Which tasks count towards the PTE speaking score?
Your Speaking score (10–90) comes only from tasks you answer aloud, and not even from all of those. PTE Academic and PTE Core share most speaking tasks, but not all, and the number of items per task varies a lot.
Tasks that feed Speaking: items per test (skills scored)
| Task | PTE Academic | PTE Core |
|---|---|---|
| Repeat Sentence | 10–12 (Listening and Speaking) | 10–12 (Listening and Speaking) |
| Read Aloud | 6–7 (Speaking) | 6–7 (Reading and Speaking) |
| Describe Image | 5–6 (Speaking) | 3–4 (Speaking) |
| Retell Lecture | 2–3 (Listening and Speaking) | Not in Core |
| Summarize Group Discussion | 2–3 (Listening and Speaking) | Not in Core |
| Respond to a Situation | 2–3 (Speaking) | 2–4 (Speaking) |
| Answer Short Question | 5–6 (Listening only) | 5–6 (Listening and Speaking) |
Sources: PTE Academic Score Guide (July 2025) pp. 15–31; PTE Core Score Guide (January 2026) pp. 24–30. Pearson's Academic format page also says Read Aloud affects reading.
Add up the ranges and Speaking rests on about 27–34 items in Academic and 26–33 in Core. Repeat Sentence alone is roughly a third of them in both tests, and its score feeds Listening as well. Item counts are not weights: Pearson does not publish what each item is worth on the 10–90 scale, so use counts to plan practice time, not to calculate a score.
How is the PTE speaking score worked out? Content first, then delivery
Every speaking item is scored on traits. Content means something different in each task. The delivery traits, Pronunciation and fluency, are the same everywhere.
What each speaking task scores
| Task | What Content checks | Delivery scored? |
|---|---|---|
| Read Aloud | Every replaced, missed or added word counts as an error | Pronunciation and fluency, 0–5 each |
| Repeat Sentence | Words from the prompt in the right order, 0–3 | Pronunciation and fluency, 0–5 each |
| Describe Image | How fully and accurately you describe it: 0–6 in Academic, 0–5 in Core | Pronunciation and fluency, 0–5 each |
| Retell Lecture, Summarize Group Discussion | Main ideas in your own words, well connected, 0–6 | Pronunciation and fluency, 0–5 each |
| Respond to a Situation | Academic: Content 0–6. Core: Appropriacy 0–3 | Pronunciation and fluency, 0–5 each |
| Answer Short Question | The right word or not (Vocabulary, 0–1) | No |
Sources: PTE Academic Score Guide (July 2025) pp. 15–31; PTE Core Score Guide (January 2026) pp. 24–30.
So two levers move the whole score: delivery, which nearly every item rewards, and Content in the open tasks, which decides whether your delivery counts at all. For the fine detail of delivery at the top end, see PTE Speaking 79.
Why is my PTE speaking score low? Find the leak first
BandLadder advice: before you change your plan, find out which of three leaks you have. Record five items from different tasks, then listen to each recording three times, once for each row below. For a fuller home routine, see how to practise PTE speaking at home.
Three leaks and the first fix for each
| Leak | What you hear | First fix |
|---|---|---|
| Fluency | Restarts, repeated words, "um", a long pause mid-sentence | Keep going after a slip; never restart a sentence |
| Pronunciation | Dropped word endings, flat stress, words a stranger might mishear | Slow down slightly and stress the content words; see does accent matter in PTE |
| Content | Missing words in Read Aloud and Repeat Sentence; generic or recited lines in the open tasks | Listen in phrases; plan with structures, not scripts |
BandLadder advice. Most learners have one main leak; fixing it pays off on every task it touches.
Prompt: The seminar on coastal erosion has been moved to the second floor this week. Attempt A: The seminar on, umfluency slip, coastal erosion has been moved to the second floor this week. Attempt B: The seminar on coastal erosion has moved"been" missing to the floor"second" missing this week.
- → Attempt A has every word in order, so it fits the top Content level: the guide ignores hesitations when it scores Repeat Sentence Content. The "um" can still cost fluency.
- → Attempt B sounds smoother but loses two words, so it drops to the "at least 50%" Content level. Two attempts, two different leaks, two different fixes.
✗ Describe Image: "The given image clearly shows a lot of very important information about this topic."
✓ Describe Image: "This line graph compares cinema visits in three towns between 2010 and 2020."
The first line fits any image, so a listener can picture nothing, and stock lines risk being treated as pre-prepared. The second starts real Content at once.
✗ Repeat Sentence: you lose a word, stop, and start again from the beginning.
✓ Skip the lost word and finish the sentence at the same steady pace.
A restart is a false start plus repetitions on the fluency scale. A skipped word costs only one Content error.
✗ Read Aloud: racing through the text to finish early.
✓ A steady pace, with short pauses at the punctuation.
Pearson's tip is to chunk the text by punctuation; the best responses keep "a constant and natural rate of speech".
Each pair above is one leak (Content, then fluency, then pace) and the habit that closes it. For Read Aloud in depth, see the Read Aloud fluency sheet; for lost words in Repeat Sentence, see Repeat Sentence small words.
How to improve PTE speaking score: a practice split by item count
BandLadder advice: give each task practice time roughly in line with its share of the speaking items, then move about ten minutes a session towards your leak. Big tasks get the most time because a habit you fix there is scored many times.
Midpoints of the ranges in the PTE Academic (July 2025) and PTE Core (January 2026) score guides. Counts, not points. Short Question counts for Speaking only in Core.
A 60-minute speaking session (BandLadder advice)
| Block | PTE Academic | PTE Core |
|---|---|---|
| Repeat Sentence | 20 min | 20 min |
| Read Aloud | 12 min | 12 min |
| Describe Image | 12 min | 8 min |
| Open tasks | 16 min, rotating Retell Lecture, Summarize Group Discussion and Respond to a Situation | 12 min of Respond to a Situation |
| Answer Short Question | Practise it with Listening | 8 min |
Open tasks get a little more than their item share because each answer is long: Summarize Group Discussion allows two minutes (Pearson's Academic format page).
Each session, in this order
- 1
Warm up on Repeat Sentence. Ten sentences, heard as phrases. It is the biggest speaking task, and it feeds Listening too.
- 2
Record, do not just speak. Record every Read Aloud and Describe Image. Listen once for slips and once for missing or vague words.
- 3
One open task, timed. Plan a structure in the preparation time, never a script, and speak until close to the end of the time.
- 4
Log the leak. Write down the one trait that leaked most today. Tomorrow's extra ten minutes go there.
Worked example 2: two invented learners adjust the split
| Learner | What the recordings show | Change to the split |
|---|---|---|
| Academic, practice scores near 60 | Words complete, but three or four restarts in every Read Aloud | Move 10 minutes from open tasks to Read Aloud, counting slips |
| Core, practice scores near 70 | Smooth delivery, but Repeat Sentence keeps losing small words | Move 10 minutes from Describe Image to Repeat Sentence ear training |
BandLadder advice. Change one thing at a time, so you can tell what worked.
BandLadder's AI practice scores each recording, so you can check that the leak is really closing rather than trusting your ear. Start with Repeat Sentence and Read Aloud, and every two or three weeks take a full PTE mock test to see whether the Speaking score itself has moved.
Your turn: PTE speaking score check
Answer from the tables and rules above, then check.
- Which task has the most items feeding the Speaking score, in both PTE Academic and PTE Core?
- A. Read Aloud
- B. Repeat Sentence
- C. Describe Image
- D. Answer Short Question
Show answer
Repeat Sentence
It has 10–12 items in both tests, and as an integrated task it feeds Listening too.
- You are taking PTE Academic. Will practising Answer Short Question raise your Speaking score?
- A. Yes, it counts for Speaking
- B. No, in Academic it counts for Listening only
Show answer
No, in Academic it counts for Listening only
The Academic guide lists it under Listening. In PTE Core it counts for Listening and Speaking.
- In Repeat Sentence you say every word in the right order, but pause once with "um". Which trait can the pause cost?
- A. Content
- B. Fluency
- C. Both
Show answer
Fluency
Hesitations are ignored when Repeat Sentence Content is scored, but the fluency scale counts them.
- Your Describe Image opening is a memorised line you use for every image. What is the biggest risk?
Show answer
Content may be scored 0 as pre-prepared material, and then Pronunciation and Oral Fluency are not scored at all.
Content is scored first in Describe Image, and a 0 stops further scoring (Academic guide p. 8).
- You are taking PTE Core. Which open task should get your open-task practice time?
- A. Retell Lecture
- B. Respond to a Situation
- C. Summarize Group Discussion
Show answer
Respond to a Situation
Retell Lecture and Summarize Group Discussion are not part of PTE Core.
BandLadder questions
Practise it now
Use the method on original BandLadder questions. Attempt them free and see your score.
Questions
FAQ
How can I improve my PTE speaking score?+
Practise the tasks roughly in proportion to their items (Repeat Sentence and Read Aloud are the biggest), record every answer, and fix the trait that leaks most: fluency, pronunciation or Content. This is BandLadder advice built on the score guides' task tables.
Why is my PTE speaking score low when my English is good?+
Usually delivery: restarts, long pauses and unclear endings are scored on nearly every speaking item. In the open tasks, generic or memorised lines can pull Content down, and a Content score of 0 stops the other traits being scored.
Which tasks count towards the PTE speaking score?+
In PTE Academic: Read Aloud, Repeat Sentence, Describe Image, Retell Lecture, Summarize Group Discussion and Respond to a Situation. In PTE Core: Read Aloud, Repeat Sentence, Describe Image, Respond to a Situation and Answer Short Question.
How is the PTE speaking score calculated?+
Each item is scored on traits (Content, plus Pronunciation and fluency on most tasks), and the item scores feed a Speaking score on a 10–90 scale. Pearson does not publish the exact conversion, so any speaking score calculator is only an estimate.
Does Answer Short Question count for PTE speaking?+
In PTE Core, yes: it counts for Listening and Speaking. In PTE Academic, the score guide lists it under Listening only.
How many questions are in PTE speaking?+
Counting the tasks that feed the Speaking score, about 27–34 items in PTE Academic and 26–33 in PTE Core, depending on the test version.
Sources
- PTE Academic Score Guide for Test Takers (July 2025): p. 6 (integrated skills); p. 8 (Content first, memorised material); pp. 15–31 (speaking task tables); pp. 45–46 (Pronunciation, Oral Fluency)
- PTE Core Score Guide for Test Takers (January 2026): p. 5 (integrated skills); pp. 24–30 (speaking task tables); pp. 39–40 (Pronunciation, Fluency)
- Pearson PTE Academic and PTE Core test format pages: Speaking and Writing: Read Aloud and Answer Short Question skills and tips; three-second silence rule; Summarize Group Discussion response time
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