What is in the 12th Edition package
Seven subject books, three full-length MCATs and 44 mini-MCATs. That practice volume is the headline difference: the big two ship three tests with their sets, and ExamKrackers ships those plus 44 shorter section exams designed to be worked in a sitting.
The set is deliberately leaner than Kaplan's. That is a design decision rather than a shortcut, and the material it cuts is largely low-yield. For most students the result is a set they finish.
Why the writing matters more than the page count
ExamKrackers is written by someone with an argument, and it reads that way: conversational, opinionated, and willing to say that a topic is not worth your time. No other publisher on this page does that, and it is the single most useful thing about the set, because the scarce resource in MCAT prep is attention rather than information.
It is also the only set here that teaches approach alongside content. The mini-MCATs exist so you practise applying it rather than reading about it, which is a meaningfully different product from a content review that happens to include questions.
The CARS book deserves its reputation and sells separately, so it is a reasonable standalone purchase even if you use another publisher for the sciences.
One thing to watch when you buy
ExamKrackers now runs Krack University, a subscription platform at $695 for 90 days with live tutoring six days a week included. The branding now spans both, which makes it easy to buy the platform when you wanted the books, or the reverse.
They are separate products solving different problems. Decide which you are buying before you reach the checkout.
How it compares with the other sets
ExamKrackers against the other MCAT book sets we review. This compares books with books. Where coaching fits is a separate question, covered further down.
| ExamKrackers | The alternatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | ||
| List price | Varies by retailer, consistently below the big two | Kaplan about $299.99; Princeton Review $259.99 |
| What you get | ||
| Content coverage | Leaner by design; cuts low-yield material | Kaplan and Princeton Review are more exhaustive |
| Explanation quality | The clearest in MCAT print | The big two are thorough but denser |
| Strategy content | Teaches approach, not only content | Kaplan and Princeton Review are content-led |
| CARS coverage | The long-standing favourite in this market | Princeton Review CARS is its weakest volume |
| Practice included | 3 full-length MCATs plus 44 mini-MCATs | Kaplan and Princeton Review offer 3 tests each |
| Currency | ||
| Edition freshness | 12th Edition, 2026–2027 | Kaplan revises annually; Barron’s is dated |
| Branding clarity | Now bundled under Krack University | The big two keep books and courses separate |
Free quiz
The Unbiased MCAT Prep Course Decision Quiz
Three different problems stall an MCAT score, and buying the wrong fix costs months. Six questions sort out which one is yours and what to spend on it. We name competitors and free resources when they beat us, and say so when the answer is spend nothing.
No email required. Your plan appears on screen.
Transparency, before you start. We sell MCAT tutoring and courses, so here are the rules this quiz follows.
- Zero budget, nothing paid. Free resources only, and we say so.
- Content gap, buy content first. From whoever does it best, which is usually not us. Our tutoring comes up only as an optional add-on for a big gap.
- Competitors named and linked when they beat us: UWorld, Kaplan, Blueprint, ExamKrackers, Khan Academy.
- We appear only where we fit, with the budget to match, and always beside a cheaper option.
- Our free MCAT resources show up wherever they fit, and they ask for nothing.
Where books fit, and where they do not
Every set on this page is a content resource. That is worth saying plainly, because it decides whether buying one is a good use of your money.
Books are excellent at closing content gaps. If there are topics you have never properly learned, a well-written set will teach them, at your pace, for a fraction of what a course charges. This is the case books are built for and they do it well.
Books cannot watch you work. They cannot see that you commit to an answer before finishing the passage, or that you lose four minutes on the first CARS passage every time. The most common thing students write to us about is finishing a full content resource, retaining it, and sitting at the same practice score. No book fixes that, because the problem is not knowledge.
What we would actually recommend. Buy the official AAMC material first, because nothing substitutes for questions written by the people who write the exam. Add one book set if you have real content gaps. Add a question bank. Only then consider paying for hours with a person, and only if your score has stalled while you already know the material.
We sell coaching, so read that ordering knowing what we sell. It is also the order we would give a friend who was never going to buy anything from us.
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