Understand the PTE Academic — then beat it.
PTE Academic is a two-hour, computer-based English test used for study and migration. It's fully AI-scored on the Global Scale of English (10–90), and it tests your skills in an integrated way — your speaking affects your listening score, your reading affects your writing.
🔄 87 new questions added to the bank this week
Practise on the real timings from day one. Getting the pacing into muscle memory is half the exam.
The four skills
Speaking
Recorded and scored by AI on pronunciation, oral fluency, and content. You speak into the microphone against a countdown — there are no second chances, so pace yourself.
Tip: Keep a steady rhythm. Fluency (no long pauses or restarts) is worth as much as pronunciation.
Writing
Summaries and essays graded on content, form, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. Word counts are strict — going outside the range can zero the item.
Tip: For the essay, plan 2 body paragraphs, hit 200–300 words, and leave 2 minutes to proofread spelling.
Reading
Multiple-choice, re-ordering and fill-in-the-blanks, section-timed. Fill-in-the-blanks items carry the most marks per minute — do them first.
Tip: In multiple-answer questions, wrong picks cost you a mark each — only select what you're sure of.
Listening
Audio plays once. Tasks range from summaries to dictation. Write-from-Dictation and Highlight-Incorrect-Words are the highest-value, most learnable items.
Tip: For Write from Dictation, type function words too (a, the, of) — every correct word scores.