AAMC Section Bank vs. Question Packs: What's the Difference and When to Use Each

The AAMC sells several official practice products, and two of the most commonly confused are the Section Bank and the Question Packs. They’re both passage-based practice sets — but they serve different purposes and belong at different points in your prep.

Here’s the breakdown.

What Is the AAMC Section Bank?

The Section Bank is a set of 300 passage-based questions organized by the three science sections:

• Bio/Biochem (B/B): 100 questions
• Chem/Phys (C/P): 100 questions
• Psych/Soc (P/S): 100 questions

There is no CARS Section Bank.

How many questions are in the AAMC Section Bank?

300 total — 100 per science section. Each section is organized into smaller question sets you can work through at your own pace, not as a timed exam.

How hard is the Section Bank?

Harder than the actual MCAT. Most students find the Section Bank noticeably more difficult than the real exam and even harder than the official practice tests. This is intentional — it’s designed to expose weaknesses in your content knowledge, not to simulate test-day conditions.

If you score poorly on the Section Bank, don’t panic. That’s normal and expected. The purpose is diagnostic and targeted practice, not score prediction.

When to use the Section Bank

Save it for the last 4–6 weeks of your prep. By that point you should have finished most of your content review and done several full-length exams. The Section Bank is most valuable when you already understand the material at a surface level and need to stress-test your knowledge on hard, nuanced questions.

Using it too early — when your content foundation is still shaky — leads to frustration and doesn’t give you useful signal.

What Are the AAMC Question Packs?

The Question Packs are sets of discrete and passage-based questions organized by section and question type. The AAMC offers them in several formats:

• Biology Question Pack (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2)
• Chemistry Question Pack (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2)
• Physics Question Pack (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2)
• Behavioral Sciences Question Pack (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2)
• Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills (CARS) Question Packs (Vol. 1, 2, and 3)

Each volume contains a mix of passage-based and discrete questions, and you can practice them in a timed or untimed format.

How hard are the Question Packs?

Closer to actual MCAT difficulty than the Section Bank — though they’re slightly older and a bit more straightforward. Many students find the Question Packs feel similar to what they see on test day.

When to use the Question Packs

Question Packs are flexible — you can use them throughout your prep, not just at the end. They’re particularly useful for:

• Mid-prep targeted practice on specific subjects
• CARS practice (the CARS Question Packs are the most authentic CARS practice available outside of full-length tests)
• Drilling a weak section without doing a full-length exam

Section Bank vs. Question Packs: Quick Comparison

Which Should You Do First?

Question Packs first, Section Bank last. This is the near-universal recommendation, and it makes sense: do your volume practice on Question Packs while you’re building skills, then use the Section Bank as a final challenge to find any remaining gaps before test day.

If you’re short on time and can only do one: Question Packs if you’re early/mid prep, Section Bank if you’re in the final stretch.

How MCAT.tools Fits In

The MCAT.tools study plan automatically schedules AAMC resources — including Question Packs and the Section Bank — at the right phase of your prep. You don’t have to guess when to start them. The plan maps out your content review, practice questions, and full-length tests week by week, and AAMC materials show up at the right time.

Build your free personalized plan at mcat.tools.