PTE Academic 2026 – Complete Exam Pattern

PTE Academic 2026 – Complete Exam Pattern

Section	Time	Approx Questions	Skills Tested
Speaking & Writing	54–67 minutes	28–36	Speaking + Writing
Reading	29–30 minutes	13–18	Reading
Listening	30–43 minutes	12–20	Listening
Total	~2 hours	50–70 questions	All skills

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1. Speaking Module (2026)

Question Type	No. of Questions	Preparation Time	Speaking Time	Marks Contribution
Personal Introduction	1	25 sec	30 sec	Not scored
Read Aloud	6–7	30–40 sec	30–40 sec	Speaking + Reading
Repeat Sentence	10–12	Audio only	15 sec	Speaking + Listening
Describe Image	3–4	25 sec	40 sec	Speaking
Retell Lecture	1–2	10 sec	40 sec	Speaking + Listening
Answer Short Question	5–6	Audio only	10 sec	Listening
Respond to Situation (NEW)	2–3	20 sec	40 sec	Speaking
Summarize Group Discussion (NEW)	2–3	10 sec	2 min	Speaking + Listening

Total speaking tasks: about 30–36 questions.

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2. Writing Module

Question Type	No. Questions	Time	Word Limit	Marks Contribution
Summarize Written Text	1–2	10 minutes each	5–75 words (1 sentence)	Writing + Reading
Write Essay	1–2	20 minutes	200–300 words	Writing

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3. Reading Module

Total time: 29–30 minutes

Question Type	No. Questions	Time per Question	Marks
Fill in the Blanks (R&W)	5–6	1.5–2 min	Reading + Writing
Multiple Choice Multiple Answer	1–2	~2 min	Reading
Re-order Paragraphs	2–3	~2–3 min	Reading
Fill in the Blanks (Reading)	4–5	~2 min	Reading
Multiple Choice Single Answer	1–2	~1.5 min	Reading

Total: 13–18 questions.

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4. Listening Module

Total time: 30–43 minutes

Question Type	No. Questions	Audio Length	Marks
Summarize Spoken Text	1–2	60–90 sec audio + 10 min writing	Listening + Writing
Multiple Choice Multiple Answer	1–2	40–90 sec	Listening
Fill in the Blanks	2–3	30–60 sec	Listening + Writing
Highlight Correct Summary	1–2	30–90 sec	Listening + Reading
Multiple Choice Single Answer	1–2	30–60 sec	Listening
Select Missing Word	1–2	20–70 sec	Listening
Highlight Incorrect Words	2–3	15–50 sec	Listening + Reading
Write from Dictation	3–4	3–5 sec	Listening + Writing

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PTE 2026 Score System (Important)

Skill	Score Range
Speaking	10 – 90
Writing	10 – 90
Reading	10 – 90
Listening	10 – 90
Overall Score	10 – 90

Integrated scoring:
Some tasks give marks to multiple skills.

Examples:

Question	Skills Scored
Repeat Sentence	Speaking + Listening
Retell Lecture	Speaking + Listening
Summarize Written Text	Reading + Writing
Write From Dictation	Listening + Writing

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Highest Scoring PTE Tasks (Important for 79+ or 90)

Task	Why Important
Repeat Sentence	Very high speaking + listening marks
Read Aloud	High speaking marks
Write from Dictation	Highest listening + writing marks
Reading Fill in the Blanks	Major reading score
Retell Lecture	Speaking + listening

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 Quick Summary

Section	Key Focus
Speaking	Fluency, pronunciation
Writing	Grammar, structure
Reading	Vocabulary & comprehension
Listening	Spelling & note-taking