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PTE score chart

PTE is scored 10 to 90. Which chart you need depends on where you are going: PTE Core converts to CLB for Canadian immigration, PTE Academic converts to IELTS bands for study and Australia. They are different tests and the charts are not interchangeable.

PTE Core score chart: Core to CLB

The thing most charts get wrong: PTE Core has no single number per CLB level. It has four, one per skill, and they are a long way apart. Look at the CLB 9 row — reading asks 78, writing asks 88. Ten points higher for the same benchmark.

CLB	Listening	Reading	Speaking	Writing	What it unlocks
10	89	88	89	90	Maximum CRS language points
9	82	78	84	88	Where CRS points jump — the competitive target
8	71	69	76	79
7	60	60	68	69	Express Entry FSW and CEC (NOC TEER 0/1) minimum
6	50	51	59	60
5	39	42	51	51	CEC at NOC TEER 2/3
4	28	33	42	41

Figures are the minimum score for that benchmark, from Pearson's published PTE Core to CLB concordance. IRCC accepts PTE Core, not PTE Academic, for economic immigration — the difference is explained in PTE Academic vs PTE Core. Immigration rules change; confirm with IRCC before you file. Results must be under two years old on the date you apply.

Reverse lookup: I need CLB 7, what score is that?

Read the table the other way. CLB 7 is Listening 60, Reading 60, Speaking 68, Writing 69. CLB 9 is Listening 82, Reading 78, Speaking 84, Writing 88. In every skill — not on average.

That last part is the rule people lose applications over. IRCC takes the lowest of your four CLB results as your overall CLB. It does not average them. Three 9s and a 6 is a CLB 6 profile, and no amount of strength in reading buys back a weak writing score.

If you scored the same in all four skills

People think in one number, so here is the honest version of it: what a flat score across all four skills is actually worth, once IRCC has taken the lowest.

PTE Core in every skill	Overall CLB	What the next level needs
90	10	Top benchmark — there is nothing above it
88	9	CLB 10 needs Listening 89, Speaking 89, Writing 90
84	8	CLB 9 needs Writing 88
79	8	CLB 9 needs Listening 82, Speaking 84, Writing 88
75	7	CLB 8 needs Speaking 76, Writing 79
69	7	CLB 8 needs Listening 71, Speaking 76, Writing 79
65	6	CLB 7 needs Speaking 68, Writing 69
60	6	CLB 7 needs Speaking 68, Writing 69
50	4	CLB 5 needs Speaking 51, Writing 51

Writing appears in every row of that last column — it is the skill capping almost every profile, which is why a score that looks comfortable lands a benchmark lower than expected. To see your own four skills scored separately, use the PTE Core CLB calculator — it names the skill capping your profile and the points needed to clear the next level. If you have not settled on a test yet, PTE Core vs CELPIP compares the two at the same benchmark.

PTE Academic → IELTS

This is the other test. Use it for university admission and for Australian visas — not for Canadian immigration, which reads PTE Core.

IELTS	PTE Academic	What it unlocks
9.0	89
8.5	84
8.0	79	Australia PR — superior English
7.5	71
7.0	63	Australia PR — proficient English
6.5	55	Common university entry
6.0	47
5.5	39

Pearson revised this concordance in July 2025. IELTS 8.0 = PTE 79, 7.0 = PTE 63 and 6.5 = PTE 55 are the published anchors; half-bands between them are interpolated. Many charts online still show the old IELTS 7.0 = PTE 65. Confirm against Pearson before relying on it for a visa.

Questions

What is a good PTE Core score?

PTE Core has no pass mark, so "good" only means good enough for what you are applying for. For Canadian economic immigration the two numbers that matter are CLB 7, the Federal Skilled Worker minimum, and CLB 9, where the Comprehensive Ranking System awards substantially more points. CLB 7 is Listening 60, Reading 60, Speaking 68 and Writing 69. CLB 9 is Listening 82, Reading 78, Speaking 84 and Writing 88. You need those in every skill, not on average.

What is the minimum PTE Core score for Express Entry?

CLB 7 in all four skills for the Federal Skilled Worker Program and for Canadian Experience Class at NOC TEER 0 or 1. On PTE Core that is Listening 60, Reading 60, Speaking 68 and Writing 69. Canadian Experience Class at TEER 2 or 3 needs CLB 5. Clearing the minimum makes you eligible to enter the pool; it does not make you competitive in a draw.

Is 65 a good score in PTE Core?

A flat 65 across all four skills is a CLB 6 profile, not CLB 7 — which surprises most people who see it. Listening and Reading only need 60 and 60 for CLB 7, so a 65 clears both comfortably. But Speaking needs 68 and Writing needs 69, and 65 misses both. Because IRCC reads your lowest skill rather than an average, those two shortfalls set your whole profile at CLB 6.

What is the maximum PTE Core score?

90. PTE Core is reported on the same 10 to 90 scale as PTE Academic, in each skill and overall. Worth knowing where that ceiling bites: CLB 10 asks for 90 in writing, so the top benchmark requires a perfect writing score with no margin at all. CLB 10 earns the maximum language points in the Comprehensive Ranking System, so there is nothing above it to chase.

What PTE Core score is CLB 9?

Listening 82, Reading 78, Speaking 84 and Writing 88. Note how uneven that is — writing sits ten points above reading for the same benchmark, and only two below a perfect score. Be wary of any chart that gives CLB 9 a single number or a range like "84 to 88": it collapses four separate requirements into one and hides the one that decides most profiles.

Is there one PTE Core number that equals CLB 7?

Not really, and that is the honest answer. CLB 7 is four different thresholds: Listening 60, Reading 60, Speaking 68, Writing 69. If you want a single number to aim at in practice, 69 is the one — it is the highest of the four, so scoring it in every skill clears CLB 7 everywhere. Aiming at 60 because that is what the listening row says will leave you at CLB 6.

Do I need PTE Academic or PTE Core for Canada?

PTE Core, not PTE Academic. IRCC accepts PTE Core for economic immigration, and it maps to CLB on an official per-skill concordance. PTE Academic is the one used for study visas and for Australia. Booking the wrong one is the single most expensive mistake in PTE, because the result cannot be used for the application you booked it for.

What is PTE 79 in IELTS?

PTE 79 is about IELTS 8.0 on Pearson's current concordance. It is the score most people chase for Australian PR, because 79+ in every skill is the superior-English threshold worth the maximum points. This is the PTE Academic concordance — it does not apply to PTE Core.

What is PTE 65 in IELTS?

Careful here — this is the most common outdated answer online. Pearson revised the concordance in July 2025, and IELTS 7.0 now sits at about PTE 63, not 65. Older charts still say 65. If a visa or university threshold matters to you, check Pearson's current table rather than a blog.

Is PTE easier than IELTS?

Neither is objectively easier. PTE is fully computer-scored with no human examiner and no face-to-face speaking test, and results usually arrive within days, which suits people who freeze in an interview or who type quickly. Pearson does not publish how its scoring engine works internally, so nobody can tell you what it rewards. What can be said is that any automated system has to measure what it can measure continuously from the audio — which is why candidates are commonly caught out by delivery and fluency rather than by ideas.

Knowing the number is the easy part. Take a free PTE Core mock test and get an AI score for all four skills, so you know which one is capping your CLB — or start with PTE Academic if you are applying to study.

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