The CPAT physical ability test

Eight events, ten minutes twenty seconds, fifty pounds of vest — the physical test, not a paper one.

There are no practice questions on this page.

The CPAT is a course, not a paper. There is nothing to answer, so there is nothing to write questions about — what a page can honestly do is tell you exactly what the eight events are, what you will be wearing while you do them, and where the free preparation programme is.

The eight events

Candidates navigate eight events on a closed course within 10 minutes and 20 seconds, each simulating a task on the fireground. They are run in this order:

  • Stair Climb — done with an extra 25-lb weight on top of the vest, standing in for a hose pack carried into a high-rise
  • Hose Drag
  • Equipment Carry
  • Ladder Raise and Extension
  • Forcible Entry
  • Search
  • Rescue Drag
  • Ceiling Breach and Pull

What you wear, and what fails you

A helmet, gloves and a 50-lb weighted vest throughout, standing in for personal protective equipment, plus the additional 25 lb for the stair climb. A proctor walks the course with you, calls the directions and scores each event as it happens.

The scoring is pass or fail with no partial credit, and this is the part candidates underestimate: each event must be completed exactly as prescribed, and failing any component fails the whole test. Exceeding 10 minutes 20 seconds fails it too.

It is not the written test

The CPAT and the written test are separate hurdles and are scheduled separately. Passing one says nothing about the other, and a strong CPAT does not make up for a weak written score anywhere that publishes how it ranks candidates. The practice on this site is for the written half; this page exists because people search for both together and deserve a straight answer about which is which.

Where the free preparation is

The CPAT was developed and validated by the IAFF and the IAFC as part of the Wellness Fitness Initiative, and its preparation guide is published free by the organisations that administer it — in California, Cal-JAC through FCTC, which is the exclusive statewide provider. The guide is a full training programme: flexibility and warm-up, weight and calisthenics circuits, a running programme and task-specific exercises.

FCTC’s standards also require that every candidate be offered at least two orientation sessions in the eight weeks before the test, where you get to handle the actual equipment. Those are included in the testing fee. Full timed practice runs cost extra, and FCTC says candidates who take at least one pass at a higher rate.

The parts that do have questions.

Whichever version of this test your employer uses, the parts below are the ones it can ask in writing — and the ones practice actually moves.

Mechanical reasoningMathsReading and recall Full timed run

The other parts without a quiz

Video recall

Two short videos, no note-taking, seven to ten questions each — and one showing only.

Frequently asked

How long do I have to complete the CPAT?
10 minutes and 20 seconds for all eight events on a closed course. There is no per-event limit published — the clock runs across the whole course, so time lost on one event has to come back on another.
How much weight do you carry on the CPAT?
A 50-lb weighted vest for the whole test, plus an additional 25 lb for the stair climb, which is the first event. You also wear a helmet and gloves throughout.
Is there a CPAT practice test?
Yes, and it is a real one rather than a page: the administrators run full-scale timed practice runs of the actual course for a fee, and free orientation sessions where you try the equipment. That is the only meaningful CPAT practice there is — no website can simulate carrying a hose.
Can I fail the CPAT on one event?
Yes. Each event must be completed exactly as prescribed, and failing any component fails the entire test, as does going over the time limit. This is why the orientation sessions matter more than they sound: most avoidable failures are procedural rather than physical.

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from one of the documents below, with the date it was read. Requirements change; if a source has moved on since that date, the source is right and this page is out of date.

Hiring Test Practice is independent practice material and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by Criteria Corp, Wonderlic, Inc., National Testing Network, the electrical training ALLIANCE, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, NECA, Biddle Consulting Group, Inc., Pearson Education, Inc. or its TalentLens business, the California Firefighter Joint Apprenticeship Committee or the Firefighter Candidate Testing Center, Fire and Police Selection, Inc., I/O Solutions, Inc., Ergometrics & Applied Personnel Research, Inc., the International Association of Fire Fighters or the International Association of Fire Chiefs. CCAT® is a registered trademark of Criteria Corp; Wonderlic® is a registered trademark of Wonderlic, Inc.; CritiCall is a trademark of Biddle Consulting Group, Inc.; Bennett Mechanical Comprehension Test is a trademark of Pearson Education, Inc.; FCTC and CPAT are used to name tests administered by others. Test names are used only to describe what this material prepares you for. Every question here is original and none is taken from any actual assessment. Cal-JAC and FCTC publish that materials supplied directly by them are the only authorized FCTC Written Test materials; this site is one of the outside sources that warning refers to, and it links their free study guide rather than reproducing it.