What is the passing score for PTE Academic, and how is it scored?

12 Jun 2026 · Answered by Shairal Pathak · 2 min read

Quick Answer verified

PTE Academic has no single universal pass mark. Scores range from 10 to 90 across four skills: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking. The score you need depends on your target university, program, and whether you are applying for admissions only or also for a UK student visa.

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PTE Academic does not have a single universal pass or fail mark. Scores range from 10 to 90 on an overall scale, with each of the four communicative skills (Listening, Reading, Writing, Speaking) also scored individually on the same 10-90 scale. The score you need depends entirely on the purpose, which university you are applying to, and whether the score is for admissions only or also for a UK visa.

PTE Academic Scoring Structure

Component	Score Range	What It Measures
Overall Score	10-90	Combined performance across all four skills
Listening	10-90	Ability to understand spoken English in academic and everyday contexts
Reading	10-90	Ability to comprehend written English passages
Writing	10-90	Ability to produce written responses, summaries, and essays
Speaking	10-90	Ability to produce spoken English responses (recorded by AI, not a human examiner)

What Score Do You Need? Common Benchmarks

Purpose	Minimum Overall / Per-Skill Score
UK student visa - below degree level (UKVI)	43 in each skill
UK student visa - degree level and above (UKVI)	59 in each skill
Post-92 university admissions (most programs)	Overall 51-55
Mid-tier universities (e.g., Coventry, Northumbria)	Overall 55-62
Russell Group universities (e.g., Edinburgh, Leeds)	Overall 59-69 (varies by program)
Nursing / NMC registered programs	65 in each skill
OSPAP pharmacy programs	73 in each skill (equivalent to IELTS 7.0 with no band below 7.0)

PTE vs IELTS Score Benchmarks

PTE Overall	IELTS Overall Equivalent
42-50	5.0
51-57	5.5
58-64	6.0-6.5
65-75	7.0
76-84	7.5
85-90	8.0-9.0

My Advice

Students often ask, "What is the passing score for PTE?" expecting a fixed number like a school exam cutoff. There is no single cutoff - your target score depends on your specific goal. The most practical approach is to identify your target university and course first, note their published PTE requirement, then add 3-5 points as a buffer. If your target university requires 62, aim for 65-67. Narrow margins leave no room for a slightly off-day performance. For visa purposes, every single skill must meet or exceed 59 (for degree-level study) with no exceptions - a 58 in Speaking when all others are 70+ will still result in a failed visa application.

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