1.1 Current PSM I Exam Facts

About the PSM I Assessment

Quick Answer: PSM I (Professional Scrum Master I) is an online Scrum.org assessment of 80 questions in 60 minutes, costing $150 USD, with an 85% passing score (68 of 80 correct). It has no prerequisites, can be taken any time without booking, and the certification never expires.

The Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I) assessment is offered by Scrum.org, the organization co-founded in 2009 by Ken Schwaber — a co-creator of Scrum and co-author of the Scrum Guide. PSM I validates a foundational understanding of the Scrum framework and the accountabilities of the Scrum Master, measured strictly against the official 2020 Scrum Guide. It is a knowledge assessment, not a course completion certificate: you earn it by answering questions correctly, not by attending a class.

Scrum.org positions PSM I in its beginner/foundational tier, alongside Professional Scrum Product Owner I (PSPO I) and Professional Scrum Developer (PSD). Holding it signals to employers that you understand Scrum as written and can apply it within a Scrum Team. Because the credential is globally recognized and inexpensive relative to many IT certifications, it is one of the most common first agile certifications candidates pursue.

Exam Format At A Glance

What "No Prerequisites" Really Means

Unlike many professional certifications, PSM I has no required training course, work experience, or academic qualification. Anyone can purchase an assessment password and attempt it. Scrum.org sells the password separately from any class, so you can self-study using free resources — the 2020 Scrum Guide, the free Scrum Open practice assessment, and this OpenExamPrep guide — and still sit the official assessment. Attending an official Professional Scrum Master course (PSM) typically includes one attempt and a second free attempt if taken within 14 days, but training is optional, not mandatory.

The Time Pressure Is Real

With 80 questions in 60 minutes, you have roughly 45 seconds per question. This is one of the defining challenges of PSM I. The questions are not trivially worded — many are scenario-based, and several are multiple-select, where you must identify every correct option with no partial credit. A single misread of a Scrum Guide term can flip an answer.

Practical pacing checkpoints

• By minute 15, you should have reached question 20.
• By minute 30, you should have reached question 40.
• By minute 45, you should have reached question 60.
• Leave the final minutes to review questions you flagged.

Reading the 2020 Scrum Guide until its terminology feels automatic is the single best defense against the clock — recall must be fast, not laboured. Candidates who fail often know the material but run out of time re-reading questions because the vocabulary is not yet second nature.

How PSM I Compares To PSM II And PSM III

Scrum.org offers three Professional Scrum Master levels, plus a parallel Product Owner track:

PSM I is the entry point. You do not need PSM I to attempt PSM II or PSM III, but most candidates start here because it builds the precise vocabulary the higher levels assume. Notice that PSM II has fewer questions but more time each — it rewards judgment over recall, the opposite of PSM I's speed test.

How PSM I Fits The Wider Scrum.org Map

Scrum.org maintains several parallel certification tracks beyond the Scrum Master line, all assessed against the same 2020 Scrum Guide. Understanding the map helps you see what PSM I does and does not cover, and where you might go next.

PSPO I shares PSM I's exact format — 80 questions, 60 minutes, 85% to pass — but it views Scrum through the Product Owner lens (value, the Product Backlog, stakeholders) rather than the Scrum Master lens (team effectiveness, facilitation, removing impediments). Many candidates earn both PSM I and PSPO I because roughly half of each exam overlaps on shared framework knowledge.

What PSM I deliberately does not test

• Tools and metrics such as Jira, burndown charts, velocity, or story points — these are popular practices, not part of Scrum's definition.
• Scaling multiple teams (covered by SPS / the Nexus framework).
• People-management topics like hiring, performance reviews, or salary — outside the framework entirely.

Knowing these exclusions is itself exam-useful: when an option leans on a tool, a metric, or a management activity that the Scrum Guide never mentions, it is almost always a distractor. The whole PSM I assessment stays inside the boundary the Guide draws.