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Whats the difference between an FNP-C and an FNP-BC?

Written by: Gayle Morris BSN, MSN, Edited by: Rebecca Munday

Published: January 22, 2025

Over 70% of all nurse practitioners are family nurse practitioners (FNPs), according to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners in February 2024. State licensure requires certification in this career path. You have two choices that serve different purposes.

Discover the differences between FNP-C vs. FNP-BC and how they affect your career options.

What is the FNP-C?

The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB) awards the Family Nurse Practitioner-Certified (FNP-C) credential. Family nurse practitioners whose careers focus on clinical family practice, covering primary care for all ages, from pediatrics to geriatrics, may want this certification.

Certification demonstrates clinical competence and ensures FNPs adhere to national standards. FNP-C certification validates your expertise in diagnosis, treatment, and health promotion.

What is the FNP-BC?

The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) offers certification that awards the Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified (FNP-BC) credential. The credential offers a broader scope of practice. FNPs who want to practice clinically, influence healthcare policy, and educate future generations of nurse practitioners seek this certification.

Clinical practice, academia, or healthcare tactics all require certification to work. Certification also validates your expertise and demonstrates to your employers and patients that you are qualified.

Differences between the FNP-C and the FNP-BC

The FNP-C and FNP-BC certifications require you to have graduated from a nationally accredited FNP program. The examinations differ in eligibility, cost, contents, and renewal requirements.

Eligibility

FNP-C

Graduates must complete advanced practice nursing (APN) core courses in advanced physical assessment, pharmacology, and pathophysiology.

You must have completed at least 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours in the advanced practice program and hold a current, unencumbered RN license. You must also submit academic transcripts demonstrating your coursework and graduation.

FNP-BC

You must hold a current, unencumbered RN license in the U.S. or a legally recognized equivalent from another country. You must have completed comprehensive graduate-level core courses in advanced pathophysiology, physiology, health assessment, and pharmacology.

You must have also completed content in health promotion, differential diagnosis, disease management, and the use and prescription of medications and non-pharmacological interventions. The ANCC requires authorization to sit for the examination, including a review of the FNP program accreditation.

Cost

FNP-C

Application fees for an FNP-C are $315 for non-members and a $75 discount for members of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. To receive the discount, include your member number when you apply for the examination.

FNP-BC

The ANCC offers discounts to members of the American Nurses Association, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, and the Gerontological Advanced Practice Nurses Association. The fee without a discount is $395 — with a discount, it varies from $295 to $340.

Exam contents

FNP-C

Examination topics fall under one of four domains, including assessment, diagnosis, plan, and evaluation of the effectiveness of the plan of care. Each domain includes a specific number of items and is weighted to add up to 100%. Health assessment has the highest weight, at 32%.

Examination content includes age-related questions, and 78% of the questions focus on young, middle, and older adults.

FNP-BC

The exam has 150 scored questions across five domains, including assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Roughly one-third (29%) of the questions are about implementation.

The content covers bodily systems, drug agents, and age groups from infancy to frail elderly. In each of these domains, questions address your knowledge and skill.

Renewal

FNP-C

Every five years, you must renew your certification. You can complete the requirements one of two ways.

The first option is to recertify with a minimum of 1,000 practice hours, 100 contact hours of advanced continuing education, and a current RN license. The second option is to retake the FNP National Certification Examination and hold a current RN license.

FNP-BC

Every five years, you must renew your FNP-BC. You must hold an active RN license, submit 75 continuing education hours, and complete at least one of eight certification renewal categories. These categories include academic credits, presentations, continuing education hours, publications, and preceptor hours.

Renewal requirements do not include clinical practice hours, but they are one of the renewal categories.

FNP-C vs. FNP-BC: which is right for me?

You can consider several factors when determining which certification exam is right for you. The first factor is your career goals. Ask yourself if your career goals focus solely on providing clinical care through the lifespan or if you want the broader experience of providing care and influencing policy or teaching.

The next factor to consider is your eligibility for the exam. While they are very similar, the FNP-BC has a broad range of required courses and authorization to sit for the examination.

Finally, you'll want to compare the examination costs and renewal requirements. The FNP-BC is more expensive, but an employer may require this certification when you want a job outside of clinical practice.

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