1.5 v4/v5 Transition Dates and Exam Version Choice

The transition calendar

The 2026 LEED Green Associate transition is date-driven, so use exact dates rather than vague phrases like 'the current exam.' The closeout and launch dates sit only a few days apart, which trips up candidates who assume registration, testing, and beta availability happened on the same day:

The data-collection phase (Apr 28 - Jun 30) is where the 30% discount and early-feedback benefits live; results are delayed because the data is being gathered. The testing-only phase (roughly Jul-Sep) follows and may shift depending on data-collection participation. The final v5 exam is expected in Q4 2026 and behaves like any live exam, with immediate on-screen results.

Two transition facts that prevent mistakes

First, v5 beta exams are English-only standalone exams. Translated v4 exam options ended with the v4 test deadline, so a candidate who relied on a non-English form cannot carry that over into the beta. Second, combined exams are not offered during the v5 beta. A combined exam lets a candidate take the Green Associate and a LEED AP specialty in one sitting; during the beta you must sit standalone exams. Do not assume the beta is just the old appointment with a new label.

Which version should you study?

If you are reading after the April 2026 v4 closeout, you are preparing for v5 — study the v5 blueprint, the v5 reference list (LEED Core Concepts Guide 5th edition, Foundations of LEED), and the delayed-result expectation for beta. Use v4 material only to reinforce a clearly shared concept, never for current domain weights. A practical transition checklist:

• Anchor every prep resource to a version and date: is it v4, v5 beta, or final v5?
• Use v5 domain emphasis when preparing for any 2026 exam after the v4 closeout.
• Drop translated- and combined-exam assumptions for the beta.
• Expect delayed scoring for beta and on-screen scoring for the final v5 exam.
• Remember the credential outcome is identical across all versions.

Why this still matters after 2026

Even candidates testing in 2027 should understand this calendar, because older study guides and practice banks reference v4 registration deadlines, v4 domain weights, and beta result delays that no longer apply. The safest behavior is to label each resource before trusting it: a practice set that still says 'nine domains, 85 scored questions' is built on the v4 blueprint, and its credit emphasis will not match v5. Pinning resources to a version keeps your study decisions tied to current facts rather than stale labels.

What changed conceptually from v4 to v5

Beyond dates, v5 reflects a strategic shift in LEED's priorities, and the exam mirrors it. LEED v5 organizes around three impact areas — decarbonization, quality of life, and ecological conservation and restoration — with decarbonization given particular prominence. That is why Energy and Atmosphere weighting climbs on the v5 blueprint. Expect v5 items to lean harder on operational and embodied carbon, electrification, climate resilience, and equity considerations than older v4 prep emphasized. A candidate who only memorizes v4 energy talking points will feel underprepared on a v5 form.

Decision flow for choosing what to study

• Testing in 2026 after April 26? You are on v5 — study the v5 blueprint and references exclusively for weights.
• Found a great v4 resource? Use it only for durable concepts (what a credit is, how tiers work), never for current domain counts.
• A resource quotes pass percentages or exact unscored counts? Distrust it; those figures are not published.
• A resource omits decarbonization/carbon emphasis? It is likely pre-v5 and under-weights the largest growth area.

Putting the chapter together

This orientation chapter is the scaffolding for everything that follows. You now know who owns and runs the exam (USGBC authors, GBCI administers), the logistics (Prometric delivery, $250/$200/$100 fees, 100 items in 120 minutes), the scoring guardrails (scaled 125-200, 170 to pass, no raw-percentage conversion), the 2026 transition calendar (v4 ended April 26, v5 beta from April 28, final v5 in Q4), and the domain map (eight v5 domains led by LEED Process and Energy and Atmosphere). Carry one habit into every later chapter: name the version and the fact type before you trust a claim.

A study model built on fewer, well-sourced facts applied under timed conditions beats a model crammed with confident-sounding but unverified numbers — and it is exactly what the analysis-level items reward.

Should you have waited for v5, or tested on v4?

This was the central transition question of early 2026, and the reasoning still illustrates how to choose under uncertainty. Testing on v4 before April 26 meant studying a mature, well-documented blueprint with abundant practice material and instant scoring — lower risk, but the material was about to be superseded. Testing on the v5 beta meant fresher content aligned with current LEED priorities and a 30% discount, but with delayed results, English-only delivery, and thinner prep resources. The pragmatic rule: if you were ready by April, v4 was the safe path; if not, v5 was inevitable and the beta discount softened the cost.

After the closeout, the choice is moot — everyone is on v5.

Reading dates correctly on the exam

Transition items love to test whether you can keep close dates straight. A classic trap pairs the v4 registration deadline (April 21) with the v4 testing deadline (April 26) and asks which is which. Another pairs the beta availability date (April 28) with the data-collection opt-in deadline (June 25). Anchor each date to its verb — register, test, become available, opt in — rather than memorizing a loose cluster of April dates. When a scenario gives you a candidate's action and a date, match the date to the correct phase before reading the answer options.