- The CodeHS Web Development Level 1 exam covers four topic groups: JavaScript in HTML, jQuery, Storing and Collecting Data, and How to Build and Maintain a...
- The exam has 45 multiple-choice questions, a 90-minute limit, and a 60% passing score.
- CodeHS publishes no domain percentage weights, so do not trust any site claiming exact per-domain question counts.
- No reference sheet is provided; CodeHS suggests paper, a pencil, and a calculator instead.
How the Exam Is Organized
The CodeHS Web Development Level 1 Certification is a 45-question, multiple-choice exam delivered online in a single 90-minute sitting. The passing score is 60%. If you are new to the credential itself, start with What Is CHS-WDEV1 Certification? for the big picture, then return here for the content breakdown.
CodeHS groups the tested material under four top-level headings in its exam overview. This article walks through each one, explains what kinds of skills it implies, and flags where candidates commonly misjudge scope. Two caveats matter up front:
- These are official topic groups, not a weighted blueprint. CodeHS does not publish percentage weights or per-domain question counts, so equal study time per domain is a reasonable default unless your own practice results say otherwise.
- The four headings are not course modules. The recommended preparation course (CodeHS Web Development, or Web Design and Development) contains more units than the exam has domains. Do not assume one course unit equals one exam domain.
| Domain | Official Heading | Core Skill Type |
|---|---|---|
| Domain 1 | JavaScript in HTML | Reading and tracing code that manipulates a page |
| Domain 2 | jQuery | Selecting elements, responding to events, updating the page |
| Domain 3 | Storing and Collecting Data | Forms, user input, data handling, and analysis |
| Domain 4 | How to Build and Maintain a Website | Hosting, content management, and site upkeep |
Domain 1: JavaScript in HTML
This is the foundation domain. Everything else on the exam assumes you can read JavaScript that lives inside, or is linked from, an HTML page and predict what the browser will do with it.
Domain 1: JavaScript in HTML
Candidates should be comfortable connecting scripts to markup and understanding how code changes what a visitor sees.
- How a script is attached to an HTML document and when it runs relative to page loading
- Selecting and modifying page elements through the DOM
- Responding to user events such as clicks and input changes
- Functions, variables, conditionals, and loops used inside a web page context
- Callbacks and synchronization, which the issuer's exam overview expressly retains in scope
- Working with APIs, another item the overview expressly retains
What question style to expect
Because the exam is multiple choice and you cannot run code in another program or website, expect questions that ask you to read a snippet and identify its output, its bug, or the correct line to complete it. That makes code-tracing practice more valuable than memorizing syntax lists. Work through short snippets by hand on paper, which is exactly what CodeHS suggests bringing to the exam.
Callbacks and synchronization deserve extra attention
Many learners treat asynchronous behavior as an advanced extra. The exam overview explicitly keeps callbacks and synchronization in scope, so you should be able to explain why code that depends on a delayed result must run inside a callback, and what goes wrong when you assume instructions finish in written order. The same applies to API calls: know that a request returns data later, not immediately, and that your code must handle that gap.
Domain 2: jQuery
jQuery is its own named domain, which sets this exam apart from generic modern-JavaScript syllabi that skip it entirely. If you studied only vanilla JavaScript or a framework like React, you have a real gap to close. This is also why the exam should not be confused with other web credentials; see What Is CHS-WDEV1? for how this certification is defined.
Domain 2: jQuery
Candidates should be able to read and write the compact jQuery patterns used to find and change page content.
- Selecting elements by tag, class, and ID using the dollar-sign selector syntax
- Attaching event handlers and understanding what triggers them
- Reading and changing text, HTML content, attributes, and CSS properties
- Showing, hiding, and animating elements
- Reading form values with jQuery methods
- Understanding how jQuery relates to the underlying JavaScript it simplifies
Comparing the same task in two styles
A useful drill is to take one behavior, such as hiding a paragraph when a button is clicked, and write it both ways. Doing so shows you what jQuery abstracts away and helps you recognize correct versus subtly wrong jQuery on a multiple-choice item. Watch for common distractors: a missing period or hash symbol in a selector, an event method attached to the wrong element, or a method that reads a value being used where one that sets a value is needed.
Domain 3: Storing and Collecting Data
This domain covers how a website gathers information from visitors and what happens to that information afterward. The issuer's exam overview expressly retains forms and user-data analysis within it.
Domain 3: Storing and Collecting Data
Candidates should understand how data enters a site, how it is represented, and how it is examined.
- Building forms and choosing appropriate input types
- Reading values a user enters and validating them
- Understanding what happens to data after submission
- Analyzing user data to draw conclusions about how a site is used
- Considering responsible handling of information collected from visitors
Preparation topics adjacent to this domain
The CodeHS Web Development course outline includes JSON, cookies, and local storage. These are verified preparation-curriculum topics, but they are not listed as separate exam objectives, and CodeHS does not claim the exam covers them exhaustively. A sensible approach: learn them well enough that data-storage questions never feel foreign, but do not let them crowd out the headings the overview actually names. Treat them as supporting context for this domain rather than guaranteed test content.
Domain 4: How to Build and Maintain a Website
The fourth domain moves from code to the practical life of a real site. The issuer's overview expressly retains hosting and CMS use here, which surprises candidates who expect only programming questions.
Domain 4: How to Build and Maintain a Website
Candidates should understand the steps and tools involved in putting a site online and keeping it running.
- What hosting is and what it means to publish a site so others can reach it
- How a content management system (CMS) differs from hand-coded pages, and when each makes sense
- Planning, building, testing, and updating a site over time
- Maintenance responsibilities after launch
These items are conceptual, so reading and reasoning serve you better than coding practice here. Be ready to choose the best approach for a stated scenario, such as a non-programmer who needs to update content regularly versus a developer building a custom interactive feature.
What the Domain List Does Not Tell You
Candidates often search for exact numbers: how many questions come from each domain, what share are unscored, or what the pass rate is. None of that has been verified for this exam.
- No domain weights are published. The four headings are unweighted.
- No scored/unscored item split was verified.
- No official pass rate was verified. The 60% figure is the score you must achieve, not the share of candidates who pass. See CHS-WDEV1 Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows and CHS-WDEV1 Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass for the distinction.
On 45 questions, a 60% threshold means getting 27 correct. That arithmetic is the only hard target available, and it leaves room for weakness in one area if you are strong elsewhere. If you want to gauge overall difficulty with that in mind, read How Hard Is the CHS-WDEV1 Exam?
Key Takeaway
Treat the four domains as equally important until your own practice results show otherwise, then shift time toward your weakest heading. You can verify your readiness with realistic questions on the main practice test site.
Sequencing Your Prep by Domain
Domain order matters because the topics build on each other. JavaScript in HTML comes first because jQuery and form handling both depend on it. Here is one sequence that follows that dependency chain; for a fuller plan, see the CHS-WDEV1 Study Guide 2026.
JavaScript in HTML
- Trace small scripts by hand on paper
- Practice callbacks and execution order
- Review how API responses arrive later than the code that requests them
jQuery
- Rewrite Week 1 behaviors using jQuery selectors and events
- Drill selector syntax and common distractor mistakes
Storing and Collecting Data
- Work through form inputs and value handling
- Review user-data analysis concepts
- Skim JSON, cookies, and local storage as supporting context
Build and Maintain, then full review
- Cover hosting and CMS scenarios
- Take timed practice sets covering all four domains
- Revisit your weakest heading
For a compact refresher in the final days, the CHS-WDEV1 Cheat Sheet 2026 condenses the must-know facts onto one page.
Exam-Day Mechanics That Affect Your Domain Strategy
Some policies directly shape how you should prepare for each domain.
- No reference sheet. CodeHS provides none for Web Development, so syntax details must live in your head. CodeHS suggests paper, a pencil, and a calculator.
- No outside help. External websites, collaboration, sharing exam questions, and running code in another website or program are prohibited. Practice reading code without executing it.
- Single sitting. The 90 minutes cover 45 questions, which averages two minutes per question. Do not spend five minutes on one tracing problem.
- Focus Mode. It blocks navigation to other CodeHS pages. It is not described as a system-wide browser lockdown, but the Honor Code still applies.
- Randomized questions. Questions are randomly selected, so you cannot predict which domain will feel heaviest on a given attempt.
Vouchers permit one attempt each, and retakes require another purchased voucher. CodeHS provides school and district voucher pricing by direct quote, and no public numeric fee was verified, so check with your teacher or district. For more detail see CHS-WDEV1 Certification Cost 2026 and CHS-WDEV1 Requirements 2026. Notably, there are no prerequisites; the Web Development course is recommended preparation, not a requirement.
Results arrive within 36 hours on school days, with an overall score and a topic-level performance report. That report is useful if you retake: it shows which of the four areas dragged your score down. Earned certificates expire after 10 years.
Frequently Asked Questions
The CodeHS Web Development Level 1 exam overview lists four top-level topic groups: JavaScript in HTML, jQuery, Storing and Collecting Data, and How to Build and Maintain a Website. They are official topic groups rather than a weighted blueprint.
No weights have been published. The four headings are unweighted, so avoid sources that claim exact per-domain question counts. Distribute your study time evenly, then adjust based on practice results.
They appear in the CodeHS Web Development course outline as preparation topics, but they are not separately listed as exam objectives. Learn them as supporting context, and prioritize the headings the exam overview names.
Yes. jQuery is a named domain on this exam, so you should be able to read and write common selectors, event handlers, and element updates. Learning both styles side by side helps you spot incorrect options.
See Is the CHS-WDEV1 Certification Worth It? and CHS-WDEV1 Jobs for a qualitative look at how the credential is used, and review the full domain breakdown any time at CHS-WDEV1 Exam Domains 2026.