PTE Score Chart Explained: What 10-90 Really Means (2026)

Fact-checked by Kooroo on 30 October 2026 for the requirements and scoring comparisons corrected here. Requirements can change, and we may make mistakes. Check the official source before booking a test or making an application. Sources: Pearson July 2025 concordance, Home Affairs Superior English, IRCC language tests.

PTE Academic reports an overall score and four skill scores on a 10-90 scale. Pearson's July 2025 overall concordance places PTE 63-70 alongside IELTS 7.0 and PTE 79-85 alongside IELTS 8.0. Concordance is an approximate relationship between tests, not an admissions or visa decision. Your overall score is not a simple average of the four skill scores.

Score requirements change and differ by country and institution. Always verify your exact target on the official Pearson scoring guide and your university or immigration authority's website before booking.

What is the PTE score chart?

The PTE score chart is the 10-90 scale Pearson uses to report every PTE Academic result, aligned to the Global Scale of English. You receive five numbers: an overall score and four communicative skill scores (Speaking, Writing, Reading, and Listening) each reported on the same 10-90 scale. There are no "bands" like IELTS; every single point from 10 to 90 is a possible score.

Pearson groups the scale into CEFR levels so institutions can read your level instantly. This is the official mapping:

• 85-90: C2 · Near-native command; understands virtually everything heard or read
• 76-84: C1 · Fluent, spontaneous English; above most undergraduate requirements
• 59-75: B2 · Confident academic English; the range most universities ask for
• 43-58: B1 · Handles familiar topics; entry level for some pathways and visas
• 30-42: A2 · Simple, routine exchanges only
• 10-29: A1 · Basic phrases and everyday expressions

Three milestone scores matter more than the rest because universities anchor to them: 50 (roughly IELTS 6.0), 65 (IELTS 7.0), and 79 (IELTS 8.0). These are overall-score milestones, not Australia's current migration thresholds; Australia moved to per-skill minimums on 7 August 2025, covered later in this guide. Deciding which milestone you need is the single most useful thing you can do before you start preparing: the PTE exam pattern 2026 guide shows what you'll face on test day.

How is the PTE overall score calculated?

The PTE overall score is calculated from your performance on every scored item in the test: it is not an average of your four skill scores. Pearson weighs all your responses across the whole test, which is why your overall score often sits a point or two away from what averaging Speaking, Writing, Reading, and Listening would give you.

Two mechanics on the scoring system catch most test-takers by surprise:

1. Tasks are integrated: one answer feeds two scores. Repeat Sentence counts toward Listening and Speaking. Write from Dictation counts toward Listening and Writing. Summarize Written Text feeds Reading and Writing. Neglecting one "small" task can quietly drag down two skills at once.
2. Partial credit is everywhere, and some tasks subtract. Most items award points for each correct element rather than all-or-nothing. But multiple-answer multiple-choice and Highlight Incorrect Words deduct a point for every wrong selection (never below zero on the item), so guessing extra options costs marks.

Since the August 2025 refresh, PTE Academic combines automated scoring with human review of content on seven task types. Read the task-specific criteria in Pearson's current Score Guide. A practice platform does not reproduce Pearson's scoring engine.

What is the PTE to IELTS score conversion?

Pearson's July 2025 overall concordance places PTE 50 in the IELTS 6.0 band, PTE 65 in the IELTS 7.0 band and PTE 79 in the IELTS 8.0 band. These are approximate overall comparisons. They do not replace separate skill requirements or a receiving organisation's acceptance rules.

• 90: IELTS 9.0.
• 86-89: IELTS 8.5.
• 79-85: IELTS 8.0.
• 71-78: IELTS 7.5.
• 63-70: IELTS 7.0.
• 55-62: IELTS 6.5.
• 47-54: IELTS 6.0.
• 39-46: IELTS 5.5.
• 31-38: IELTS 5.0.
• 24-30: IELTS 4.5.

These are overall-score bands from Pearson's own concordance, not Australia's per-skill migration requirements. Australia's Competent, Proficient and Superior English labels do not map cleanly onto this table any more, since each now sets a different minimum per skill rather than one overall number; see the Australia section below for the real thresholds.

Use Pearson's July 2025 concordance for the overall table above. The report also includes separate skill-level concordance; do not apply the overall table to individual skills. Institutions and authorities set their own requirements. Our score converter provides an approximate comparison, not proof that a particular result will be accepted.

What PTE score do you need for Australia, Canada, and the UK?

For Australia, the flat 50/65/79-in-each-skill rule you may have seen elsewhere is out of date. For a PTE Academic test sat on or after 7 August 2025, Home Affairs uses different minimums per skill: Competent English needs at least Listening 47, Reading 48, Writing 51, Speaking 54 (0 points); Proficient needs Listening 58, Reading 59, Writing 69, Speaking 76 (10 points); Superior needs Listening 69, Reading 70, Writing 85, Speaking 88 (20 points). Points are assessed on your lowest communicative skill, not your overall score, and Writing and Speaking now need noticeably more than Listening and Reading. Our PTE Superior English 2026 guide covers why the gap is so uneven and what to practise first.

For Express Entry, IRCC accepts PTE Core, not PTE Academic, and maps each language skill to CLB. Some Canadian institutions accept PTE Academic for admission. Admission and study-permit requirements are separate, so check both before booking. The Canada guide explains the Express Entry distinction.

UK requirements depend on the institution, visa route and evidence you use. A degree-level higher education provider may assess English itself. If your route requires a four-skill SELT, use an approved test such as PTE Academic UKVI. Check GOV.UK student guidance and Skilled Worker guidance, including other accepted evidence and transitional rules.

Why is one of your skill scores lower than the rest?

One skill usually lags because the integrated tasks feeding it are underperforming, not because you're weak at that skill in isolation. Since many tasks score two skills at once, a low Listening score is often caused by weak Write from Dictation answers, and a low Reading score frequently traces back to rushed Re-order Paragraphs or Summarize Written Text attempts.

Use this decision rule to find the real culprit:

• Speaking: Read Aloud, Repeat Sentence, Describe Image: fluency and pronunciation drive it
• Writing: Write from Dictation, Summarize Written Text, Summarize Spoken Text: not just the essay
• Reading: R&W Fill in the Blanks, Re-order Paragraphs, Highlight Incorrect Words
• Listening: Write from Dictation, Summarize Spoken Text, Highlight Incorrect Words

The practical consequence: fixing one high-value task lifts two scores simultaneously. Write from Dictation is the classic example: a few weeks of daily drills typically moves both Listening and Writing.

What score should you target? (a decision plan)

Set your target one milestone above the minimum your goal requires, in every skill, not just overall. Requirements check your lowest skill, test-day nerves cost a few points, and retakes cost money and weeks. Aiming for the exact minimum is the most common planning mistake we see.

Work through this once before you book:

• Write down the exact requirement from the official university or immigration page, overall and per-skill.
• Add a buffer: target at least 3-5 points above every minimum.
• Take a scored mock test to find your current baseline for all four skills.
• Identify your lowest skill and list the integrated tasks that feed it (table above).
• Book your test date only when mocks put every skill at or above target.

Use Kooroo practice to identify mistakes you can work on, then compare your next attempt. A free Kooroo account lets you attempt questions and sit mocks. Free questions include marking and applicable AI feedback; free mocks include reports. A one-time VIP pass unlocks marking and feedback on premium questions and reports for premium mocks. Kooroo scores are practice estimates, not official Pearson results or predictions of an examiner's decision.