GRE Score Range: Know Score Validity, Percentiles & GRE Total Score

Have you been aiming at scoring 320+ in your GRE exam? Or have you been wondering what exactly should you score to sail through your admissions?

No wonder with all the false information and rumours on the internet; you must have been confused about what exactly is a perfect GRE score. *Enter Yocket as your knight in shining armour*

Well, harsh or not, the GRE score is a filtering mechanism. How? Wait for it.

First, solve this question for us, and we shall give you a life changing answer at the the end of this article-

Sita and Geeta went to give their GRE papers. Given below is a representation of their verbal sections, you’ve to predict their GRE scores:

**Sita**
Section	No. of Correct Answers
Verbal 1 (Medium)	4
Verbal 2 (?)	15
GRE Score	?

**Geeta**
Section	No. of Correct Answers
Verbal 1 (Medium)	14
Verbal 2 (?)	6
GRE Score	?

Let’s now hope you can come up with accurate results for Sita and Geeta’s GRE scoring chart!

Okay, no more building curiosity like reality TV shows, let’s dive in.

What is the GRE Score Range?

The GRE score range is between 260 and 340. This range is determined by the combined scores of two sections of the GRE: Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning. Each of these sections is graded on a scale of 130 to 170, with one-point increments. Your score on the Analytical Writing portion of the GRE (which assesses your written analysis skills) is reported separately and doesn’t factor into the total score. The Analytical Writing score ranges from 0.0 to 6.0 in half-point increments.

Before delving further into the depths of good, and bad GRE scores, here is how the GRE score range looks like:

Section	GRE Score Range	Increment
GRE Verbal Reasoning	130-170	1 point
GRE Quantitative Reasoning	130-170	1 point
GRE Analytical Writing	0-6	0.5 points

How would you score if you took the GRE today? Try taking this 30-minutes FREE diagnostic test to find out!

What is a Good GRE Score?

A good GRE score is considered to be 158+ on Verbal Reasoning, 159+ on Quantitative Reasoning, and 4.5+ on Analytical Writing. This range typically places you in the 75th percentile or higher. A good GRE score depends on the schools you’re applying to. Schools use your GRE scores to assess your preparedness for their program’s rigour.

However, this is a general guideline. If you’re applying to a math-intensive program like engineering, a higher Quantitative Reasoning score will likely be needed compared to Verbal Reasoning. On the other hand, for a program that emphasises writing and verbal skills, a stronger Verbal Reasoning score might be more important.

To make your minds stop boggling, here is a clear cut distinction between a good and bad GRE score:

GRE Scoring	Verbal Reasoning	Quantitative Reasoning	Analytical Writing
Best GRE Score	163-170	165-170	5.0-6.0
Competitive GRE Score	158-162	159-164	4.5
Good GRE Score	152-158	153-158	4.0
Below Average GRE Score	151 or below	152 or below	3.5 or below

Given below are also major-wise GRE scores to help you understand what is expected out of you in terms of your chosen major:

Major	Verbal Range	Quant Range	Writing Range
Economics	157-161	162-166	3.8
Chemistry	156-160	163-167	3.7
Mathematics	156-160	168-170	3.8
History	159-163	150-154	4.1
Psychology	155-159	151-155	3.9
English	160-164	151-155	4.2
Sociology	155-159	151-155	3.8

Suggested: Know About the GRE Subject Test

Average GRE Score

The average GRE score for the verbal reasoning section in 2022–2023 was around 151, and for the quantitative reasoning section, it was around 157. The Analytical Writing section is scored separately and isn’t included in the total GRE score. The average score in this section was around 3.4. It’s important to note that these are averages, and scores can vary depending on the field of study.

For instance, students admitted to highly selective law programs often score between 159 and 170 on the GRE, while those in top MBA programs typically score between 161 and 167. Hence, the GRE score you need will depend on the specific graduate program and school you are applying to.

Like we mentioned before- GRE helps universities “weed-out” applicants based on the program and university chosen. Although specific university cut-offs may be hard to find, you can always look at their average accepted GRE scores. And don’t you worry, we have compiled these averages for you:

University	Verbal (Average Score)	Quant (Average Score)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	157	162
Stanford University	158	163
University of California Berkeley	155	161
University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign	155	163
Carnegie Mellon University	159	161
Georgia Institute of Technology	155	161
University of Texas Austin	155	160
University of Michigan Ann Arbor	154	161
Cornell University	160	162
Purdue University	158	163
University of Southern California	158	163

Another thing to note is that particular programs at specific universities might have their own GRE requirements. For instance, Sita scores an average score of 160 in Verbal Reasoning and about 147 in Quantitative Reasoning and is not able to get into Harvard for Economics. Geeta, on the other hand, scores 160 - Verbal and 166 - Quantitative, and gets herself into Economics Princeton!

Sita and Geeta might turn out to be your best friends by the end of this read, lol!

What is the Total GRE Score?

The total GRE score is 340. This total combines your Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning scores, graded from 130 to 170 each. Analytical Writing is scored separately (0–6). Subject Tests have a total score of 200–990 and no subscores, though the specific range may vary slightly by subject.

GRE Score Conversion

Listen - we get it. You may often wonder how the raw GRE score is converted to a scaled GRE exam score. This GRE scoring chart below might be your saviour for once and for all! To carefully, yes, carefully analyse your GRE total score (and Sita and Geeta’s); go through this table below.

Correct Answers (verbal/quant)	Raw GRE Score (verbal/quant)	GRE Scaled Score (verbal/quant)
0	0	130
1	1	131
2	2	132
3	3	133
4	4	134
5	5	135
6	6	136
7	7	137
8	8	138
9	9	139
10	10	140
11	11	141
12	12	142
13	13	143
14	14	144
15	15	145
16	16	146
17	17	147
18	18	148
19	19	149
20	20	150
21	21	151
22	22	152
23	23	153
24	24	154
25	25	155
26	26	156
27	27	157
28	28	158
29	29	159
30	30	160
31	31	161
32	32	162
33	33	163
34	34	164
35	35	165
36	36	166
37	37	167
38	38	168
39	39	169
40	40	170

Suggested: GRE to GMAT score conversion guide

GRE Score Percentiles

The GRE score percentiles as elaborated by ETS will give you an idea how you fare well in comparison to other GRE takers. These percentile scores basically add value to your scaled scores.

Given below is the table having Verbal and Quantitative percentile scores:

Scaled Score	Verbal Percentile	Quantitative Percentile
170	99%	96%
169	99%	95%
168	98%	93%
167	98%	90%
166	97%	89%
165	96%	86%
164	94%	84%
163	93%	82%
162	90%	79%
161	88%	76%
160	86%	73%
159	83%	70%
158	80%	67%
157	76%	64%
156	73%	60%
155	68%	56%
154	64%	53%
153	60%	49%
152	54%	45%
151	51%	41%
150	46%	37%
149	41%	34%
148	37%	30%
147	33%	26%
146	29%	23%
145	26%	19%
144	22%	16%
143	19%	13%
142	16%	11%
141	14%	9%
140	11%	7%
139	9%	6%
138	8%	4%
137	6%	3%
136	4%	2%
135	3%	2%
134	2%	1%
133	2%	1%
132	1%	1%
131	1%	1%
130	1%	1%

Moving on, here is how you can comprehend your GRE score for GRE Analytical Writing section:

Score Levels	Writing Percentile
6.0	99%
5.5	98%
5.0	92%
4.5	81%
4.0	57%
3.5	39%
3.0	15%
2.5	7%
2.0	2%
1.5	1%
1.0	1%
0.5	1%
0.0	1%

Suggested: GRE General vs GRE Subject Test

GRE Score Validity

Now that you’ve gained immense knowledge about the passing score for GRE and the maximum score on GRE, you might want to know how long is GRE score valid for?

The GRE score is valid for 5 years. To also answer- when do GRE scores come out? Your GRE scores come out within 15 days of giving your GRE exam.

Sample GRE Score Card

Well, we hope we haven’t drained you yet with this wholesome piece of information. To give your brains a little pictorial transition, given below is a sample GRE score card:

gre score card

What GRE Scores are Reported?

The GRE General Test score report reflects your performance in three sections: Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, and Analytical Writing. Each section is scored on a different scale. For Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning, scores range from 130 to 170 in 1-point increments. The Analytical Writing section is scored on a scale of 0 to 6 in half-point increments.

Section	Score Scale
Verbal Reasoning	130–170, in 1-point increments
Quantitative Reasoning	130–170, in 1-point increments
Analytical Reasoning	0–6, in half-point increments

Note: If you don’t answer any questions in a particular section, you will receive a No Score (NS) for that section on your GRE score report.

Prepare for GRE with Yocket Prep

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gre preparation

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7 GRE style tests (which are very difficult to get tbh), 40+ topic-wise tests, access to Priority Dashboard and much more than you can imagine through Yocket Prep+

The Takeaway

Well well, it’s time guys.

Sita and Geeta have had them all waiting while you were fixated into understanding their GRE scoring. While we can always hope you were able to predict Sita and Geeta’s scores, here’s what they actually got:

**Sita**
Section	No. of Correct Answers
Verbal 1 (Medium)	4
Verbal 2 (Easy)	15
GRE Score (with a penalty)	145

**Geeta**
Section	No. of Correct Answers
Verbal 1 (Medium)	14
Verbal 2 (Hard)	6
GRE Score (with a bonus)	154

Hurray! if you predicted their scores right, and no worries, if you couldn't, we are here for you! Now, to understand John and Sarah’s score you must be aware that the GRE is section adaptive. Meaning based on your performance in the first section, the level of your difficulty will keep increasing or decreasing.

The major takeaways are:

Your second section must always be Medium or Hard so as to avoid penalization.
To avoid your second section to be easy, you must answer at least a minimum of 7-8 questions.
The verbal and quantitative sections are scored similarly.
You just cannot afford to be John, for a difference of even 2 marks will snatch away your dream university!

With all this humongous overload of information, you must be wondering- what should be my plan of action for GRE? Well, we would suggest the first and foremost thing would be to firmly choose your course of study and university. You can also always take consultation from our Yocket Study Abroad Experts if you might stumble at any stage of your entire study abroad process.

And next, to implement your plans you can start preparing for your GRE with the help of Yocket Prep which will give a great deal of study material as well as help develop a personalised strategy for yourself. So, why wait? Pull up your sucks, kid!

Frequently Asked Questions about GRE Scoring

1. What is the passing score for GRE?

Ans. The passing score for GRE is 130.

2. How to check GRE score?

Ans. You can check your GRE score through the official website of ETS.

3. What is the GRE score reporting fee?

Ans. The GRE score reporting fee is 27 USD or 2,010 INR.

4. What is full score GRE?

Ans. The full score GRE is 340.

5. GRE score is valid for how many years?

Ans. The GRE score validity is 5 years from the date of taking the test.