questions.

Compare remote and test-center requirements before adding equipment or travel. For costs beyond the exam and application, use the Illinois license-cost guide. This budget covers broker candidates. Managing broker, leasing agent and firm fees are outside its scope.

Before paying, use IDFPR's Real Estate Brokerage page to check both the approved provider list and the approved pre-license course list. Read any current notices as well. A provider's advertisement is not the same as an approval record.

The standard education route requires 75 hours: 60 Topic hours and 15 Applied Interactive hours (PSI booklet, printed page 1). Ask whether the quote includes both components. Attorney and out-of-state applicants should check their qualification route before buying a standard package.

• Get the provider and course names, both course components and total tuition in writing.
• Check live-session requirements, materials, final-attempt charges and extension terms.
• Ask when the completion record is issued and whether there is a transcript charge.
• Save the quote and refund terms before accepting an installment plan or checkout offer.

Ordinarily, you repeat only the failed portion; the booklet does not list a reduced retake fee (printed pages 3 and 7). Confirm the registration and charge with PSI. Do not divide the full fee by the number of portions to invent a retake price.

Follow your score report's reapplication instructions. If a passed portion still appears for purchase, stop and ask PSI which registration to use. Save its answer and the final payment confirmation. Resolve a missing state-only option before buying another exam.

The standard route's fourth-failure rule can add repeat tuition as well as testing costs. Check the retake limits and route-specific exceptions before relying on a budget for just one more appointment.

PSI states that exam fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable. The fee is forfeited if you do not test within one year after PSI receives it (booklet, printed page 3). Keep that original receipt date. Do not assume a reschedule gives you another year.

Timely cancellation can avoid forfeiture; it does not promise a cash refund. Late cancellation, no-show, late arrival and improper ID are listed forfeiture risks (printed page 7). Use the cancellation notice and confirmation guide and check your ID requirements before the appointment.

Payment validity is separate from education validity and the application deadline after passing. Having a payment record does not establish that you remain eligible to test.