The 10–90 ruler behind every PTE number. Learn where your target sits on it and track practice scores against that exact point, not a band.
Glossary term
GSE (Global Scale of English)
The Global Scale of English is Pearson’s 10–90 measurement scale on which every PTE score is reported: the overall and each of the four communicative skills. It is a granular points scale rather than a set of bands, which is why PTE reports exact numbers such as 63 or 79, and it is aligned to the CEFR levels and, through a concordance study, to IELTS bands.
Every score on the report, overall and per skill, is a GSE number. The scale is not named on the report itself.
Points, not bands
IELTS reports half-bands and CEFR reports six levels; the GSE reports single points from 10 to 90. That granularity is why a PTE requirement can be written as 58 or 65 rather than 6.5 or B2, and why a candidate two points short is exactly two points short rather than a whole band. It also means practice scores are comparable to targets directly: a 61 on a full mock against a 65 requirement is a four-point gap, not “nearly there”.
The scale is the same in both tests. A PTE Core 65 and a PTE Academic 65 are the same point on the GSE, though the two tests are accepted for different purposes.
How it maps to other frameworks
Pearson aligns the GSE to the CEFR, so a PTE score can be read against A1 to C2 approximately; institutions that write requirements as B2 usually publish the PTE score they mean. For IELTS, Pearson’s July 2025 concordance study of the enhanced PTE Academic gives the official ranges, which the score calculator applies. For Canada, IRCC publishes a PTE Core to CLB equivalency chart read skill by skill.
The mappings are ranges, so treat the bottom of the range as the requirement unless the institution says otherwise: “IELTS 7.0 or equivalent” is PTE 63, not 70.
The numbers that matter
| Range | 10–90 in single points |
|---|---|
| CEFR alignment (Pearson) | A1 10–29; A2 30–42; B1 43–58; B2 59–75; C1 76–84; C2 85–90 |
| IELTS (July 2025 concordance) | 47–54 ≈ 6.0; 55–62 ≈ 6.5; 63–70 ≈ 7.0; 71–78 ≈ 7.5; 79–85 ≈ 8.0; 86–89 ≈ 8.5; 90 ≈ 9.0 |
| Used by | PTE Academic, PTE Academic UKVI, PTE Core |
Worked example
A candidate scores 66 overall. On the GSE that is 66. On the CEFR it is B2. On the IELTS concordance it is 7.0. A university asking for 65 accepts it; one asking for B2 accepts it; one asking for IELTS 7.0 accepts it, because 66 sits in the 63–70 range.
What it shows: One number carries every framework, which is why the GSE point is the one to plan around.
Tasks where it applies
Frequently asked questions
What is the Global Scale of English?
Pearson’s 10–90 scale on which all PTE scores are reported, overall and per skill. It is a points scale aligned to the CEFR and, through Pearson’s July 2025 concordance, to IELTS bands.
Is a GSE score the same as a PTE score?
Yes. PTE scores are GSE scores. The term is Pearson’s name for the scale; the number on your report is the score.
What GSE score is B2?
59–75 on Pearson’s published alignment, though the exact score an institution or visa route treats as B2 is theirs to define. The UK Skilled Worker route’s B2 requirement, for example, is met through a UKVI test at the score the Home Office specifies.
More PTE terms
AI ScoringAppropriacyCLB (Canadian Language Benchmarks)Competent, Proficient and Superior EnglishContentDevelopment, Structure and CoherenceEmail ConventionsEnhanced PTE Academic (August 2025)Erasable NoteboardExpress EntryFormGeneral Linguistic RangeGrammarHuman ReviewIntegrated TaskMock TestmyPTENegative MarkingOne Skill RetakeOral FluencyPartial CreditPersonal IntroductionPronunciationPTE CorePTE HomeReschedule and Cancellation PolicyRescoreScore Report CodeScore ValidityScoring TraitsSELT (Secure English Language Test)Sending ScoresShared Clock (Reading and Listening)Skills ProfileSpellingThree-Second Silence RuleUKVIURN (Unique Reference Number)Vocabulary