Scoring · Score Chart
PTE Score Chart 2026: How the 10-90 Score Is Built
A plain-English PTE score chart: how the 10-90 scale is built from 22 question types, what each task is worth, and the CEFR and IELTS score bands.
Wobzzy Editorial · PTE preparation ·
PTE Academic does not give you a percentage. It reports an overall score from 10 to 90, four communicative skills scores (Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing), and a diagnostic Skills Profile. Your overall score is not the average of those four skills, and it is not a count of correct answers. It is built question by question, with each question type carrying its own weighting, then converted to the 10-90 scale through Pearson's scaled scoring model.
This guide is the chart behind that sentence. It shows how the score is built, what each of the 22 question types is worth, and how the 10-90 bands map to CEFR and to IELTS.
What the PTE score chart shows
A PTE Academic score report contains three things:
- Overall score (10-90): performance across the whole test.
- Communicative skills (10-90 each): Listening, Reading, Speaking, Writing.
- Skills Profile (no score): relative strengths in grammar, oral fluency, pronunciation, spelling, vocabulary and written discourse. It is a diagnostic, not a result.
Two things follow from that, and both surprise a lot of test takers:
- The overall score is not the average of your four skills. Pearson says this plainly: the overall score is not an average calculation of the communicative skills scores. Averaging the four skills also double-counts integrated tasks, which feed two skills at once.
- The scale is not a percentage. 90 is the top of the Global Scale of English (GSE), not 100%. A score of 65 is a strong, migration-level result. It is nowhere near 65%.
How the 10-90 score is actually built
Pearson builds each score in three layers. Understanding them is what stops you misreading the chart.
- Your raw performance on each question. Multiple choice is marked right or wrong (one point). Speaking and writing tasks use partial credit: content, pronunciation, oral fluency, form, grammar, vocabulary and spelling can each add points. A blank or off-topic response scores zero.
- Question weighting. Each question type contributes a different share of your overall score and of each skill score. This is the table below. It is why one Describe Image can matter more than several multiple-choice questions.
- Question difficulty and scaled scoring. Harder, pre-tested questions are calibrated differently, and Pearson's proprietary model converts everything onto the 10-90 scale. Pearson states its scoring models are proprietary and that no external party has access to the difficulty data or the algorithm.
So the weighting table tells you where to spend practice time. It does not let you calculate an exact score.
PTE question weightage: what each question type is worth
This is the chart students search for. Percentages are the indicative average contribution of each question type to that score on a typical test, as published by Pearson. Cells that are blank mean the task does not feed that skill.
| Question type | Overall | Listening | Reading | Speaking | Writing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Describe Image | 15% | 31% | |||
| Summarize Group Discussion | 9% | 20% | 19% | ||
| Repeat Sentence | 7% | 17% | 16% | ||
| Summarize Written Text | 7% | 23% | 28% | ||
| Write Essay | 7% | 31% | |||
| Reading: Fill in the Blanks (Dropdown) | 7% | 25% | |||
| Retell Lecture | 6% | 13% | 13% | ||
| Respond to a Situation | 6% | 13% | |||
| Reading: Fill in the Blanks (Drag and Drop) | 6% | 20% | |||
| Write from Dictation | 5% | 13% | 23% | ||
| Read Aloud | 4% | 9% | |||
| Summarize Spoken Text | 4% | 10% | 18% | ||
| Highlight Incorrect Words | 4% | 8% | 13% | ||
| Reorder Paragraph | 3% | 9% | |||
| Listening: Fill in the Blanks (Type In) | 3% | 8% | |||
| Answer Short Question | 2% | 4% | |||
| Reading: Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers | 1% | 5% | |||
| Listening: Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers | 1% | 3% | |||
| Select Missing Word | 1% | 1% | |||
| Reading: Multiple Choice, Single Answer | 0.5% | 3% | |||
| Highlight Correct Summary | 0.5% | 2% | 3% | ||
| Listening: Multiple Choice, Single Answer | 0.5% | 2% |
Source: Pearson, PTE Academic: Scoring Information for Teachers and Partners (Table 1). Percentages are indicative averages and do not sum to exactly 100 because of rounding. Confirm the current table at pearsonpte.com before you rely on a number.
Three things the table tells you straight away
- Extended speaking dominates the overall score. Describe Image alone is about 15% of your overall score, and about 31% of your Speaking score. Summarize Group Discussion is about 9% overall. Tasks where you produce long, connected speech carry the biggest share.
- Integrated tasks pay twice. Summarize Written Text feeds Reading (23%) and Writing (28%). Repeat Sentence feeds Listening (17%) and Speaking (16%). Write from Dictation feeds Listening (13%) and Writing (23%). If a task appears in two columns, a weakness there drags two scores down at once.
- Multiple choice is small. The single-answer multiple-choice tasks are worth 0.5% to 1% of the overall score. They still count, but they are not where your score is won or lost.
Which tasks are also marked by a human
While every question type is scored by AI, seven types also get a human expert review of Content before the score is final: Describe Image, Retell Lecture, Respond to a Situation, Summarize Group Discussion, Summarize Written Text, Write Essay and Summarize Spoken Text. Write Essay is also reviewed for Development, Structure and Coherence, and General Linguistic Range. Everything else is AI-scored.
The PTE score bands: what your 10-90 result means
The 10-90 scale maps to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). This is the score chart side that tells you what a number means, not where it came from.
| PTE overall score | CEFR level | What it broadly means |
|---|---|---|
| 85-90 | C2 | Understands virtually everything heard or read; expresses meaning precisely |
| 76-84 | C1 | Uses language fluently and flexibly for academic and professional purposes |
| 59-75 | B2 | Handles complex text and technical discussion in a familiar field |
| 43-58 | B1 | Copes with familiar work, school and travel situations |
| 30-42 | A2 | Handles simple, routine exchanges on familiar matters |
| 10-29 | A1 or below | Uses very basic everyday phrases |
Source: Pearson PTE Academic Test Taker Score Guide (July 2025). CEFR alignment is unchanged from the previous guide. Confirm current policy at pearsonpte.com.
For context on where institutions usually set the bar, Pearson's own guidance to universities is a typical overall requirement of 36-50 for foundation courses, 51-60 for undergraduate degrees and 57-67 for postgraduate degrees. Migration points, especially in Australia, are set by the government, not by Pearson, and are often higher. Always check the official source for the visa or institution you are applying to.
PTE to IELTS score chart
Pearson publishes an approximate concordance between PTE Academic and IELTS Academic (updated July 2025). It compares overall scores. The table below is the same one Wobzzy's free PTE to IELTS converter uses, so the chart and the tool never disagree.
| IELTS Academic | PTE Academic overall |
|---|---|
| 4.0 | 10-23 |
| 4.5 | 24-30 |
| 5.0 | 31-38 |
| 5.5 | 39-46 |
| 6.0 | 47-54 |
| 6.5 | 55-62 |
| 7.0 | 63-70 |
| 7.5 | 71-78 |
| 8.0 | 79-85 |
| 8.5 | 86-89 |
| 9.0 | 90-90 |
Source: Pearson PTE Academic Test Taker Score Guide and Concordance-study summary (July 2025). The same locked table backs /tools/pte-ielts-converter. A concordance is an estimate of how two tests relate; it is not a conversion and not a guarantee of acceptance. Institutions and visa programs decide which tests they accept and what score they ask for. Confirm current policy at pearsonpte.com before you rely on a number.
For a quick side-by-side estimate of your own score, use the free PTE to IELTS converter in our tools. It is approximate, and it does not replace the institution's own requirement.
How to use the PTE score chart to plan your practice
Translate the numbers into a priority order:
- Protect the highest-weighted speaking tasks first. Describe Image, Summarize Group Discussion, Repeat Sentence and Retell Lecture together are a large share of the overall and Speaking scores. These reward structure, pace and clear pronunciation, and they are trainable.
- Drill the double-counting integrated tasks. Summarize Written Text, Write from Dictation and Repeat Sentence each lift two skills. Fixing them improves two of your four skill scores.
- Do not skip the reading fill-in-the-blanks tasks. The Dropdown (25% of Reading) and Drag and Drop (20% of Reading) formats are the backbone of the Reading score.
- Treat single-answer multiple choice as maintenance. Real practice, low weight. Do not build your whole week around it.
- Use the Skills Profile as a diagnostic, not a score. It shows which enabling skills (fluency, pronunciation, grammar and so on) are comparatively weak, which is where your next practice block should point.
Common myths about the PTE score chart
Each skill is worth 25%
No. The four skills are calculated separately from the questions that feed them, and integrated tasks feed two skills at once. Describe Image and a single-answer multiple choice are not worth the same.
My overall score is the average of my four skills
No. Pearson states the overall is not an average of the communicative skills. It is calculated directly from your performance across every question.
The percentage is how many I got right
No. The 10-90 scale is the Global Scale of English. The weighting percentages tell you a task's share of a score, not your accuracy.
I can add up the weights and predict my score
No. Question difficulty and proprietary scaling sit between the raw marks and the 10-90 result.
The Skills Profile is my score
No. It is a diagnostic view of relative strengths. The scored items are the overall and the four communicative skills.
FAQ
Is the PTE overall score out of 100?
No. It is out of 90, on the Global Scale of English.
How many question types are in PTE Academic?
22, once the August 2025 additions (Summarize Group Discussion and Respond to a Situation) are counted. PTE Core, used for Canadian pathways, has 19.
What is the most important PTE question type?
By indicative overall weighting, Describe Image, at around 15%. But the most important for you is usually the high-weight task that is currently weakest.
Is the weighting table the same on every test?
No. The published figures are indicative averages for a typical test, and your test's exact mix and difficulty will differ.
Does the chart apply to PTE Core?
Not directly. PTE Core has its own format of 19 question types and is scored separately.
Plan your practice against the real chart
Bookmark this page and come back after a mock test. Line your Skills Profile up against the weight table: the tasks that carry the most weight and sit lowest on your profile are where the next hour of practice should go.
Wobzzy is independent practice, not the official test. Practice and full mock tests are free forever; AI scoring is the paid part, so you can drill the chart again and again before you decide it is worth a score.
Start with a free full mock test, or see what AI scoring costs when you want a deeper read.
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