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Didn't get the ASVAB score you needed? Here's what happens next

Missing your branch's line isn't the end. The retest rules, which score counts afterward, and how to use the month before your next attempt.

4 min read

On this page
  1. Missing the line isn't failing
  2. When you can take the ASVAB again
  3. Which score counts after a retest?
  4. If you're close: the Army's prep course
  5. How to use the month before your retest
  6. Start with a baseline
  7. Quick answers
  8. Sources

Short answer: you can't fail the ASVAB, but you can miss your branch's minimum AFQT. You can retest one calendar month after your first test, one calendar month after that, and then every six months. In the Army, your most recent score counts, not your highest, so retest when you're ready, not just when you're allowed.

Missing the line isn't failing

The ASVAB has no passing grade. It gives you an AFQT percentile from 1 to 99, and each branch sets the lowest score it will accept. With a high school diploma that's 31 for the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force, 32 for the Coast Guard and 36 for the Space Force. So a 33 misses the Space Force's line and clears the Army's.

That makes the first question "which line did I miss, and by how much?" A few points short is a month of focused practice. Twenty points short is a longer plan, and maybe a conversation with recruiters from more than one branch. To see where your score sits on the national scale, read what's a good ASVAB score.

When you can take the ASVAB again

The retest rules are the same whether your first ASVAB was at a MEPS, a Military Entrance Test site or your high school:

  1. First retest: one calendar month after your first test.
  2. Second retest: one calendar month after the first retest.
  3. Every retest after that: six calendar months after the one before.

A calendar month means the same date the next month: in the official example, a retest on March 20 allows the next one on or after April 20. Enter your own date to see your earliest options.

That test was your

Example: a first test on March 20, 2026.

  1. Your first test
  2. 1 calendar month
  3. Earliest first retest
  4. 1 calendar month
  5. Earliest second retest
  6. 6 calendar months
  7. Earliest third retest
  8. Two years after the test
  9. This test’s scores expire
Each date is the earliest the rules allow, assuming every retest happens on its earliest day. Each wait counts from your previous test, and your recruiter confirms the exact date.

Your scores stay valid for enlistment for two years from the test date, so there's no rush to retest the day you're allowed.

Which score counts after a retest?

Your newest one. The Army says it plainly: your most recent score, not your highest, is the one used. A rushed retest that goes worse can cost you a score that qualified, so treat every attempt as the one that sticks.

Two more rules are worth knowing before you book a retest:

  • Big jumps get double-checked. If a retest raises your AFQT by 20 points or more within six months, you'll take a confirmation test to verify it. There's no one-month wait for that test.
  • Cheating resets the clock. A test thrown out for cheating means a six-month wait before you can retest, and giving or receiving real test questions carries severe penalties.

The at-home PiCAT doesn't give you a way around the wait: it's only for people who have never taken the ASVAB, and you can take it once.

If you're close: the Army's prep course

The Army runs a Future Soldier Preparatory Course for applicants who are close to the line. If your AFQT is at least 21, its academic track gives you up to 90 days of classes on the subjects the ASVAB covers, with chances to retake the test. If you scored between 31 and 49, a 30-day option gives you one chance to raise your score, which can open more jobs. Ask an Army recruiter whether you qualify.

How to use the month before your retest

A month is enough to move an AFQT if you spend it on the right four subtests. The AFQT counts only Arithmetic Reasoning, Mathematics Knowledge, Word Knowledge and Paragraph Comprehension, and the two verbal subtests count twice.

  1. Find out where the points went. Ask your recruiter for your score in each subtest. If you can't get them, take a timed practice test before anything else.
  2. Do words every day. Ten to fifteen minutes of vocabulary and word roots, because verbal counts double.
  3. Rebuild the math methods, not the answers. Percents, ratios, rates and basic algebra cover most of Arithmetic Reasoning and Mathematics Knowledge.
  4. Practice at test pace. On the computer test you get 55 minutes for 15 Arithmetic Reasoning questions but only 9 minutes for 15 Word Knowledge questions.
  5. Take a full timed test each week, then spend as long reviewing your misses as you spent taking it.

The day-by-day version, for 2 to 8 weeks, is in how to study for the ASVAB.

Start with a baseline

Before planning anything, see where you stand today. The free practice test samples all 10 subtests, scores you as you go and ends with a rough AFQT estimate against every branch's line.

Take the free 30-question test

Quick answers

How many times can you take the ASVAB?

The retest policy sets waits, not a limit: one calendar month before your first retest, another month before your second, then six months between each retest after that.

Can a retest lower your score?

Yes. The Army uses your most recent score, not your highest, so a worse retest replaces a better score.

Can you retest sooner than a month?

Not for a standard retest. The one test you can take right away is a confirmation test, which you'll be asked to take if a retest raises your AFQT by 20 points or more within six months.

Do ASVAB scores from high school count?

Yes, for up to two years from the test date, as long as they can be verified as yours. The retest rules are the same for school and enlistment tests.

Sources