AP Physics 1 Study Guide: Everything You Need to Ace the Exam
- 4 minutes
Over half of students fail AP Physics 1. BUT our AP Physics 1 study guide is why Nerd Notes students score 5s.
We don’t want to keep you waiting so click this link to get started with the Unit by Unit speed review.
Keep reading for a breakdown on how to use this AP Physics 1 study guide.
AP Physics 1 Speed Reviews
Don’t have hours to spare? Nerd Notes 10 minute speed review are what you need. But if you could only pick 3:
- Forces & Newton’s Laws — 10 Minute Review
- Work, Energy & Power — 10 Minute Review
- See all AP Physics 1 Speed Reviews
Why those 3 topics?
AP Physics 1 has 7 units — but they’re not weighted equally. Here’s what we would prioritize if in time crunch.
| Unit | Topic | Exam Weight |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Linear Kinematics | 12% |
| 2 | Linear and Circular Forces | 20% |
| 3 | Energy | 20% |
| 4 | Momentum | 12% |
| 5 | Rotation & Torque | 12% |
| 6 | Rotational Momentum & Energy | 6% |
| 7 | Simple Harmonic Motion | 6% |
| 8 | Fluids | 12% |
Units 2 and 3 alone make up nearly half the exam — start there.
AP Physics 1 Practice Exams
If you’re really short on time, drop everything and just practice questions from UBQ Quiz Lab. UBQ is a question bank with AP-style practice questions designed to mirror the real exam and perfect for last minute prep.
Specifically, complete the full-length MCQ mock exams and the full-length FRQ sets.
Here is a full-length FRQ practice set to try.
These are put together by experts who coach students to get a 5. Simply trying these questions will be enough to boost scores.
This article was written by Rita