Project Management & Business • Certification
Professional Scrum Master I
Professional Scrum Master I — Project & Business credential from Scrum.org
Researched and maintained by TestPrepPilot Editorial BoardAgile & project-delivery certifications desk · Figures last verified August 2026
The short version
What is the Professional Scrum Master I and is it worth it?
Professional Scrum Master I is a Scrum.org credential in the Project & Business field. It validates job-ready competence and is used for career entry, advancement, or compliance. Exam fee: PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500.
- Recognized Scrum.org credential
- Demonstrates verified Project & Business competence
- Supports career advancement and may satisfy employer or regulatory requirements
What is it?
What exactly is the Professional Scrum Master I?
Professional Scrum Master I — Project & Business credential from Scrum.org
Eighty-question timed assessment of Scrum Guide knowledge requiring an 85 percent score, with no training prerequisite. Offered by Scrum.org, it validates job-ready Project & Business competence. Exam fee: PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500. Review the official program page for eligibility, format, and scoring before registering.
The path in brief
- Confirm eligibility and any prerequisites
- Review the official exam guide and study materials
- Purchase and schedule the exam via Scrum.org (online assessment)
- Take the exam (test center, online proctoring, or assessment)
- Receive results and your credential if passed
Before you book
Who is eligible to sit the Professional Scrum Master I?
Eligibility varies; many exams are open to all, while others require coursework, experience, or sponsorship.
Who it is for: Professionals and candidates seeking to validate Project & Business competence with a Scrum.org credential.
The test itself
What is the format of the Professional Scrum Master I?
The Professional Scrum Master I is administered by Scrum.org (online assessment) and runs 60 minutes and contains 80 (all scored) questions.
| Administered by | Scrum.org (online assessment) |
|---|---|
| Questions | 80 (all scored) |
| Time limit | 60 minutes |
| Pass mark | Passing score set by the awarding body; see the official score report |
| Exam fee | PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500. Per-attempt password; passwords never expire. |
| Format | Online, open-book assessment using a password; taken remotely at your convenience. |
Content outline
What topics are on the Professional Scrum Master I?
The Professional Scrum Master I covers 4 content domains.
Weightings come from the official exam outline. Study time is best allocated in roughly these proportions rather than evenly across domains.
- Scrum framework & accountabilities
Topic area for this credential; see the official blueprint for the detailed breakdown.
- Empiricism & events
Topic area for this credential; see the official blueprint for the detailed breakdown.
- Value & product ownership
Topic area for this credential; see the official blueprint for the detailed breakdown.
- Team & delivery
Topic area for this credential; see the official blueprint for the detailed breakdown.
The path
How do you register for the Professional Scrum Master I?
- 1
Create an account on the awarding body’s certification portal
- 2
Select the exam/credential and review its requirements
- 3
Purchase the exam (voucher or password) and pay the fee
- 4
Schedule the exam (test center, online proctoring, or assessment)
- 5
Complete the exam within the allotted time
- 6
Receive your results and, if passed, your digital credential
The fine print
What are the retake and renewal rules for the Professional Scrum Master I?
- Proctoring & delivery
- Online, open-book assessment using a password; taken remotely at your convenience.
- Retake policy
- Repurchase the assessment password (per-attempt fee) — no separate retake policy.
- Score reporting
- Scores / results are released per the body’s process (usually electronically after the exam).
- Recertification
- Lifetime credentials — Scrum.org certifications do not expire and require no renewal or annual fee.
What it pays
How much does this credential pay?
$100,750 median for project management specialists (BLS, May 2024)
There is no Bureau of Labor Statistics occupation called "Professional Scrum Master" — the PSM I certification validates that you understand the Scrum framework and can apply it, and the wage question belongs to the role you perform with it. The closest official BLS occupation is Project Management Specialists, SOC 13-1082, which had a May 2024 median wage of $100,750, with the lowest 10 percent under $59,450 and the highest 10 percent above $170,380. The fit is deliberate: Scrum Masters and agile delivery leads operate in the same labour market as project managers, and BLS counts this occupation as one of the larger management-support groups, with 774,900 jobs in 2024 and a projected 9 percent growth from 2024 to 2034 — faster than the average for all occupations — with about 111,600 openings a year. The limitation to state plainly: the median covers all project management specialists, with or without agile credentials, and the certification itself carries no wage premium in BLS data; its economic value is as a hiring filter and a signal that you can operate inside Scrum. For many product-engineering organisations the PSM is a ticket to team-lead and delivery-owner tracks that sit above individual-contributor engineering pay, so the analyst should read the BLS figure as the relevant market benchmark, not the certification's price tag.
| Measure | Figure | Source / note |
|---|---|---|
| Median annual wage, project management specialists | $100,750 | BLS OOH, SOC 13-1082, May 2024 |
| Lowest 10 percent | Under $59,450 | BLS OOH, SOC 13-1082, May 2024 |
| Highest 10 percent | Above $170,380 | BLS OOH, SOC 13-1082, May 2024 |
| Projected openings per year | ~111,600 | BLS OOH, SOC 13-1082, 2024-2034 |
Job growth.BLS projects 9 percent growth for project management specialists from 2024 to 2034, about 111,600 openings per year.
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook - Project Management Specialists
Your odds
What are the pass rates?
Scrum.org publishes the passing standard — 85% (68 of 80) — and no cohort pass rate
Scrum.org does not publish cohort pass rates for the PSM I, and independent surveys are not official data, so we do not present them as authoritative. What Scrum.org does publish is the format and the cut score: the PSM I exam has 80 questions, a 60-minute time limit, and a passing score of 85 percent — you must answer at least 68 questions correctly. The exam is delivered online through a proctored web-based system, and there is no expiry: PSM certifications do not require renewal or continuing education, which is one of the reasons Scrum.org's credentials are popular. The absence of a published pass rate is not an absence of standards — the 85 percent line is high, and the exam is deliberately written to reward understanding of the Scrum Guide's accountabilities, events and artefacts rather than memorised trivia. Candidates who pass consistently report that the exam tests the reasoning behind Scrum decisions — who owns the Product Backlog, what happens when an event is cancelled, how scope changes are handled — and that the two-hour study guides sold by third parties under-prepare them because they optimise for recall rather than application. Treat the 85 percent line as the target on every practice exam, and score 90 percent-plus before sitting.
Read this before quoting the number.Scrum.org publishes the 85% cut score but no cohort pass rate; any percentage circulating online is a third-party estimate.
Source: Scrum.org - Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I) assessment
Your schedule
How long should I study for it?
20-40 hours over 2-4 weeks of focused study
The PSM I is a 60-minute, 80-question online exam with an 85 percent pass line, and the entire curriculum is one document — the Scrum Guide — plus the Nexus guide at a lighter level. That narrow scope makes the study plan shorter than most certifications, but the exam rewards application, so the plan must include scenario practice, not just reading. A defensible plan is 20 to 40 hours over two to four weeks. Week one: read the Scrum Guide end to end twice and write out the accountabilities (Product Owner, Scrum Master, Developers), the events (Sprint, Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Sprint Retrospective) and the artefacts (Product Backlog, Sprint Backlog, Increment) in your own words. Week two: work the official Scrum.org open assessments repeatedly until you score 100 percent, then move to third-party question banks, tracking which topics you miss. Week three: drill the application items — what a Scrum Master does when a developer raises an impediment, how scope is handled mid-Sprint, what the Daily Scrum is for — and re-read the guide sections behind every miss. Week four: take two full 80-question timed practice exams, target 90 percent-plus, and schedule the real assessment. The plan is short because the scope is short, but the practice volume is what converts reading into the applied understanding the exam demands.
- Week 18
Scrum Guide mastery
- Read the Scrum Guide twice; summarise accountabilities, events and artefacts
- Write out the rules for scope, time and the Definition of Done
- Week 28
Official open assessments
- Repeat Scrum.org open assessments to 100%
- Start a topic-level error log
- Week 310
Application drilling
- Work third-party scenario banks
- Re-read guide sections behind every miss
- Week 48
Timed mocks and sit
- Two full 80-question timed mocks at 90%+
- Schedule and sit the real assessment
Adjusting the pace
Experienced Scrum Master.Compress to 2 weeks; spend the time on the open assessments and tricky application items rather than the guide.
New to agile.Stretch to 5 weeks and add a week of foundational agile vocabulary before the guide.
How to study
How do I prepare most effectively?
The PSM I is unusual in that the entire body of knowledge is the Scrum Guide, so the highest-yield strategy is guide mastery plus scenario practice rather than buying a thick course. First, do the official Scrum.org open assessments repeatedly: they are free, they mirror the real item style, and scoring 100 percent on them is a baseline, not a finish line. Second, build a topic-level error log and re-read the guide section behind every miss; because the scope is narrow, most misses trace back to a specific rule you can isolate. Third, practise the application questions — what the Scrum Master does about an impediment, how the Product Owner reprioritises mid-Sprint, what happens when the Sprint Goal becomes obsolete — since the exam rewards applied judgement. Fourth, take at least two full timed practice exams at the real 60-minute, 80-question format and hold yourself to 90 percent, because the real exam adds unfamiliar phrasing that erodes a borderline score. Finally, beware third-party shortcuts: many vendors sell "guaranteed pass" dumps, which risk ban from the assessment and teach the wrong thing; the open assessments and the guide are sufficient and free.
Master the open assessments
Free, official, and the closest thing to the real item style; score 100% repeatedly.
Keep a rule-level error log
Every miss traces to a specific guide rule; isolate and re-read it.
Drill application items
Impediment handling, mid-Sprint reprioritisation and event rules dominate the exam.
Take two timed mocks
60 minutes, 80 questions, 90% target — the real exam adds unfamiliar phrasing.
Avoid dump sites
They risk assessment bans and teach recall, not the application the exam rewards.
What to buy
Which study resources are worth paying for?
PSM I prep is cheap because the primary resource is free. The Scrum Guide and the Scrum.org open assessments cost nothing and are sufficient for a disciplined candidate; Scrum.org also offers free learning paths and a PSM I preparation course (paid, roughly $200-$300) that many candidates skip. Third-party prep splits into two tiers: comprehensive courses (a few hundred dollars) and question banks or exam simulators (usually $30-$150). The evidence from candidate communities is that the open assessments plus a good question bank outperform expensive courses for most candidates, because the exam is short and scope is narrow. Paid resources that genuinely add value are the question banks with answer explanations, since they expose the application style, and any course with a timed simulator. Prices below are list prices as of mid-2026 and change frequently; we rank nothing by commission.
| Resource | Price | Format | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scrum Guide | Free | Official document | The entire body of knowledge; read it twice |
| Scrum.org open assessments | Free | Online practice items | Item style and readiness baseline |
| Scrum.org PSM I prep course | ~$200-$300 | Instructor-led online course | Structured learners who want a guided path |
| Third-party question banks | $30-$150 | Online practice exams | Volume and application-style exposure |
| Dumps and "guaranteed pass" sites | $20-$100 | Braindumps | Avoid — assessment-ban risk and wrong learning |
List prices as of mid-2026, subject to change; no commission or affiliate ranking is implied.
Avoid these
What mistakes do candidates most often make?
The most common PSM I mistake is studying for recall instead of application: candidates memorise the Scrum Guide's vocabulary and then miss the items that ask what a Scrum Master should actually do in a described situation. The fix is scenario drilling from the start. The second mistake is relying on a single third-party course without ever doing the official open assessments, which are the closest thing to the real item style; candidates who score 100 percent on the open assessments are measurably better positioned. Third, many candidates misread the accountabilities — attributing Product Backlog ownership to the Scrum Master, or treating the Scrum Master as a project manager who assigns tasks — which the exam tests directly and mercilessly. Fourth, candidates overthink the timing: 60 minutes for 80 questions is comfortable, but only if you have practised at the real pace; slow readers run out of minutes. Finally, treating the exam as a checkbox misses the point of the pass standard: the 85 percent line is genuinely high, and candidates who sit at borderline practice scores fail — target 90 percent on every practice exam before booking.
✕Studying recall instead of application
✓Drill "what would the Scrum Master do" scenarios from the first week.
✕Skipping the official open assessments
✓They are free and the closest thing to the real item style; do them to 100%.
✕Misattributing accountabilities
✓The Product Owner owns the Product Backlog; the Scrum Master serves the team and removes impediments.
✕Never practising the 60-minute pace
✓Two timed mocks at the real format before sitting.
✕Sitting at borderline practice scores
✓Target 90%+ on practice; the 85% line leaves no margin.
What you'll face
What question types will I see?
The PSM I is 80 multiple-choice questions in 60 minutes, delivered online under proctoring. Most items are single-answer, and a large share are scenario-based: a described situation inside a Sprint, followed by the correct Scrum Master action, the correct accountability, or the correct rule. The exam draws its rules from the Scrum Guide and tests them at the application level — who owns the Product Backlog, when a Sprint is cancelled, what the Daily Scrum is for, what the Definition of Done requires. A minority of items are pure knowledge checks on the framework's terminology. Samples below are editor-written illustrations of the published Scrum Guide content, not live exam items; they show the application style the exam rewards.
Described situations with the correct Scrum action, accountability or rule.
Framework terminology, events and artefacts from the Scrum Guide.
Try these
Q1A developer reports a problem during the Daily Scrum that will slow the team's progress for the day. What should the Scrum Master do?
Answer:B
The Daily Scrum is for inspection and planning; problems raised there are handled after the event, with the Scrum Master facilitating removal of the impediment. Assigning tasks, cancelling the Sprint or pausing it misreads the Scrum Master's role and the event's purpose.
Q2Who is accountable for the value of the product and for ordering the Product Backlog?
Answer:C
The Scrum Guide assigns accountability for the product's value and for ordering the Product Backlog to the Product Owner. The Scrum Master serves the team and process; the Developers own the work in the Sprint; stakeholders are not accountable for the Backlog.
Q3A Sprint is cancelled because the Sprint Goal has become obsolete. What happens to the completed work?
Answer:B
The Scrum Guide states that when a Sprint is cancelled, completed Product Backlog items are reviewed, and items that are done and potentially releasable are accepted. Discarding the work, auto-rolling it over, or keeping it without review each misstate the cancellation rules.
Samples are editor-written illustrations of the published Scrum Guide content, not live exam items.
The big day
What should I expect on exam day?
The PSM I is taken online through a proctored assessment platform at a time you schedule. Confirm your system meets the proctoring requirements — a working webcam, stable internet and a quiet room — and close unrelated applications before starting; the proctor monitors the session. The exam is 80 questions in 60 minutes; pace at about 40 seconds per item and flag items you are unsure of for review rather than lingering. There is no scheduled break, and the timer does not pause. Your result is shown immediately on completion, and the PSM I certification is permanent — it does not expire and requires no renewal, which distinguishes it from most vendor credentials. If you do not pass, you can retake by purchasing a new assessment attempt; there is no mandatory waiting period, but the professional move is to go back to the open assessments and the guide rather than immediately re-sitting. The afterwards: add the certification to your profile and employer records, and treat it as a foundation — the PSM II and PSM III, and the PSPO track, build on it if you want to go further.
Bring
- Computer with webcam and stable internet
- Quiet, private testing space
- Your Scrum.org login
Leave at home
- Phone and other devices within reach of the proctor's view
- Notes and open browser tabs — the assessment is closed book
How the day runs
Rules in the room
- Closed-book online assessment under proctoring
- 60 minutes for 80 questions; the clock does not pause
- No renewal or continuing education is required after passing
Afterwards.On a pass, your PSM I is permanent. On a fail, purchase a new attempt after returning to the open assessments and the guide. Consider PSM II/III or the PSPO track for the next step.
Reference
What are the key facts about the Professional Scrum Master I?
Professional Scrum Master I is a certification credential; awarded by Scrum.org; the exam fee is PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500. Per-attempt password; passwords never expire.; typical preparation is 60 minutes (80 questions); holders typically earn $70,000-$130,000.
| Credential | Professional Scrum Master I |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | PSM I |
| Type | Certification |
| Profession | Project Management & Business |
| Specialty | Agile & Product |
| Awarded by | Scrum.org |
| Difficulty | Mixed |
| Typical prep time | 60 minutes (80 questions) |
| All-in cost | PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500 |
| Typical salary range | $70,000-$130,000 |
| Credential | Professional Scrum Master I |
| Awarding body | Scrum.org |
| Exam fee | PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500 |
| Delivery | Online, open-book assessment using a password; taken remotely at your convenience. |
| Validity | Lifetime (no renewal) |
| Scope | National / Multi-state |
Real questions
Frequently asked questions about the Professional Scrum Master I
How much does the Professional Scrum Master I exam cost?
PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500. Per-attempt password; passwords never expire.
How do I register and schedule?
Register and schedule through Scrum.org (online assessment). Create an account, purchase the exam, and pick a date (test center, online proctoring, or assessment as applicable).
How long is the credential valid, and how do I renew?
Lifetime credentials — Scrum.org certifications do not expire and require no renewal or annual fee.
What is the retake policy?
Repurchase the assessment password (per-attempt fee) — no separate retake policy.
How much does a Scrum.org exam cost?
PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500. Per-attempt password; passwords never expire.
How do I renew the credential?
Lifetime credentials — Scrum.org certifications do not expire and require no renewal or annual fee.
In short
Is the Professional Scrum Master I worth it?
- Professional Scrum Master I is awarded by Scrum.org.
- Validates Project & Business competence.
- Exam fee: PSM I / PSPO I / PSD I / PAL I / PSK I: $200 USD; PSM II / PSPO II / SPS: $250; PSM III / PSPO III: $500.
- Renewal: Lifetime credentials — Scrum.org certifications do not expire and require no renewal or annual fee.
Same awarding body
What other credentials does Scrum.org award?
Trust
Where does this information come from?
Everything above is taken from the awarding body's own published material. Fees, question counts and domain weights are revised regularly — check the official page before you pay.
Research confidence: medium · Last reviewed 2026-08