Salesforce Certification Exam Scoring

 

Learn how Salesforce certification exams are scored and the method to mark an exam question for later review.

Table of Contents

Exam Scoring Overview
Marking Questions for Review
Results Are Based On Overall Percentage Scores
Section Percentages Are Only Feedback

To learn more about section-level feedback (not your exam results), visit Interpreting Your Salesforce Exam Section-Level Feedback Results.

Exam Scoring Overview

Each question on a multiple-choice exam is worth one point. To earn a point for a multiple-choice question that requires you to select more than one answer option, you must choose all of the correct answer options. No partial credit is given for partially correct responses. If time does run out, the exam will be submitted automatically and you will be scored for all questions that you answered. There is no penalty for questions not answered.

Marking Questions for Review

During an exam, every question has a flag icon you can use to mark it for later review. If you select this option, the question will be specifically marked for review on the summary page after you have answered all of the questions, or if you select the Review button. On the review screen, if there’s a question you marked for review, there will be a check mark next to it. You can then select that question to return to the exam and change or confirm your answer.

Your result for the exam is based on the answers you selected. A question can be left as marked for review and will be scored based on how you’ve answered once the exam is submitted. 

Results Are Based On Overall Percentage Scores

Your pass or fail exam result is based on your total score, which is a single overall percentage of correct answers across the entire exam. Each Salesforce certification exam has a defined passing score percentage, which you can find in the corresponding certification’s exam guide. To earn your certification, the total number of questions you answered correctly out of the total number of questions on the exam must be at or above that published passing score percentage. 

For instance, the Salesforce Certified Marketing Cloud Email Specialist certification exam’s passing score percentage is 67%. Please note: This example uses the current passing requirements as of October 2025 and is subject to change.

 

Passing score percentage example seen in the Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Exam Guide.

Out of the 60 multiple choice questions on the Salesforce Certified Marketing Cloud Email Specialist certification exam, you would need to get at least 40 questions correct to pass the exam. 

Section Percentages Are Only Feedback

The percentages provided for each section on your score report indicate relative areas of strength and areas needing improvement.  Section percentages do not contribute to determining your official pass or fail result, as your official result is based on the exact total number of correct answers across the full exam.

Your section percentages cannot be averaged to precisely calculate your official total score. This is due to rounding and the sections containing unequal numbers of questions.