Boards and Beyond price: every Step 1 and Step 2-3 plan from $89 to $399, the cost per month, and Boards and Beyond vs Amboss and UWorld

Boards and Beyond costs $89 for one month, $149 for three months, $199 for six months, $249 for a year, $349 for 18 months and $399 for two years, and the Step 1-Preclinical and Step 2-3-Clinical products are priced identically and sold separately. There is a 7-day free trial for US first-time buyers that charges automatically when it ends, and no refunds after that. Every figure below was read from Boards and Beyond's own plan feed and product pages on September 21, 2026.

Boards and Beyond, now a McGraw Hill product, is the video series a lot of US medical students use to learn Step 1 material before they start grinding questions. It is also one of the cheaper resources in the USMLE stack, which is why the price question comes up so often: students want to know which term to buy, whether they need both products, and how it stacks up against Amboss, UWorld and Sketchy for the same money. This page answers those three questions with vendor prices, not affiliate estimates.

Boards and Beyond price by plan

New purchases and renewals cost the same on every term, so there is no loyalty discount for coming back and no penalty either. Boards and Beyond also sells Clinical Confidence at $149 for six months or $199 for a year, and an OMM Series for DO students at $99 a year. On September 21, 2026 no combined Step 1 plus Step 2-3 bundle was active, so a student who wants both pays for each.

How much is Boards and Beyond for Step 1?

For most students, $249 for a year or $399 for two years. The Step 1-Preclinical product carries 490+ videos and 3,300+ practice questions according to its McGraw Hill product page, and it is the one people buy in first or second year to learn the systems alongside lectures. If you start in MS1, the two-year plan at $399 works out at $16.63 a month and covers you through a typical dedicated period. If you are buying it for dedicated only, six months at $199 is the sensible term.

One number to treat with care: the question count. The product page says 3,300+ questions and 490+ videos, while Boards and Beyond's own FAQ still says about 440 videos and 2,300 questions. The product page is the newer of the two, but if bank size is what you are paying for, a dedicated question bank is the better buy anyway. Boards and Beyond's questions are built to check each video, not to simulate a USMLE block.

Is Boards and Beyond worth it for Step 2?

Less clearly than for Step 1. The Step 2-3-Clinical product has 260+ videos and 1,300+ questions at the same $89 to $399 ladder, so you pay the same price for well under half the question count. Students who used Boards and Beyond for Step 1 often keep it for the clinical videos because the teaching style is familiar. For Step 2 CK practice volume, though, a full bank does more for the money: Amboss is $448 for a year of unlimited questions across Step 1, Step 2 CK, Step 3 and the shelves, and UWorld is $579 for 360 days of a 4,250+ question Step 2 CK bank.

Boards and Beyond vs Amboss, UWorld and Sketchy on price

The honest reading of that table is that Boards and Beyond is not competing with UWorld or Amboss. It is a teaching resource, and the usual Step 1 stack is one video series plus one question bank, not one or the other. Against the other video series it is the cheapest by a wide margin: a year of Boards and Beyond costs $249, against $449.99 for Sketchy. We break down every Amboss price and how Amboss compares with UWorld on a separate page, and the full UWorld cost ladder for every exam in another.

Does Boards and Beyond have a free trial?

Yes, 7 days, for US customers on their first purchase. The trial charges your card automatically when it ends, so cancel before day 7 if you are only sampling it. That matters more here than elsewhere because Boards and Beyond does not refund: its FAQ answers the refund question with "Unfortunately, no. Digital sales are final." Amboss, by comparison, offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on direct purchases.

Is there a Boards and Beyond discount?

There is no public coupon program. Boards and Beyond offers group discounts on request without publishing the rate, and says short-term individual promotions are available only by asking. The one fixed offer comes from the AMA: medical students who join the AMA and choose a multi-year membership can take a free 3-month Boards and Beyond subscription to Step 1, Steps 2-3 or the OMM Series. If you were going to join the AMA anyway, that covers a three-month plan worth $149.

Which Boards and Beyond plan should you buy?

Match the term to your timeline, and lean long, because the price per month falls fast. One month at $89 is the most expensive way to buy it and only makes sense as a final-weeks refresher. Three months at $149 fits a single dedicated block. From MS1, two years at $399 is the best value on the ladder. Buy Step 2-3-Clinical separately later only if you liked the Step 1 videos, since the question count is small for the price.

Because there are no refunds, use the full 7-day trial before committing, and put the charge where it suits you. Most students pay for board prep on a card in a loan-funded year; if that balance will sit there for a few months while you apply for residency and sign a lease, check how the balance affects your credit score before the apartment credit check does it for you.

Where an AI tutor fits next to Boards and Beyond

Boards and Beyond teaches a topic once, in one voice, and its questions check that you followed the video. What it cannot do is give you a fourth and fifth question on the renal physiology concept you just got wrong, or answer "but why is that not a type 2 RTA" at 1 AM. That is the gap Aspirants.ai fills. It generates new USMLE Step 1 practice questions on the exact topic you are weak on, explains every answer choice, and takes follow-up questions around the clock. It costs $9 a month for one exam, month to month, which is less than a single month of any resource in the table above, and it sits alongside a video series and a bank rather than replacing either.

Boards and Beyond price FAQ

How much does Boards and Beyond cost?

Boards and Beyond costs $89 for one month, $149 for three months, $199 for six months, $249 for a year, $349 for 18 months and $399 for two years, read from the vendor on September 21, 2026. Step 1-Preclinical and Step 2-3-Clinical are priced the same and sold separately, and renewals cost the same as new plans.

Is Boards and Beyond a one-time payment?

Each plan buys a fixed access term, from one month to two years, and Boards and Beyond lists the same price for a renewal as for a new purchase. The part to watch is the 7-day free trial, which converts to a paid plan automatically when it ends unless you cancel before then.

Does Boards and Beyond refund?

No. Its FAQ states that digital sales are final. The only way to test it without paying is the 7-day free trial for US first-time buyers, and that trial charges your card automatically when it ends, so cancel before day 7 if you decide against it.

Is Boards and Beyond enough for Step 1?

Not on its own for most students. It is a strong teaching resource with 490+ videos, but its questions check the videos rather than simulate the exam. The usual approach is Boards and Beyond to learn, plus a full question bank such as UWorld or Amboss for practice, plus official NBME self-assessments, which start at $62 a form.