Most students who miss their PTE target do not have an English problem. They have a scoring problem. PTE marks every response against fixed criteria such as content, form, grammar, vocabulary, spelling, oral fluency and pronunciation. Not every task uses every criterion, and once you know which rules apply where, you can stop practising the wrong things.
Scores from 10 to 90
You receive an overall score and four skill scores: Speaking, Writing, Reading and Listening, each from 10 to 90. The overall score is calculated from your performance across all questions in the test, so it is not an average of the four skills. See our PTE score chart for what each score means.
Integrated tasks: one answer, two skills
Eight PTE tasks score two skills at once. The percentages below come from Pearson's question weightings and show how much of each skill score a task carries on an average test.
| Task | Skills scored (share of that skill) |
|---|---|
| Repeat Sentence | Speaking 16%, Listening 17% |
| Retell Lecture | Speaking 13%, Listening 13% |
| Summarize Group Discussion | Speaking 19%, Listening 20% |
| Summarize Written Text | Reading 23%, Writing 28% |
| Summarize Spoken Text | Listening 10%, Writing 18% |
| Highlight Correct Summary | Listening 2%, Reading 3% |
| Highlight Incorrect Words | Listening 8%, Reading 13% |
| Write from Dictation | Listening 13%, Writing 23% |
Some task names suggest two skills but score only one. Read Aloud scores Speaking only (9%), not Reading. Answer Short Question scores Listening only (4%), even though you answer by speaking. Reading and Writing Fill in the Blanks scores Reading only (25%), not Writing, despite its name. Listening Fill in the Blanks scores Listening only (8%).
The biggest task in each skill
| Skill | Biggest tasks (Pearson's question weightings) |
|---|---|
| Speaking | Describe Image 31%, Summarize Group Discussion 19%, Repeat Sentence 16% |
| Writing | Write Essay 31%, Summarize Written Text 28%, Write from Dictation 23% |
| Reading | Reading and Writing Fill in the Blanks 25%, Summarize Written Text 23%, Reading Fill in the Blanks 20% |
| Listening | Summarize Group Discussion 20%, Repeat Sentence 17%, Retell Lecture and Write from Dictation 13% each |
Describe Image is also the biggest task in the whole test, at 15% of the overall score. Two students with the same overall score can need completely different help. One may need Describe Image content and fluency, the other dictation spelling.
Form: the rules that can zero a response
Some tasks have strict form rules. Break them and the whole response can score zero, however good the English is.
- Summarize Written Text: one sentence, 5 to 75 words.
- Write Essay: 200 to 300 words for full form marks. Far outside that range scores zero.
- Summarize Spoken Text: 50 to 70 words.
A brilliant 320-word essay can score worse than an average 250-word one. That is not unfair. It is mechanical.
Speaking: content, fluency and pronunciation
Describe Image, Retell Lecture and Summarize Group Discussion are marked on three things: content, oral fluency and pronunciation. Grammar is not marked in these tasks, so a small slip in a detail costs little.
- Content means covering the key points of the image, lecture or discussion.
- Oral fluency rewards a steady pace with no long pauses, no repeated words and no restarts.
- Pronunciation rewards clear, understandable speech, not a particular accent.
Students who pause to find the perfect word lose more than students who keep moving with a simpler word. Put structures into your own words and fill them with the real content of the question, so you do not sound like you are reciting a template.
Writing: content, form, grammar, vocabulary and spelling
Writing tasks are marked on content, form, grammar, vocabulary and spelling, and the essay is also marked on how well it is organised. Unlike the speaking tasks above, grammar counts here, including in Summarize Spoken Text. Spelling decides every point in Write from Dictation. Small, repeated errors (missing articles, plurals, verb endings, common academic words) cost marks across many questions.
How to find the skill capping your score
- Take one full scored mock test.
- Compare each skill with your target using our score calculator.
- Look at the tasks that feed your weakest skill, starting with the biggest ones in the tables above.
- Fix the criterion that is failing: content, fluency, form, grammar or spelling.
Frequently asked questions
Is PTE marked by a computer?
Yes. Pearson's scoring engine marks every response against fixed criteria, which is why you can practise against them. Put structures into your own words and fill them with the real content of the question, so you do not sound like you are reciting a template.
Is grammar marked in Describe Image?
No. Describe Image, Retell Lecture and Summarize Group Discussion are marked on content, fluency and pronunciation. Grammar is marked in the writing tasks.
Why is my overall score different from the average of my skills?
Because the overall is calculated from your performance across all questions, and each question counts only once in it, even when it also feeds two skill scores.
Does accent affect my PTE score?
Not directly. Pronunciation is marked on how easy you are to understand, not on sounding British or Australian.
Want a tutor to diagnose which criterion is costing you marks? See our courses or send your scorecard on WhatsApp. Next, read about the PTE exam format.