so my neighbor is a ham and got me interested and I decided to just go for it and get my ticket but honestly I dont even know where to start. I looked up the question pool online and its like 400+ questions and I dont know if I should just memorize all of them or actually try to understand the material. someone told me to use hamstudy.org but then someone else said to get the ARRL handbook or study guide or whatever its called. is there a faster way to do this? I work full time so I dont have hours every day to study. also does the actual test have the exact same questions as the question pool or are they like reworded versions

yeah hamstudy.org is honestly the move if you just want to pass and get on the air. the questions on the actual exam are word for word from the pool, they dont reword anything, so once you can consistently score 80+ percent on the practice tests you're probably ready. I studied maybe 2-3 weeks doing like 20 minutes a night and passed fine. the electrical theory stuff tripped me up at first but there's only so many of those questions and most of the test is rules and operating procedures which you kind of pick up just from reading.

the ARRL tech book is good if you actually want to understand why things work the way they do but its not necessary just to pass. some people like having the book though, kind of depends on how your brain works.

the exact questions thing is true, I was surprised when I sat down for the exam and recognized every single one. just use the flash card mode on hamstudy and grind it for a couple weeks. honestly the hardest part for most new people is the ohms law and decibel stuff but even that isnt too bad once you see the pattern. dont overthink it