Best AI Bar Exam Prep Tools (2026): 6 Compared for NextGen and the UBE

Bar prep companies have started selling AI, but not all of them, and not in the same way. Kaplan names an AI tutor and an AI essay grader. BarMax sells a separate AI subscription called Solomon. Themis + UWorld says its course is “backed by the latest AI” without naming an AI feature on its course pages, and BARBRI has published an article arguing that “an algorithm cannot replace” a structured course. Most of the “best AI bar prep” pages we read were written by prep companies or AI vendors about their own products.

The bigger issue is that the bar exam is now two different exams. Ten jurisdictions moved to the NextGen Uniform Bar Examination in July 2026, while most of the country stays on the legacy UBE until its final sitting in February 2028. A course built for one is not automatically ready for the other. This guide compares six bar prep products against the official NCBE study aids, on what the AI actually does, which exam each one covers, what it cost on 28 October 2026, and what the pass guarantees really say.

How we put this together. We have not used these tools ourselves; this is a research-based comparison. Every price, rating and feature below comes from the vendor’s own website, the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) website, or the app’s US App Store and Google Play listing, read on 28 October 2026, and each source is linked. Kaplan’s site blocked automated reading, so we read it in a normal browser. AccessLex Institute’s own site showed us a security block that we did not try to get around, so Helix facts come from Helix’s own course and enrolment pages. All prices were shown in US dollars. Pass rates are the vendors’ own claims, and we quote the fine print. This page is about exam preparation, not legal advice, and none of these companies paid to appear on it.

The bar exam is two exams until 2028

NCBE develops the parts of the legacy UBE (the MBE, MEE and MPT) and the NextGen UBE. Its pages are the reference point for everything else here.

Who sits the NextGen UBE, and when

According to NCBE’s NextGen UBE page, the first jurisdictions to give the new exam in July 2026 were Connecticut, Guam, Idaho, Maryland, Missouri, the Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon, Palau, the Virgin Islands and Washington. Twelve more follow in July 2027 (Arizona, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont and Wyoming), then Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois and Montana in February 2028. The largest group, 25 jurisdictions including California, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas, switches in July 2028. Mississippi’s date was still to be decided, and NCBE’s table showed Arkansas, Louisiana, Nevada and Puerto Rico as not having adopted it.

NCBE’s study aids page puts the practical point plainly: for February 2027, only those first ten jurisdictions give the NextGen UBE, and “All other jurisdictions will be administering the legacy bar exam.” NCBE describes the legacy UBE as “administered through February 2028.” Scheduled NextGen dates are 23 to 24 February 2027, 27 to 28 July 2027 and 22 to 23 February 2028.

What the NextGen UBE looks like

NCBE’s About the NextGen UBE page says it is “administered over one and a half days, with two three-hour sessions on day one and one three-hour session on day two”, and that it is “taken on examinees’ own laptops at in-person, proctored testing locations.” The foundational subjects are business associations, civil procedure, constitutional law, contract law, criminal law, evidence, real property and torts. Until February 2028, family law and trusts and estates appear in a performance task with the legal resources provided.

The sample questions page breaks down the time. “Approximately 40% of the exam time” goes on standalone multiple-choice questions, in two formats: pick one of four options, or pick two of six. “Just over a quarter” goes on integrated question sets, which build several multiple-choice, short-answer and medium-answer questions on one fact pattern. “Approximately a third” goes on performance tasks, either a standard task with a client file and a library, or a legal research task. Scores come as one number on a scale from 500 to 750, and each jurisdiction sets its own passing score.

What happened in Washington

The first NextGen sitting did not go smoothly everywhere. NCBE’s Washington make-up exam page, last updated 25 September 2026, refers to “the cancellation of testing for affected applicants” in July and to “technology failures experienced during the July 2026 administration” at the Yakima Convention Center. A make-up exam was held on 1 to 2 September 2026 in Tacoma, where 171 examinees sat, and NCBE says those scores are official, portable NextGen UBE scores. NCBE has since sent jurisdictions expanded network-readiness requirements.

For prep, the lesson is that the NextGen UBE is a software exam on your own laptop. NCBE offers a free exam software preview, and its paid study aids run on the same platform as the real exam. Whatever course you buy, practise on that interface before test day.

What NCBE itself sells

We found no AI product from NCBE, but it calls itself “The only official source of NextGen UBE study materials”, and every course below licenses some NCBE questions. Its NextGen study aids include a Complete Bundle for $325, with Practice Sets 1 to 6 and three extra question banks. Each practice set holds “40 stand-alone multiple-choice questions, 2 integrated question sets, and 1 full performance task”, and three sets together match the 9-hour exam. Simulated Exam 1 and 2 cost $110, and the NextGen Sourcebooks cost $45 each, though NCBE notes that many law libraries give free access through West Academic. The page does not say how long access lasts: on 28 October 2026 it read “Access available for [X months] per purchase”, with the placeholder left in.

For the legacy exam, the legacy study aids page listed the MBE Complete Practice Exam at $100, the MBE Complete Bundle of 500 questions at $200, past MEE and MPT bundles at $50 each, and the most recent MEE at $15 and MPT at $20.

AI bar exam prep tools compared

Prices read on 28 October 2026 as listed, usually against a higher crossed-out price. Kaplan’s banner said its discount ended on 30 October, Themis described its prices as limited-time, and BARBRI showed sale prices, so check again before you pay.

How we chose and ordered these

We started from the products that appear most in bar prep searches and app store results, and kept those that sell a full course or a serious practice tool with a published price. We ordered them by how much named AI help you get, whether the vendor explains what that AI does, whether the product covers the NextGen UBE with NCBE-licensed material, and how clear the guarantee is. Three of the six name no AI feature at all. They stay in because they set the standard the AI products should be measured against, and because one of them may be the better buy for your exam. Small apps with a handful of ratings, and products whose AI pricing we could not find, are listed under what we left out.

1. Kaplan Bar Review: an AI tutor and instant essay grading

Kaplan Bar Review says the most about AI of any course here. Its bar review page lists a “Kaplan-trained AI tutor that gives you immediate, precise feedback based on your needs”, and “Unlimited writing assignment grading from our in-house bar exam experts or AI grading with instant feedback”. Kaplan’s AI study tools page describes a “24/7 AI tutor” that “Answers questions and guides you through challenging topics”, and an essay grader that “Instantly evaluates your essay against high-scoring models for legal analysis, issue spotting, rule application, and structure”. Kaplan says its AI tools “are carefully vetted by our bar experts”, and that instant essay grading is included with the course “or can be purchased separately”.

For the new exam, Kaplan’s NextGen course page says its “AI-powered tools help you rapidly improve your performance via short-answer questions, drafting exercises, and performance tasks”. The NextGen course includes more than 3,000 questions, three full-length practice exams plus eight exam segments, and a digital textbook only. One oddity: the NextGen page’s own bullet list describes “3,000+ exam-like MBE questions, plus all released NCBE® questions”, using the legacy exam’s name, while the main page describes the same 3,000+ as part of the NextGen course. Ask Kaplan which NCBE NextGen material is included before you buy.

On 28 October 2026 the Complete course cost $1,549 (listed against $1,999) and Ultimate cost $2,249 (against $2,999), with Ultimate adding a dedicated Attorney Coach and three hours of private tutoring. A banner said the discount of “up to $750” would end on 30 October. Kaplan lists up to six months of course access.

Read the pass rate carefully. The headline says “92% of first-time Kaplan bar prep students who do 75% of the assigned practice pass the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE®) the first time.” Further down the same page, the line becomes “92% of our students passed the UBE on their first attempt”, without the 75% condition. The footnote keeps the condition, so the figure covers only students who did three-quarters of the practice, and only the legacy UBE.

The Free Repeat Guarantee is also narrower than the banner. You must be a first-time bar exam taker, hold “a JD from an ABA approved law school”, attend 90% of lectures, complete all assigned questions, simulated exams, quizzes and essays, and “Take the next scheduled bar exam immediately after completing our course”. It is “not open to students who have already taken a bar exam in any state”, you can use it once, and you must claim it by phone within 30 days of your results with your official score report, “all course materials and the Kaplan Bar Review student ID card”. Foreign-trained lawyers and repeat takers are outside it.

The Kaplan Bar Review iPhone app, listed under the seller DF Institute, Inc., is a companion for enrolled students; it had no ratings yet and was updated on 9 October 2026.

Choose it if you want AI feedback on essays and NextGen written tasks built into a full course. Skip it if you are a repeat taker or foreign-trained and the guarantee matters to you.

2. Themis + UWorld: NCBE NextGen sets, vague about AI

Themis Bar Review is now sold as Themis + UWorld, and every course comes with the UWorld question bank. Its NextGen course page says “All available NCBE®-licensed NextGen integrated question sets, multiple-choice questions and performance tasks are included”, alongside its own Skills Snapshots, performance task workshops and an interface “designed to mirror the actual exam experience”. UWorld’s NextGen page adds more than 2,000 practice questions, an adaptive planner and spaced-repetition flashcards.

On AI, the course pages are general. They say Themis + UWorld “harnesses the power of the latest AI and technological advances” and that the course uses “proprietary technology backed by the latest AI”, but they do not name an AI tutor or grader. UWorld did announce one: a UWorld blog post dated 9 June 2025 introduced “UGrader”, described as “the new AI essay grading tool from Themis + UWorld”, aimed at MEE and MPT essays. The word UGrader did not appear on the Themis NextGen page, the Themis homepage or UWorld’s legal homepage on 28 October 2026, so confirm with Themis that it is part of your course and whether it grades NextGen tasks. The testimonials in that post are credited to a Reddit username and an unnamed Quora review.

NextGen prices for 2027 were $1,895 if you pay in full now or $2,095 with $25 down, both against $2,995, and 2028 and 2029 courses were $1,895 with $25 down. Access lasts four months, March to July or November to February. Themis says it will credit “up to $1,000” of a deposit paid to another full-service course.

The enrollment policies set the limits. “No refunds will be issued after the availability of online bar review course content”, and that includes access to the UWorld question bank. The Pass Guarantee is a free repeat for a first-time Themis student, but “You are entitled to ONE free repeat throughout your enrollment with Themis. Not one per jurisdiction.” New textbooks for the repeat cost $295 plus $40 shipping. Themis also says it is “the only national bar review provider that publishes its pass rates in every jurisdiction”; BarMax makes a similar claim, below.

The UWorld Legal iPhone app, which Themis students use, had 2.1 stars from 82 ratings and was updated on 19 October 2026. The Android app had 4.0 stars from 19 reviews.

Choose it if you sit the NextGen UBE and want as much licensed NCBE NextGen material as possible inside a course. Skip it if AI essay feedback is the reason you are buying.

3. BarMax with Solomon: AI as a paid add-on

BarMax, from TestMax, sells a UBE course and a separate AI called Solomon. BarMax describes it as “BarMax’s AI study companion”, built on “16 years of BarMax teaching”, and says “Solomon isn’t a chatbot. It’s BarMax instruction”. BarMax lists four uses: working through MBE answers, tightening rule statements, spotting “missing issues in essays”, and checking your reasoning.

Solomon is not included for long. BarMax’s FAQ says a full UBE or California course “comes with 2 weeks of complementary Solomon access [sic]. After that, Solomon is available as a separate subscription.” The Solomon plans page listed Solomon Core at $99 a month or $959 a year, and Solomon Plus+, for heavier use, at $199 a month or $1,920 a year. Paying for Core at the monthly price for four months would add $396.

The UBE course cost $1,895, with lifetime access available for $600 more. BarMax says it includes “Over 1,950 actual MBE questions licensed directly from the NCBE” plus real essays and performance tests, and writing feedback “from former bar exam graders”. The whole course works offline in the mobile apps. The catch for some readers is the exam: BarMax’s course menu lists California, UBE, MBE, MPRE, the Baby Bar, the California Attorneys’ Exam and an LL.M. course, but no NextGen course, even though its UBE page explains the NextGen transition. If you sit in a NextGen jurisdiction, this is the wrong course today.

The pass guarantee is a refund, which is unusual, but it has conditions. You must complete the full course, share your results within two weeks, and provide proof of purchase “and enrollment in a comparable course of equal or greater value”. The refund excludes “NCBE licensing fees” and, for App Store purchases, Apple’s 30% share, and it applies only to the California and UBE Lifetime courses. BarMax also says it publishes pass rates by state, “which no major competitor does”, while Themis claims the same. Its iPhone listing quotes first-time ABA pass rates of 79% in California and 82% in New York without saying which exam sitting they come from.

The BarMax iPhone app had 4.8 stars from 3,713 ratings and was updated on 20 July 2026. The Android app had 4.7 stars from 603 reviews but had not been updated since 13 December 2024.

Choose it if you sit the legacy UBE or California, want licensed NCBE questions at a lower price, and will pay monthly for an AI tutor. Skip it if you sit the NextGen UBE.

4. BARBRI Bar Review: human feedback, NCBE NextGen sets

BARBRI is the counterpoint. Its bar review, NextGen and pricing pages do not mention AI, and in a March 2026 article, “Do I Still Need a Bar Prep Course in the Age of AI?”, BARBRI argues that “an algorithm cannot replace the reliability of a proven, structured program” and that it believes in “the perfect union of technology and human expertise”. What BARBRI does sell is an “Adaptive Study Plan” that adjusts to your performance, a pass predictor, and “Expert, personalized feedback on NextGen written assignments, or unlimited essay feedback for legacy exams”.

For NextGen, the NextGen course page says “Three NextGen NCBE-licensed question sets are integrated into the course”, and that you can “Experience one full NCBE question set on the official exam platform”. BARBRI also cites a self-reported survey of its July 2026 NextGen students in which 84% said its performance tasks “closely mirrored the actual exam”.

The 2027 pricing page showed Premium at $2,199 and Elite at $3,199, against original prices of $2,999 and $3,999. Both include “1,000+ NCBE-licensed MBE questions, or NextGen question sets” and at least four months of access. Elite adds BARBRI’s supplements: the AdaptiBar MCQ Simulator, CriticalPass flashcards, Quimbee SideBar videos and the AdaptiBar Writing Guide, which the page labels “UBE; NextGen coming”.

The BARBRI guarantee gives Premium and Elite students “one free Premium retake for the same jurisdiction the next time the course is offered”. Supplements such as AdaptiBar and CriticalPass are excluded, and new hard-copy books need a $250 refundable deposit plus shipping.

Watch the apps. The current BARBRI iPhone app had 4.6 stars from 2,961 ratings and was updated on 18 September 2026, and the Android app 4.7 stars from 350 reviews. An older “BARBRI Study Plan” iPhone app was still listed with 1.2 stars from 155 ratings and no update since 7 September 2022. Download the newer one.

Choose it if you want human graders and a structured schedule, and AI is not a priority. Skip it if you want an AI tutor you can question at any hour.

5. Helix Bar Review: the low-cost NextGen course, no AI

Helix Bar Review comes from AccessLex Institute, which Helix describes as “the organization selected by the NCBE to co-develop official practice materials for the NextGen Uniform Bar Exam”. Helix’s pages make no AI claim. Its NextGen course page describes a platform that “sets daily study goals and adapts to your performance”, NCBE-licensed questions in “all NextGen UBE question types”, and “personalized feedback on eight writing assignments from licensed attorney graders”.

Each Helix NextGen course for February 2027, July 2027 and February 2028 cost $1,199 on 28 October 2026, as did Helix UBE for February 2027, with full access five months before the exam. Helix offers up to $275 off if you switch from another course with a deposit. Refunds are strict: before access opens you get “a full refund, minus a $150 cancellation fee”, and “No refunds will be issued after the online course opens.” We found no pass guarantee on the pages we could read, and Helix does not sell outside the US and its territories. The Helix iPhone app had 4.9 stars from 35 ratings and was updated on 25 August 2026.

Choose it if you sit the NextGen UBE, want a full course for the least money, and are happy with eight attorney-graded assignments instead of AI feedback. Skip it if you want a guarantee.

6. AdaptiBar: adaptive multiple choice, not AI

AdaptiBar is a multiple-choice simulator that BARBRI sells as a supplement; the site’s cookie notice calls it one of BARBRI’s websites. It does not use the word AI; it describes “patented, adaptive technology, licensed NCBE questions, and diagnostic tools”, with an algorithm that “adjusts in real time” to your weak areas and timing analysis. Its homepage says “NextGen is now live! AdaptiBar MCQ Simulator is updated to support the NextGen UBE”.

The MCQ Simulator cost $495 for either the MBE or the NextGen UBE on 28 October 2026, and a Writing Guide for the UBE or California cost $295. Remember that multiple choice is only about 40% of NextGen exam time, so AdaptiBar is a supplement, not a course. The AdaptiBar iPhone app had 4.9 stars from 2,167 ratings and was updated on 11 September 2026.

Choose it if multiple choice is your weak spot and you want licensed NCBE questions with adaptive drilling. Skip it if you need help with essays or performance tasks.

What we left out, and why

Quimbee‘s bar review page now leads to Quimbee SideBar Videos, a video supplement with a “Sign in with BARBRI” button, so it is not a full course and makes no AI claim. JD Advising sells NextGen courses and tutoring but made no AI claim on its homepage, and has published a post titled “Why Students Should Not Use AI to Grade MEEs”. Jenova‘s “Bar Exam Tutor” is a general AI agent platform with a free plan and paid tiers whose prices we did not find on its pages, so we could not compare it. Several small apps, including BarPrep, Goat Bar Prep and Bargle, had fewer than 25 ratings each in the US App Store.

How to choose an AI bar exam prep tool

Match the course to your exam first

Look up your jurisdiction and exam date on NCBE’s adoption table. If you sit the NextGen UBE, you need integrated question sets, performance tasks and practice on NCBE’s exam software, and BarMax’s current course does not cover it. If you sit the legacy UBE before 2028, MBE, MEE and MPT practice still matters, and all six products here still sell legacy prep.

Decide what you want the AI to do

Kaplan and BarMax are the two products that name an AI tutor you can question, and Kaplan’s AI also grades essays and NextGen written tasks. Themis says it uses AI but describes no AI feature on its course pages. BARBRI and Helix use human graders, which are slower but come from people who know how bar answers are marked. AdaptiBar’s adaptive engine is not called AI at all. If essay feedback is your main need, compare Kaplan’s unlimited AI grading with Helix’s eight attorney-graded assignments and BarMax’s ten free writing critiques.

Count the full cost

On 28 October 2026 a full course cost $1,199 at Helix, $1,549 at Kaplan, $1,895 at Themis and BarMax, and $2,199 at BARBRI. BarMax’s AI adds $99 a month after the first two weeks. NCBE’s own NextGen bundle at $325 is worth adding to any course, because it is the only practice built by the exam writer on the real platform.

Read the guarantee before you count on it

Most guarantees here are a free repeat of the course, not money back, and they carry conditions. Kaplan’s needs a first attempt and an ABA JD. Themis gives one repeat in total. BarMax refunds only Lifetime courses and asks for proof that you enrolled in a comparable course. We found none for Helix or AdaptiBar. If you are a repeat taker or foreign-trained, check eligibility in writing before you pay.

Use general chatbots carefully

A general AI chatbot can explain a rule or critique the structure of an essay, but it can state a rule wrongly with confidence, and it has no access to NCBE’s grading. Check every answer against your course materials or the NCBE Sourcebooks. Our guide to AI tools for law students covers general study tools, and AI tools for legal writing looks at writing feedback tools more broadly. Still applying to law school? See our comparison of AI LSAT prep tools.

Sources

• NCBE: NextGen UBE and adoption by jurisdiction, About the NextGen UBE, NextGen sample questions, July 2026 Washington make-up exam information, NextGen study aids, legacy bar exam study aids.
• Kaplan: bar review, NextGen course, AI study tools, guarantee, US App Store listing.
• Themis + UWorld: NextGen course, enrollment policies, UWorld NextGen page, UGrader blog post, App Store, Google Play.
• BarMax: bar review, Solomon plans, UBE course, guarantee, App Store, Google Play.
• BARBRI: NextGen course, 2027 pricing, guarantee, AI article, App Store, BARBRI Study Plan app, Google Play.
• Helix: homepage, NextGen July 2027 course, App Store. AdaptiBar: homepage, App Store.
• Left out: Quimbee, JD Advising, Jenova Bar Exam Tutor.
• All store listings and web pages read 28 October 2026.

Written by

Faz

Faz is the founder of AIToolsBakery. Some tools here are tested hands on. Others are assessed from vendor documentation and pricing verified on the live page, and every review says which one it is. Sponsors can buy a position in a guide. They cannot buy the score, the criticism, or silence about a better option.

How we test and how we make money →

Related Posts

Diffit: What You Are Actually Buying (2026 Evaluation)

Diffit Pricing (2026): $14.99 for Teachers, Quote Only for Schools

Curipod Pricing (2026): Free for Teachers, Quote Only for Schools