I’m in this boat with my daughters this year … here’s our approach. Their school offers Honors classes that track, but don’t mirror, AP curricula. We didn’t worry about APs in 9th and 10th grade, even if they were available to take. This year (11th), I have one daughter who is eligible to take (US History, Chem and Calc AB). The other daughter is eligible for two (US History and Bio). Both work extremely hard to get good grades but one picks things up faster than the other so has more free time for extracurriculars and a social life. The other burns the candle at both ends to get the grades.
AP tests have value in two areas in my opinion 1) College credit and 2) edge in admissions. We registered one daughter for all three APs and the other for none. Why, aside from the obvious reason of time requirements to study for the test? D1 will apply to extremely competitive schools and needs every edge she can get in highlighting her academic capabilities, particularly at large publics or standardized test focused schools. D2 will apply to smaller, less competitive schools where she’ll get a holistic look and the need for AP test scores won’t be as critical. Different kids, different goals, different decisions. We decided that earning credit was a distant second to the above items.