8 Best NCLEX Review Courses For 2023: Top Picks & Review
BEST OVERALL
BEST BUDGET OPTION
BEST SELF-PACED COURSE
Just when you think you’re done with all the challenges you’ve faced as a nursing student, you still have to pass the NCLEX to become a licensed nurse.
To overcome this hurdle, you need to prepare hard for the test, and one of the tools that can help is to choose the best NCLEX review course. Which one should you pick considering that there are several options known for providing the best resources for NCLEX RN and PN?
This is where a bit of research can go a long way.
What are some of the best NCLEX review courses available to you?
1. BoardVitals NCLEX
Best Overall
Price: $ (low-priced)
The first thing you will find spectacular about BoardVitals NCLEX is the way they treat their users, from gathering their feedback to providing them an opportunity to partake in their social responsibility as an ed-tech company.
The first thing you will find spectacular about BoardVitals NCLEX is the way they treat their users, from gathering their feedback to providing them an opportunity to partake in their social responsibility as an ed-tech company.
BoardVitals NCLEX takes pride as a company free from any commercial influence and is dedicated only to giving the best quality NCLEX prep experience. Aside from topnotch course features, they also provide unique offers, such as the group discount program and #GiveVax program (1) wherein every purchase means a vaccine donation to children who need it the most.
Moreover, we consider BoardVitals as our best NCLEX prep course for its affordable pricing options. Some of the highly satisfactory features are usually found in mid-range to expensive NCLEX prep courses. These include computer-adaptive testing (CAT) platform, NCLEX exam blueprint, 100% pass guarantee, Ask a Clinician, custom options for practice tests, and progress tracking.
Most of these are also available in two out of the three plans they offer. The difference between their plans is primarily on the access length and pricing.
Also, keep in mind that all these features are offered at such affordable prices. Who would have thought that it’s possible to gain access to these prime features without breaking the bank? That’s what BoardVitals is good at – making you feel at ease that you’re getting the best quality test prep without making you shell out a huge amount of money.
No wonder BoardVitals NCLEX is attaining prominence as one of the best NCLEX review prep courses.
We find online and live instructions as vital when preparing for NCLEX because there are tons of difficult concepts that need constant clarifications and answers from a real-time nursing educator. However, given the pricing options, it’s understandable that BoardVitals excluded these features because it’s expensive to hire nursing educators.
Final Verdict:
When it comes to providing the best resources for NCLEX-RN, BoardVitals NCLEX fit the bill with a few exclusions. It offers the combined advantage of quality content and affordability. Despite being on the low-priced level, BoardVitals still dares to make a difference in terms of quality services and materials. They make topnotch features achievable for those who are on a budget.
2. NCLEX Mastery
Best Budget Option
Price: $ (low-priced)
NCLEX Mastery is significantly focused on practice questions because it’s merely a mobile app. In other words, it does not offer course models with several inclusions and lengthy lectures. Instead, it offers straightforward review materials, such as practice questions, tests, definitions, and mnemonics.
It has a promising result of making you pass the NCLEX after your first try. Due to that, you might be curious as to what NCLEX Mastery has that it promises you to pass the first time.
NCLEX Mastery has over 2,000 exam-like practice questions, in-depth explanations, and test-taking strategies. This makes it one of the best NCLEX app options for reviewers. When you access the app, you will also find 26 quiz questions and the basic progress metrics.
There are three subscription options available that are based on the access length. There’s the 1-month-access for as low as around $30, 3-month-access for around $50, and 12-month-access for around $90.
Moreover, NCLEX Mastery focuses on the “must-know” terminologies and mnemonics, which is great as they are effective in making you remember different concepts easily.
Final Verdict:
The prices in NCLEX Mastery are very low, which is why a lot of nursing students are attracted to it. Plus, it’s very convenient to use and is accessible anywhere and anytime. However, we recommend it as supplemental material and not your only source when reviewing.
3. UWorld NCLEX
Best Self-Paced Course
Price: $ (low-priced)
If you’re a visual learner who is fond of self-paced learning, then UWorld NCLEX is the best NCLEX prep course for you. The content is very rich and uses innovative technology approaches to learning. The software used also mimics the NCLEX format, which provides you an edge in terms of getting used to the exam.
What we also enjoy about this NCLEX prep course is the rigid approach to giving explanations for each and every answer whether correct or not. They incorporated the use of rationales and diagrams in order to come up with the most thorough explanations.
Furthermore, UWorld NCLEX uses a unique system for progress tracking as it compares your progress with your peers. This particular feature brings awareness to your strengths and weaknesses, thereby making you focus on the latter for improvement.
The course options offered are very straightforward. The courses vary according to the access length that ranges from 30-day-access to 180-day-access, which is considered as the most expensive tier. The features of each of these courses are similar but with slight differences in the inclusion of self-assessment tests.
Finally, the institutional pricing makes it ideal for schools with students who want to prep together for the NCLEX. Sometimes called ‘bulk pricing,’ it is a great remedy for those who are looking for amazing NCLEX deals.
Final Verdict:
I would say that UWorld is the best NCLEX review course for aspiring nurses who have a fantastic study routine because their courses are self-paced. If you happen to be someone who needs video lectures and constant monitoring from a nurse educator, then UWorld is not for you.
4. Crush NCLEX
Best Material Quality
Price: $ (low-priced)
Another NCLEX prep platform that’s gaining prominence recently is the Crush NCLEX. While it’s new in the ed-tech industry, it has since attracted a lot of nursing students who aim to pass their NCLEX. The course models and affordability make it one of the fast-growing and best online reviews for NCLEX RN.
The overall setup is quite similar to BoardVitals NCLEX, although there are significant differences. Crush NCLEX, for example, has a 99% pass guarantee which is a point inferior to BoardVitals’ 100% pass guarantee.
Like BoardVitals, Crush NCLEX boasts of simulated NCLEX software with real exam interface, performance review, detailed explanations for every answer, user-friendly mobile app, and an option to get help from nursing educators. Plus, it offers more than 2,000 practice questions with corresponding rationales and explanations for both correct and incorrect answers. Through this method, Crush NCLEX aims to not only test your knowledge but also teach you, hence the detailed explanations.
We also find the 100 hours of high-quality videos as a unique feature to the course models since not all NCLEX prep platforms offer such. Crush NCLEX also offers four-course options whose main difference is the course access length. It gives you a myriad of options, depending on your needs. You can choose from one month, three months, six months, and the lifetime plan that gives you access for 10 years.
Lastly, aside from these amazing features is the free NCLEX prep guide and email support, which we consider as a great consideration especially for a test prep platform that doesn’t have online and live instructions. Nursing students should have continual access to nursing educators, especially if they’re confused with any concepts. The free NCLEX prep guide is a great addition, too.
Final Verdict:
The high-quality materials in the form of question bank and video reviews make Crush NCLEX a must-try. It also generally has positive reviews. The materials are also fantastic supplemental material for those who are studying on their own.
5. Brilliant Nurse NCLEX
Best Student Support
Price: $$ (mid-range)
The first thing we enjoy about Brilliant Nurse NCLEX is its adaptive learning technology that adapts to your learning pace. As you go through the software, it adjusts to your weaknesses automatically, to help you save time and get a higher chance of passing on your first try of the NCLEX exam.
Moreover, Brilliant Nurse NCLEX features a straightforward pass guarantee. If you don’t pass, then your subscription will continue free of charge. To us, this makes a huge difference.
It also has a substantial question bank that is comprised of thousands of practice questions. On top of this, it also has a mobile app that gives you convenience while you study. Brilliant Nurse NCLEX understands the needs of nursing students, especially when it comes to time constraints. Therefore, being in an NCLEX prep course with a user-friendly mobile app is a great deal.
While those features are topnotch, we would also want to give you a heads-up that Brilliant Nurse NCLEX’s website (2) is confusing. It gives you an overview of why they are the best resource for NCLEX RN, but there are no sufficient details on what features they offer.
Basically, if you’re curious about what they offer and what plans they have, the main option you will most likely click is the “Enroll” button which leads you immediately to the cart to pay a whopping price of almost $300.
Nonetheless, the materials provided and the constant access to the student support makes the service worthwhile to use.
Final Verdict:
We recommend Brilliant Nurse NCLEX for its practice questions and mobile app. If you’re looking for a test prep that combines comprehensiveness and affordability, however, check out other NCLEX review course.
6. D&D Nursing Educators NCLEX
Best Personalized Study
Price: $$ (mid-range)
In D&D Nursing Educators, your NCLEX prep review will be addressed differently. Through their concise program, you would prep for your NCLEX exam in the most efficient way possible. D&D focuses on critical information than the whole content, which is usually time-consuming. This is a great technique because, by cutting out unnecessary information, you will be able to learn more in a short period of time.
The other aspect that we love about D&D Nursing Educators is the instructor-driven program, wherein you will be provided with your own study plan and individual assessment.
For us, this is a crucial aspect of any NCLEX prep platform because students need to gauge their standing based on their strengths and weaknesses. In this program, you will have an option to turn your weak points into your strengths through the help of an instructor and a customized study plan. However, personal coaching with a custom study plan requires an additional fee which isn’t that hefty.
More so, D&D prides itself on its comprehensive learning course. It has 3,500 practice questions, over 160 video clips, and a simplified coursebook. On top of these, you can also get access to nursing educators via phone or email.
If you decide to enroll in D&D Nursing Educators, there are two kinds of course delivery available – Live In-Class Review and Online instruction, which they call as Virtual Learning Environment (3). The prices are also affordable, but the additional fees when you need to add more features make D&D on a mid-range level in terms of pricing.
Final Verdict:
For its pricing, it’s worth it, although not as worth-spending as BoardVitals NCLEX which has a similar pricing range to D&D Nursing Educators. Also, they don’t have any mobile app, which could have been a huge factor for most nursing students these days.
Nevertheless, D&D is the perfect option for those who want a more personalized study plan. D&D gives you the freedom to purchase regular packages, then add other features as you wish for a fee.
7. Hurst Review NCLEX
Best Intensive Course
Price: $$ (mid-range)
Hurst Review is named after its founder Marlene Hurst who is known as a topnotch nursing practitioner. She has a history of making an entire local community college program pass the NCLEX while serving as a nurse instructor. This means her test prep services can definitely help you pass the NCLEX.
More so, we would say that Hurst Review NCLEX has the best intensive course because of how systematic the learning process is. It involves three steps namely, mastery of the ‘must-know’ content, incorporation of specific testing skills, and use of NCLEX-style practice exams.
The course options are also quite similar to Kaplan NCLEX because of the availability of online or live instruction. There’s also an option to purchase the question bank if you find it appropriate as your supplemental material on top of your other main materials for NCLEX prep.
In general, Hurst Review NCLEX focuses on the development of critical thinking skills by giving you practice materials that go beyond teaching you test-taking strategies. The concepts are explained in the most profound manner with matching intricate illustrations.
It lacks a mobile app, however, which would have made it at par with other test prep providers of the same price range that offers an app.
Most of all, we love Hurst Review NCLEX’s First Attempt Success (4), which aims to make you pass on your first try. Otherwise, you will be subject to a remediation class for free. Take note, however, that they don’t offer a refund guarantee. Suffice to say, the remediation class should be able to make it up to you in case you don’t pass.
Final Verdict:
I would still recommend Hurst Review NCLEX for aspiring nurses due to its material quality and intensive approach to NCLEX prep. However, the few significant inadequacies in Hurst Review NCLEX should also be taken into consideration.
8. Kaplan NCLEX
Best Variety
Price: $$$ (expensive)
Listing Kaplan NCLEX as one of our best NCLEX prep courses is no longer a surprise. With over 80 years of service in the ed-tech industry, Kaplan is surely one of the most reliable test prep providers for NCLEX.
The notable features of Kaplan NCLEX are its decision tree method, content review guide, mobile app, and 500+ page e-book. Plus, the massive question bank that has test-like questions will make you ready for the actual exam. Basically, Kaplan NCLEX gives you your money’s worth.
The pricing options may be more expensive than other NCLEX prep courses, but it’s all worth it because of the package inclusions. Not to mention, it has three-course options that vary based on your needs. You can go self-paced if you’re comfortable doing all the prep work by yourself. This course runs for six months, hence called self-paced because you can prep using their on-demand videos.
Kaplan NCLEX also offers in-person and live online instructions that give you access to Kaplan’s prime nursing educators. This is the best part because if you’re someone who needs constant help as you navigate the course, you’ll have someone to talk to and that someone is an expert in the nursing field. This gives you an edge.
Aside from those regular NCLEX courses, other course options found in Kaplan is under the NCLEX Practice Category (5), which offers you four kinds of flexible options. If you need the majority of the features like the 24/7 access to live and/or recorded videos, then the Practice Pack is the most ideal choice for you. If you need the question bank and computer-adaptive tests (CAT) only, then there’s a package for you that includes those two. On the other hand, if you need only either the question bank or CAT, then there’s a corresponding course option for this too.
In other words, Kaplan NCLEX gives you flexibility. The options are wide enough to cover your specific needs. In fact, if you’re already enrolled in other test prep service but you need Kaplan’s CAT or question bank, then you can purchase it separately. But if you opt for any of their regular course options, then you are also subject to their pass guarantee that either gives you your money back or an additional three-month-enrollment if you don’t pass.
Final Verdict:
If you have an ample budget, then I would say you should go for Kaplan NCLEX’s prep course. The quality features make the pricing reasonable enough, especially because they offer in-person and live-online instructions.
In Summary
There you have it, our list of the best NCLEX prep courses for 2020. In case you’re wondering, the bases of our selection are the following:
- Price range
- Course features
- Amount of practice questions
- Course delivery
- Convenience
- Variety
Honestly, it is difficult to rank which NCLEX review course is the best because each one has its strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, we made a list that shows which NCLEX prep platform is the best in a particular aspect.
In terms of overall aspects, we give BoardVitals NCLEX our vote. Indeed, the quality content material along with affordability and community support makes it the best NCLEX review platform.
References
- https://www.boardvitals.com/givevax
- https://brilliantnurse.com/
- https://www.ddnclexreview.com/online
- https://www.hurstreview.com/about/hurst-guarantee
- https://www.kaptest.com/nclex/practice/nclex-practice
