Is AP Macroeconomics easy or hard? Read on to discover why we’ve given AP Macro a difficulty rating of “Quite Easy”, based on our unparalleled, deep-dive analysis of 2024 (and historic) pass rate data and over 3200 course reviews from alumnae.

An overview of the data: how hard is AP Macroeconomics?

Here’s an overview of all the data we’ve analysed on AP Macro, from both 2024 pass rates and alumnae reviews:

• AP Macroeconomics is considered quite easy, with class alumnae rating it 4.9/10 for overall difficulty
  • That makes it the 10th-easiest course out of the 28 large AP classes we surveyed
• The pass rate is slightly lower than other AP classes, with 62% graduating with a 3 or higher
• AP Macro is quite widely-taken (approximately 161,000 entries a year)
• And 83% of alumnae would recommend the class, which is slightly lower than other AP classes

Alumnae recommendations: the tl;dr

AP Macro alumnae reviewers found the class enjoyable, easy and felt it had a large focus on memorization and graphs.

Taking a visual comparison:

Here’s a fun visual on how AP Macroeconomics compares to other classes, by difficulty, the amount of study time required, and class size:

We’ve only highlighted the two economics classes here: AP Macroeconomics and AP Microeconomics. But you can see the full multi-coloured version of this chart in our popular, definitive difficulty ranking of ALL the AP classes!

Psst: we’ve also got a deep-dive into AP Microeconomics if you want a full comparison of economics tracks!

Behind the scenes: our Data Analyst and methodology

Analysing AP class data: the methodology

We want to be transparent about how we research, collect and analyse the AP data we use to provide you with our assessments and recommendations. This methodology gives a brief outline of our source material and analytical processes:

Please click here to learn more about our rigorous editorial policies here at Exam Study Expert.

Source material for AP data:

We use two primary sources of data:

1. Pass rate data from College Board itself, including the proportion of students who pass overall (3+ score) and the proportion of students who score a 5. This data is taken from the College Board website plus tweets from Head of AP Trevor Packer, which include the score breakdown and numbers of students taking each class.
2. Student reviews posted by users from r/APStudents who actually took the AP courses (as of 2024 the dataset includes 3,295 reviews). These reviews include a rating for:
   • Overall difficulty rating
   • Difficulty if self-studying
   • How much time is required

The data we post is based on College Board’s June data release and may shift slightly as late-arriving exams are scored. This shift has historically been negligible.

How we evaluate and use the data on AP classes:

We consider class alumnae’s difficulty ratings to be the most reliable indicator of difficulty, more so than pass rate.

Pass rate, or percentage of students scoring a certain grade, is a misleading metric for two main reasons:

1. Some classes attract highly able students, so may have a high pass rate, but this is more a reflection of the calibre of students taking the class. This particularly applies to language classes.
2. Research has shown that popular, widely taken AP classes tend to have lower passing rates. So, a low passing rate could indicate a larger variety of student skill, not necessarily class difficulty.

Our assessments of course difficulty

We have given each every AP class a graded ranking of difficulty, primarily based on class alumnae difficulty ratings. Many other important factors are taken into consideration when making our recommendations for how easy or hard you may find the AP course.

The rankings are determined as followed:

• Very Easy – scores less than 4.0
• Quite Easy – scores between 4.0 and 4.9
• Moderate Difficulty – scores between 5.0 and 5.9
• Quite Hard – scores between 6.0 and 6.9
• Very Hard – scores more than 7.0

You should take every available metric into account when making your choice of AP classes. Remember that some students tend to find certain fields easier or harder than others, based on pre-existing experience.

And remember, as College Board’s Trevor Packer reminds us, an AP score is only one indicator of student learning and achievement.

A deep dive into the 2024 exam data on AP Macro

If you want to know more about how AP Macroeconomics stacks up against the average AP class, and against previous years’ results: read on for five charts that set out all the data you could want.

1. Difficulty: a look at the ratings

AP Macroeconomics is considered quite easy, with class alumnae rating it 4.9/10 for overall difficulty, making it the 10th-easiest out of the 28 large AP classes we surveyed.

2. The AP Macroeconomics pass rate in 2024

In 2024, the AP Macro pass rate was 62%, slightly lower than the all-AP average of 68%.

The highest percentage of students (25%) passed with a 3, and the number of students who attained a 4 or 5 was within a few percentage points of average.

3. So, how does this compare to the last five years?

Over the many years we’ve been doing this analysis, we’ve learnt that AP pass rates can fluctuate wildly. So to get a better picture, let’s examine the score distribution for the past five years of exams – all the way back to 2020.

In fact, AP Macroeconomics is a good example of this: the score distribution has varied quite significantly over the past 5 years. 2021 and 2022 saw notably reduced pass rates between 51-52%. This was followed by a large jump in 2023 with the highest pass rate of 64%.

4. How time consuming will AP Macroeconomics be?

AP Macro is rated as very low study time required relative to other AP classes.

N.B. A survey of AP alumnae asked for a rating out of 10 for time needed to study each class, with 1 = least time needed, 10 = most time. The average rating for AP Macroeconomics was 4.5/10 (vs the average across all AP classes of 5.4/10).

5. How hard is it to self-study for AP Macro?

AP Macroeconomics is rated as quite easy to self-study relative to other AP classes.

N.B. A survey of AP alumnae asked for a rating out of 10 for how easy each class is to self study, with 1 = easiest to self study, 10 = hardest to self study. The average rating for AP Macroeconomics was 4.8/10 (vs the average across all AP classes of 5.7/10).

Reviewing the course: 22 alumnae share their experiences

If you’re looking forward to taking AP Macro, it’s important to take both the positive and negative feedback in context. There are multiple factors that could contribute to a great or poor experience of the class, such as a particularly weak teacher and your personal preferences as a learner.

83% of AP Macroeconomics alumnae would recommend the class, which is lower than other classes.

AP Macro alumnae reviews focus on course enjoyment and difficulty, the practicalities of self-studying, and the importance of memorization and graphs for exam success.

1.      Many students found AP Macro easy and enjoyable

“This class has some tough concepts, but is easy and a lot of fun when you understand them 10/10 would recommend.” – Score: 5

“This class was ridiculously easy for me. It’s mostly just memorization and knowing how to use graphs.” – Score: 5

2.      However, a minority struggled with the class

“DO NOT take this course online. My online class taught me very few things that were relevant to the test. By the time I realized this it was too late and I had 24 hrs to review. Obviously it didn’t work out for me. Don’t underestimate this class.” – Score: 1

3.      Students found the exam required knowledge of the rubric, careful FRQ answers and lots of graphs

“On the FRQs your first answer tends to affect the following parts of the FRQ so make sure your first answer is correct” – Score: 4

“Make sure you know what all the graphs are – that’s 75% at least of the test. Like what the axes are labeled and what points on the graph mean and stuff. If you know the graphs well and use common sense, it should be pretty easy to get at least a 4. I barely knew anything (that’s how it felt at least) but by some good guessing and trying to use common sense I squeaked out a three.” – Score: 3

“Know the graphs and what shifts them and you should be fine. Check past FRQ scoring guidelines.” – Score: 5

“Make sure to know all the graphs going into the test! There’s tons of free study materials online (khan academy, acdc econ / jacob clifford), so take advantage of them. Practice past FRQs and understand the FRQ grading rubric.” – Score: 5

What does it take to succeed in the AP Macro exam?

Well, a good starting place is knowing what’s required of you – and what the experts say went well (or not!) this year:

What is AP Macroeconomics? Course Outline & Requirements

According to College Board:

The AP Microeconomics course introduces students to “the principles that apply to an economic system as a whole. The course places particular emphasis on the study of national income and price-level determination.”

There are no prerequisites for AP Macro, and students should be able to read college-level textbooks.

The course is often taken in tandem with AP Microeconomics.

Each course “corresponds to one semester of a typical introductory college course in economics”. Whereas AP Macro focuses on economic systems as whole, AP Micro “focuses on the principles of economics that apply to the functions of individual decision-makers”.

You will develop skills in:

• Developing economic models and principles
• Explaining and determining economic outcomes from specific situations
• Visualizing economic situations using graphs and visual representations

The exam consists of one 2 hour 10 minute exam, with 66.65% (70 minutes) given to 60 multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and 33.35% (60 minutes) given to three free-response questions.

For more details, see: College Board’s AP Macroeconomics course page.

Takeaways for success from the Head of AP

Every year as the exam results come out, College Board’s Head of AP, Trevor Packer, offers an update on what’s gone on in each subject this year, including what people found easy and hard.

In 2024, Trevor made the following comments about the AP Macroeconomics exam results:

• “Short FR questions: very difficult questions, which distinguish between 3s, 4s, & 5s. To get a 5, students generally earned most of these points; students earning 3s could start but not correctly answer all parts; students unable to begin these questions are typically receiving 1s/2s. https://t.co/YfajY6zHvw“

• “Long FR (commenting on the version taken by the most students): Q1 was very difficult, several points were designed to identify the most advanced students; so to get an AP 5, students generally needed to earn 7-8 of these 10 pts possible: https://t.co/YfajY6zHvw”

• “MC questions: Students are mastering basic economic concepts (Unit 1); 30% earned all available points for that unit; the most challenging was Financial Sector (Unit 4); 8% earned all such points.”

• “12 AP Macroeconomics students, out of the ~129,000 whose exams have been scored so far, have earned each of the 90 points possible across all of the free-response and MC questions. We’ll notify them and their schools in September.”

How to (self) study for AP Macro, with advice from alumnae

Let’s turn back to those alumnae reviews. Many students who’ve taken the course also have great advice on how to study – and self-study – for the exam, including what to practice and the best resources. We’ve collated a selection for you:

1. It’s important to practice past tests if you want to succeed

“Try to review previous FRQs and MC from prior exams, the questions are really similar from year to year.” – Score: 5

“Just take practice tests, there are only so many macro questions that CB can ask.” – Score: 5

“ACDC economics was a great resource for a review. Also, review FRQ’s from previous years for good practice as the questions are similar year to year.” – Score: 5

2. There are some great (online) resources available!

“Really loved the AP Macroeconomics Review book, it’s just 400 multiple choice questions w/answers and explanations. Watched the ACDC review livestream the night before the exam and that was really helpful. I also looked over my past tests to prep for the exam, so if your teacher gives those back to you, don’t throw them away.” – Score: 5

“ACDC Econ is a lifesaver for this class. I had a really good teacher but he explained stuff better and faster than my teacher ever could. Even if you have a bad teacher you could still do well if you watch his videos.” – Score: 5

“Watch the ACDC Macro videos on youtube and if you understand them, you should pass; it was the easiest AP exam I’ve taken” – Score: 5

“Know the graphs and how they shift. Use a review book+ ACDC economics YouTube channel and you should be ok.” – Score: 4

Best books and test prep resources for AP Macroeconomics

If you’re looking for the best books to study to help you ace AP Macroeconomics, we’ve crunched the numbers on the available textbooks. Check out the winners, according to reviews from successful AP students, in our overview of the best AP study guides for every subject.

Where next?

Find out how AP Macroeconomics compares to other classes: click here for our popular, definitive overview of all AP Classes ranked by difficulty.

Or compare how AP Macro compares to the other economics course with our deep-dive into AP Microeconomics.

If you’ve found our analysis helpful, have a question for our Data Analyst and AP expert, William – or just have some thoughts to share: please leave a comment below and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. Good luck!