Free USMLE Step 1 Resources In 2026

The best free USMLE Step 1 resource is the official Free 120: 119 sample questions written by the people who build the exam, in a booklet USMLE updated in April 2026 and publishes on its own site, plus an interactive version that adds a 120th item. Around it sits a free stack that high scorers really use, including the AnKing Step Deck, Divine Intervention, Dirty Medicine, Mehlman Medical's 29 free PDFs, Osmosis and r/step1.

USMLE Step 1 prep has a reputation for being expensive, and the big question banks are not cheap. Some of the most-used resources for the exam cost nothing, and a few of them are ones top scorers rely on as heavily as the paid tools.

Below we have compiled the best free USMLE Step 1 resources, what each one is genuinely good for, what the word "free" actually covers in each case, and how to combine them into a real study plan.

Here are the main takeaways:

• USMLE Step 1 Free 120: Best for the most exam-representative practice you can get, straight from the people who write Step 1. 119 items, six blocks, 2 hours 58 minutes 30 seconds.

• AnKing Step Deck: Best for long-term memorization through spaced repetition. Read the cost note below first: the maintained deck sits on AnkiHub's paid plan, not its free one.

• Divine Intervention Podcast: Best for passive high-yield review on commutes, plus the famous "night before the exam" rapid-review episodes.

• Dirty Medicine: Best for biostatistics, ethics, and quality, the low-yield-feeling topics that quietly decide scores.

• Mehlman Medical: Best for pathophysiology reasoning through free high-yield PDFs and self-assessments.

• Osmosis: Best for visual concept videos when a topic will not click from text alone.

• r/step1: Best for honest, unsponsored strategy and community score reports.

Free USMLE Step 1 Resources Summary Table

Free USMLE Step 1 Resources In 2026

1. USMLE Step 1 Free 120 (Official Sample Questions)

The USMLE Step 1 Free 120 is the official set of Step 1 sample questions, published free by the same program that builds the real exam. The booklet was updated in April 2026 and holds 119 items in six blocks; the interactive version adds a 120th item with audio findings, which is where the name comes from. Our full review of the NBME Free 120 goes deeper on the release, the answer key and which of the two interactive links to use.

What you get:

a) 119 official sample questions in the booklet, 120 in the interactive version: Written by USMLE test constructors, in both a downloadable PDF and an interactive format that runs in the real exam software.

b) The real block structure: The booklet runs items 1 to 20, 21 to 40, 41 to 60, 61 to 80, 81 to 100 and 101 to 119. The last block is short because the multimedia item is not in the PDF.

c) An official answer key, and nothing else: The answer form is on page 55 and the key on page 56. There are no explanations, and no score.

The official USMLE Step 1 sample-questions page. Source: usmle.org (captured July 2026).

The Free 120 is the closest thing to the real exam that you can get for free, so every candidate should use it, at the start to learn the question style and near the end to rehearse the format and the pacing.

Where Do You Get The Step 1 Free 120?

From the Step 1 Sample Test Questions page on usmle.org. No account, no payment, no email. The PDF downloads straight from that page, and the interactive version comes in two builds. If your Step 1 date is before May 14 you use the older interactive testing experience; from May 14 onward you use the new one, which runs the 30-minute blocks the current exam uses. Both were live when we last checked them. Copies floating around file-sharing sites are older releases, so take it from USMLE.

How Long Does The Free 120 Take?

Two hours, 58 minutes and 30 seconds if you time it the way the exam is timed. The booklet allows a maximum of 30 minutes for each 20-item block and 28 minutes 30 seconds for the 19-item block. Block it out as one sitting. Most examinees find the real thing feels tighter than practice.

Is The Free 120 Predictive Of Your Step 1 Result?

Not in the way most students assume. The booklet gives you an answer key and no score: no three-digit score, no percentage conversion, no passing mark, no probability of passing. Anything that turns your Free 120 percentage into a predicted Step 1 outcome is somebody's estimate, not USMLE's. Treat it as a format and stamina rehearsal, and use the paid NBME self-assessments when you want a readiness estimate, since those are built to report one.

What Else Does USMLE Give Away Free?

More than most roundups mention. The Step 1 Materials hub also carries the content outline and specifications, which tell you how the exam is weighted by system and discipline, and a guide to the question formats. A practice session at a Prometric test center is a separate registration, not part of the Free 120, and it is the only way to sit at the real workstation before exam day.

What Is The USMLE Free 120 Best Suited For?

Best for a timed, exam-representative rehearsal late in dedicated study, and for learning the real Step 1 question style early on.

PROS

• Official items written by the people who make Step 1.
• Free in both PDF and interactive formats, with no account needed.
• The single most representative free practice available.
• The current interactive build matches the 30-minute blocks of the real exam.

CONS

• 119 or 120 questions, so it is not enough to study from.
• No official explanations, and no score of any kind.

2. AnKing Step Deck

The AnKing Step Deck is the definitive community Anki deck for Step 1, now in its V12 release, and it is how a huge share of high scorers keep the mountain of Step 1 facts from slipping away.

Is the AnKing deck free? Partly, and the part that is not free is the part you would actually use. AnkiHub hosts the deck and pushes its updates, and it lists the AnKing Step Deck under its paid Core plan. Its free plan covers the Getting Started tutorial deck and free community decks such as Dermki, not the Step Deck. So syncing the live, maintained deck is a subscription. Pricing varies by plan, so read the page before you commit.

The Anki software around it is free and separate. The desktop app is free on every major platform, AnkiDroid on Android is free, and AnkiWeb sync between your own devices is free. AnkiMobile for iPhone and iPad is a paid app. The short version: free app, free sync, paid deck subscription.

What you get for that:

a) 30,000+ crowd-maintained cards: The deck covers Step 1, Step 2 and Step 3, has passed 300,000 downloads, and is cross-tagged to First Aid, Boards & Beyond, UWorld, the NBMEs and Costanzo Physiology, so you can review exactly the cards that match what you just studied.

b) Spaced repetition: Anki schedules each card right before you would forget it, which is the most efficient way to retain the discrete factual recall Step 1 demands.

The AnKing Step Deck. Source: ankihub.net (captured July 2026).

The AnKing deck is the retention layer under the entire study plan, and it is the one item here with a running cost. Budget for the AnkiHub plan, not just the app.

What Is The AnKing Step Deck Best Suited For?

Best for long-term memorization through spaced repetition, especially for students who start early and review daily.

PROS

• 30,000+ cards, continuously updated by thousands of students.
• Mapped to First Aid, Boards & Beyond, UWorld and the NBMEs.
• The de facto standard for Step 1 spaced repetition.
• The Anki app itself costs nothing on desktop and Android.

CONS

• The maintained deck sits on AnkiHub's paid tier, so it is not wholly free.
• Enormous, so it must be started early and reviewed daily.
• Steep learning curve if you are new to Anki.

3. Divine Intervention Podcast

The Divine Intervention podcast is a free, long-running series of high-yield USMLE review episodes. Students play it on commutes, at the gym, and, famously, the night before the exam.

What you get:

a) More than 670 free episodes: The feed was past episode 676 in October 2026, covering pathology, physiology, pharmacology, biostatistics, ethics and more, with many also posted on YouTube.

b) Rapid-review episodes: The "high-yield for the night before" and rapid-review episodes are near-mandatory folklore on r/step1.

The Divine Intervention podcast site. Source: divineinterventionpodcasts.com (captured July 2026).

Divine Intervention turns dead time into high-yield review, which compounds over a long study period. Use a community-curated episode list rather than starting at episode one.

What Is Divine Intervention Best Suited For?

Best for passive, high-yield review of weak topics, and for calming pre-exam nerves with the rapid-review episodes.

PROS

• Completely free, more than 670 episodes.
• Perfect for review while doing something else.
• Strong on ethics and biostatistics.

CONS

• Audio-first, with no visuals or question bank.
• The huge catalog needs a curated episode list.

4. Dirty Medicine

Dirty Medicine is a free YouTube channel that distills the messy, high-yield topics into clear frameworks. Its biostatistics and ethics videos in particular are a rite of passage for Step 1 students.

What you get:

a) Fast, high-yield videos: Especially strong on biostatistics, ethics, patient safety, and quality improvement, the topics a question bank struggles to teach.

b) Clear mnemonics: Simplified frameworks that make notoriously frustrating material stick.

The Dirty Medicine YouTube channel. Source: youtube.com/@DirtyMedicine (captured July 2026).

Dirty Medicine is the free fix for the exact topics that quietly cost points. Use it to shore up biostats and ethics, then reinforce with practice questions.

What Is Dirty Medicine Best Suited For?

Best for biostatistics, ethics, and quality, plus quick pharmacology refreshers.

PROS

• Free, efficient, high-yield videos.
• Excellent for biostats and ethics.
• Short enough to fit between study blocks.

CONS

• Not a complete Step 1 curriculum.
• No integrated question bank.

5. Mehlman Medical

Mehlman Medical gives away 29 high-yield PDF documents, 6 self-assessments and 107 pre-recorded lectures across 9 subjects, counted from the portal in October 2026, none of them behind a login. The material is plain and text-heavy, but it targets exactly the reasoning patterns NBME loves to test. Our review of the Mehlman free PDFs lists every document by name, says where each one downloads from, and covers what the paid products cost.

The free-stuff portal at freestuff.mehlmanmedical.com. Source: mehlmanmedical.com (captured October 2026).

Mehlman Medical is a free hidden gem for concept-level understanding, especially pathophysiology. Use the PDFs to fix weak concepts a question bank keeps exposing.

What Is Mehlman Medical Best Suited For?

Best for fixing pathophysiology reasoning through dense, no-frills high-yield notes.

PROS

• 29 free high-yield PDFs covering foundations, organ systems and clinical subjects.
• The "arrows" document is genuinely excellent.
• 6 free self-assessments included.

CONS

• Plain, text-heavy PDFs with no polished platform.
• Best as targeted review, not a full curriculum.

6. Osmosis

Osmosis is known for clear animated concept videos, and a large chunk of its library is free on YouTube. It is the resource to reach for when a mechanism will not click from a wall of text.

What you get:

a) Free animated videos, no account needed: Search a topic on the Osmosis YouTube channel and you will usually find a clean animated explainer, ideal for visual learners. Nothing to sign up for and nothing to pay.

b) A clear line between free and paid: The videos on that channel are the free part. The full Osmosis platform, with its flashcards, questions and study tools, is a paid subscription, and our review covers what it adds.

The Osmosis homepage. Source: osmosis.org (captured July 2026).

Osmosis is a strong free video backup for tough concepts. For Step 1 specifically, most students use Pathoma and Boards & Beyond as their primary videos and keep Osmosis as a supplement.

What Is Osmosis Best Suited For?

Best for visual learners who want free animated explanations of concepts that will not click.

PROS

• Excellent animated explanations.
• Large free YouTube library.
• Good for visual learners.

CONS

• Only the video library is free; the full platform is paid.
• Less exam-specific than Pathoma or Boards & Beyond.

7. r/step1 (Reddit)

r/step1 is the largest free Step 1 community. When students want honest, unsponsored advice on what to study and what to buy, this is where they go.

What you get:

a) Resource and strategy threads: Recurring "Ultimate Step 1 Guide" posts collect the community's best advice in one place.

b) Score reports: Members post their NBME and Free 120 percentages next to their real outcome. This is where the Free 120 conversion charts you see passed around come from, and it is worth knowing that they are student-built estimates, since USMLE publishes no conversion of its own.

The r/step1 subreddit. Source: reddit.com/r/step1 (captured July 2026).

r/step1 is one of the most useful free tools for deciding how to study and which resources to trust. Treat it as crowdsourced strategy, verify specifics, and set a time limit so it does not become procrastination.

What Is r/step1 Best Suited For?

Best for unsponsored resource comparisons and real readiness data from other test-takers.

PROS

• Thousands of real test-takers.
• Honest, unsponsored resource comparisons.
• Score reports help you calibrate readiness.

CONS

• Advice is anecdotal, so verify the specifics.
• Easy to fall into anxiety-driven scrolling.

How To Combine Free USMLE Step 1 Resources

No single free tool covers everything. The winning move is to layer them so you build content understanding, active recall, and realistic practice together.

Build Content Understanding

• Osmosis and Dirty Medicine: Use the free videos to learn or relearn concepts, especially biostatistics, ethics, and any mechanism that will not click.
• Mehlman Medical PDFs: Fix pathophysiology reasoning and the "arrows" that NBME questions constantly test.

Lock In Retention

• AnKing Step Deck: Do your daily reviews without fail, unsuspending cards as you cover each topic. This is the single most important daily habit for Step 1, and the one item in this list with a running cost.
• A free alternative if the subscription is out of budget: Anki itself is free, so you can build your own deck from the Mehlman PDFs and your weak areas. It is slower and less complete, and it is still better than no spaced repetition.

Reinforce Passively

• Divine Intervention: Fill commutes and downtime with high-yield episodes on your weak areas.

Check Readiness

• Mehlman self-assessments early to find gaps, then the USMLE Step 1 Free 120 timed near your test date as the closest thing to the real exam.
• Remember what the Free 120 does not give you. It reports no score, so it tells you about pacing and question style, not about whether you will pass. Read it alongside the current USMLE Step 1 pass rates and the Step 1 passing score so you know where the real bar sits.

Get Strategy Right

• r/step1: Use it to decide what to prioritize and which paid tools, if any, are worth adding, then close the tab and study.

New to the exam? Start with what the USMLE Step 1 is, then map these free resources onto a week-by-week study plan.

If you do decide to add a paid question bank, our full USMLE resource directory reviews the main options against a documented methodology. Free content builds your foundation; a thorough question bank is what most students add on top. Students who want video lectures and questions in one place usually end up on a USMLE prep course rather than assembling five free tools.

FAQs About Free USMLE Step 1 Resources

Can you pass USMLE Step 1 with only free resources?

It is possible, but most students pair free tools with at least one paid question bank. The genuinely free stack (Divine Intervention, Dirty Medicine, Mehlman, the Osmosis videos and the Free 120) covers content and official practice well. What it lacks is the large, exam-representative practice volume a paid bank provides, and a maintained spaced-repetition deck, since the AnKing deck now syncs through a paid AnkiHub plan.

What is the best free USMLE Step 1 practice?

The official USMLE Step 1 Free 120 is the most exam-representative free practice, because it comes straight from the test makers: 119 items in the April 2026 booklet, 120 in the interactive version, timed at 2 hours 58 minutes 30 seconds. Do it timed, late in your prep. Mehlman Medical's six free self-assessments are a useful supplement.

Is the AnKing deck free?

Not on AnkiHub's free plan. AnkiHub hosts the AnKing Step Deck and pushes its updates, and lists it under the paid Core plan, while the free plan covers the Getting Started tutorial deck and free community decks such as Dermki. The Anki software is a separate thing and is free on desktop and Android; AnkiMobile for iOS is a paid app.

Which free resource is best for biostatistics and ethics?

Dirty Medicine. Its biostatistics and ethics videos are the fastest free way to lock down those topics, which are worth more points than most students expect.

How should I combine free USMLE resources without getting overwhelmed?

Follow a sequence: learn concepts with Osmosis, Dirty Medicine, and Mehlman; retain them with the AnKing deck; reinforce passively with Divine Intervention; then check readiness with self-assessments and the Free 120. Keep a simple weekly schedule so the tools support each other instead of competing for your time.

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