As you work hard to prepare for the GMAT, practice tests will be part of your study process. But scoring is not a simple question of how many answers you got right — you need a GMAT score calculator to get a better understanding of where you stand.
Studying for the GMAT requires hard work and you’ll want to have some benchmarks to track your mastery of the concepts and test skills. Often, a GMAT practice test will serve that purpose.
Essentially, you sit down for a full-length, timed GMAT practice test and then score it to see if you’ve done better than before. This is a great way to uncover major deficiencies in your knowledge or see improvement in key areas.
Whether you are trying to ace the GMAT or just get a decent score, this is a solid approach to preparation. A GMAT score calculator is used on a practice test to get results similar to what you would get if it were the real deal.
Because the GMAT is a complex test with different kinds of questions, it’s important that you follow a reliable process for scoring a practice GMAT test. Read on for a GMAT score calculator and how to figure out your GMAT practice test score.
How to Calculate the GMAT Score
The first thing you need to understand is how the GMAT exam is scored. The GMAT is a computer adaptive test. There are five sections of the GMAT that will each be scored differently. While the total score is what you’re after, how each section is scored is important as you practice.
You’ll quickly be able to see, for instance, if you need to invest in some extra Quant prep or if you’re regularly failing at Integrated Reasoning.
Your total GMAT score will be between 200 and 800 points. Your GMAT score will appear within this range, in increments of 10. That means you could score a 710 or 720 on the GMAT, but not a 715.
Verbal and Quant are the two computer-adaptive sections. As you go through the test, the level of difficulty will increase if you submit correct answers. More difficult questions are worth more points in your total score, and you will lose points for unanswered questions.
Analytical Writing and Integrated Reasoning are more complex.
Analytical Writing is partially scored by human raters, which means there is a degree of subjectivity (and unpredictability) to the score you get. Integrated Reasoning questions may have more than one answer but you cannot earn partial credit.
In case that’s clear as mud, here’s a chart that outlines how to calculate your GMAT score:
Section of the Test | Number of Section Questions | Scoring Range |
Quant (Scaled) | 31 Multiple Choice Questions | 0-60 |
Verbal (Scaled) | 36 Multiple Choice Questions | 0-60 |
Analytical Writing Assessment | 1 Essay Question | 0-6 |
Integrated Reasoning | 12 Questions | 1-8 |
Total (Scaled) | Scaled Quant and Scaled Verbal Scores | 200-800 |
GMAT Average Scores
Because the GMAT determines your entry into an MBA program, it’s important to know that there are certain expectations and standards. For instance, Ivy League or top-rated business schools may expect that you score in the top 10%.
Here’s a breakdown of GMAT percentiles from GMAC:
GMAT Score | Percentile |
500 | 25% |
600 | 54% |
650 | 73% |
700 | 88% |
750 | 98% |
800 | 99% |
The mean score for the GMAT between 2017 and 2019 was 564.84.
How long you study for the GMAT and how dedicated you are to the process will impact your final score. You can see that all of the subjects on the GMAT are important, regardless of whether they’re scored in a fixed way or through other means.
Since each section matters, you need to prepare for all of them, even if you naturally excel in some areas. The best GMAT prep courses cover the full scope of content and skills and include plenty of practice tests.
Of course, as you practice you’ll become more familiar with how the test works. And, whether you think you knocked it out of the park or not, everyone wants to know their score as soon as possible after the big day.
While you can’t know your GMAT score exactly before it is official, you can get approximate results based on your test performance.
GMAT Scoring Chart
A GMAT scoring chart, again, won’t give you exact numbers but a good approximation of your GMAT test results.
Once you know your Verbal and Quant scores, find where the two intersect on this scoring chart for an estimate of your total score:
Quant Score /Verbal Score | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | |
27 | 460 | 470 | 480 | 490 | 500 | 500 | 510 | 510 | 520 | 530 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 610 | |
28 | 480 | 480 | 490 | 490 | 500 | 510 | 520 | 520 | 530 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 610 | 620 | 620 | |
29 | 480 | 490 | 500 | 500 | 510 | 510 | 520 | 530 | 540 | 550 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 610 | 620 | 620 | 630 | 630 | |
30 | 490 | 500 | 500 | 510 | 510 | 520 | 530 | 540 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 630 | 640 | 640 | |
31 | 490 | 500 | 510 | 520 | 520 | 530 | 540 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 650 | |
32 | 500 | 510 | 520 | 530 | 530 | 540 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 660 | |
33 | 510 | 520 | 530 | 530 | 540 | 550 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 660 | 670 | 670 | |
34 | 520 | 530 | 530 | 540 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 670 | 680 | 680 | |
35 | 530 | 530 | 540 | 540 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 690 | |
36 | 540 | 540 | 550 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 670 | 680 | 680 | 690 | 700 | |
37 | 540 | 550 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 610 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 670 | 680 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 710 | |
38 | 550 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 680 | 690 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 720 | |
39 | 550 | 560 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 720 | 730 | |
40 | 560 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 730 | |
41 | 570 | 570 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 730 | 730 | |
42 | 580 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 740 | |
43 | 580 | 590 | 590 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 740 | 740 | |
44 | 590 | 600 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 730 | 740 | 740 | |
45 | 590 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 730 | 740 | 740 | 750 | 750 | |
46 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 730 | 740 | 740 | 740 | 750 | 750 | |
47 | 600 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 740 | 740 | 750 | 750 | 750 | 760 | 760 | |
48 | 610 | 620 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 730 | 740 | 750 | 750 | 760 | 760 | 760 | 770 | 770 | |
49 | 630 | 630 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 660 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 720 | 730 | 740 | 750 | 760 | 760 | 770 | 770 | 770 | 780 | 780 | |
50 | 640 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 730 | 730 | 740 | 750 | 760 | 770 | 770 | 770 | 780 | 780 | 780 | 780 | |
51 | 640 | 650 | 660 | 670 | 670 | 680 | 690 | 700 | 710 | 710 | 720 | 730 | 740 | 740 | 750 | 760 | 770 | 770 | 780 | 780 | 780 | 790 | 790 | 800 |
At the end of the day, the score you get on the GMAT will definitely reflect your study habits. The right GMAT review course will go a long way in systemizing your journey, ensuring that you don’t miss major areas or concepts.
If you put in the right amount of time, with a dash of discipline, you’ll get a good score on the GMAT.