HSK levels: three bands, nine levels, side by side

Elementary band: HSK 1, 2 and 3

The elementary band (初等) takes you to 1,000 words. The papers are short, about 40, 60 and 83 minutes, and every listening question is played twice. HSK 1 is listening and reading only; writing starts at HSK 2, with single characters before whole sentences.

1. HSK 1

   300 words · 300 characters · 40 questions, about 40 min · Pass 120/200

   The paper: listening 20 questions (about 12 min), reading 20 questions (20 min).

   Listening matches short phrases to one of three pictures and questions to their answers; the true/false items of HSK 2.0 are gone. Reading runs from matching sentences to pictures, through filling gaps with words, to answering a ★ question about a sentence.

   What you can do: Handle greetings, numbers, dates and the simplest daily exchanges.

   • HSK 1 mock test
   • HSK 1 vocabulary
   • HSK 1 stories
   • HSK 1 reading practice

2. HSK 2

   +200 words, 500 in all · 600 characters · 60 questions, about 60 min · Pass 180/300

   The paper: listening 25 questions (about 17 min), reading 25 questions (25 min), writing 10 questions (10 min).

   Writing appears for the first time: completing a character from its components (亻 + 十 = 什) and writing characters from their pinyin. That third section is why HSK 2 is out of 300.

   What you can do: Talk about routine, shopping, travel and immediate needs.

   • HSK 2 mock test
   • HSK 2 vocabulary
   • HSK 2 stories
   • HSK 2 reading practice

3. HSK 3

   +500 words, 1,000 in all · 900 characters · 70 questions, about 83 min · + speaking test, about 15 min · Pass 180/300

   The paper: listening 30 questions (about 23 min), reading 30 questions (30 min), writing 10 questions (20 min).

   Writing is characters from pinyin, then a sentence about a picture using a given word. HSK 3 is also the first level whose HSK 3.0 sitting comes with a separate speaking test.

   What you can do: Cope with most situations while travelling or studying in Chinese.

   • HSK 3 mock test
   • HSK 3 vocabulary
   • HSK 3 stories
   • HSK 3 reading practice

Intermediate band: HSK 4, 5 and 6

The intermediate band (中等) adds 4,400 words, for 5,400 in all. From HSK 4 each listening question is played once, and writing turns into composition: a short text at HSK 4, two pieces of writing at HSK 5 and at HSK 6.

1. HSK 4

   +1,000 words, 2,000 in all · 1,200 characters · 70 questions, about 85 min · + speaking test, about 20 min · Pass 180/300

   The paper: listening 32 questions (about 20 min), reading 32 questions (30 min), writing 6 questions (25 min).

   Listening is short and long dialogues, plus monologues with two or three questions each. Reading adds choosing the sentence that fills a gap; writing is sentences built from pictures and given words, then a short text of about 80 characters.

   What you can do: Discuss a broad range of topics and communicate fluently with native speakers. The usual bar for university admission and scholarships.

   • HSK 4 mock test
   • HSK 4 vocabulary
   • HSK 4 stories
   • HSK 4 reading practice

2. HSK 5

   +1,600 words, 3,600 in all · 1,500 characters · 72 questions, about 110 min · + speaking test, about 23 min · Pass 180/300

   The paper: listening 35 questions (about 25 min), reading 35 questions (35 min), writing 2 questions (40 min).

   Reading includes putting five paragraphs in order, one question per position. Writing is about 100 characters on four pictures and a 200-character essay on a topic.

   What you can do: Read Chinese newspapers and magazines, follow films, and give a full speech.

   • HSK 5 mock test
   • HSK 5 vocabulary
   • HSK 5 stories
   • HSK 5 reading practice

3. HSK 6

   +1,800 words, 5,400 in all · 1,800 characters · 82 questions, about 125 min · + speaking test, about 23 min · Pass 180/300

   The paper: listening 40 questions (about 30 min), reading 40 questions (40 min), writing 2 questions (45 min).

   Writing is a 150-character practical text and a 300-character argumentative essay. Reading fills five gaps from six sentences; the faulty-sentence questions and the summary task of HSK 2.0 are gone.

   What you can do: Understand written and spoken Chinese with ease and express yourself fluently in writing and speech.

   • HSK 6 mock test
   • HSK 6 vocabulary
   • HSK 6 stories
   • HSK 6 reading practice

Advanced band: HSK 7–9

The advanced band (高等) is one exam, not three. A single paper of 98 questions over about 210 minutes adds 5,600 words above HSK 6, for 11,000 in all, and it is the only HSK paper that tests translation. It already runs on HSK 3.0, and it is computer-based only.

1. HSK 7–9

   +5,600 words, 11,000 in all · 3,000 characters · 98 questions, about 210 min · No pass mark: graded 7, 8 or 9

   The paper: listening 40 questions (about 30 min), reading 47 questions (60 min), writing 2 questions (55 min), translation 4 questions (41 min), speaking 5 questions (about 24 min).

   Five sections in one sitting: listening, reading, writing (a 200-character and a 600-character task), translation (two written, two spoken) and speaking. Each is out of 100, so the paper is out of 500, and the result is level 7, 8 or 9, or below level 7.

   What you can do: Work, research or teach in Chinese. One computer-based paper, graded into bands 7, 8 or 9.

   • HSK 7–9 mock test
   • HSK 7–9 vocabulary
   • HSK 7–9 stories
   • HSK 7–9 reading practice

HSK 3.0 vs HSK 2.0: what changed in the levels

HSK 2.0 had six levels and stopped at 5,000 words. HSK 3.0 keeps levels 1 to 6, groups them into two bands, and puts a third band, HSK 7–9, on top, for 11,000 words in all. The other changes:

• More words at the lower levels. HSK 1 goes from 150 to 300 words, and HSK 2, 3 and 4 from 300, 600 and 1,200 to 500, 1,000 and 2,000.
• Almost no change at the top of the old scale: HSK 6 asked for 5,000 words, and now asks for 5,400.
• Writing starts at HSK 2 instead of HSK 3, which makes HSK 2 a three-section paper out of 300.
• Levels 3 to 6 come with a speaking test, registered together with the written paper and sat separately: about 15, 20, 23 and 23 minutes.
• New question types at every level. HSK 1 loses its true/false questions, HSK 4 loses sentence completion and ordering, HSK 6 loses the faulty-sentence questions and the summary.
• HSK 7–9 is new: one computer-based paper with translation and speaking, graded into three levels rather than passed or failed.

Which version you sit depends on the level. HSK 7–9 already runs on 3.0. CTI published the 3.0 syllabus in November 2025 with July 2026 as its implementation date, but has announced no switch date for the regular HSK 1–6 sittings, so check the version printed on your registration record. The HSK 3.0 status tracker logs each announcement as it comes.

Which HSK level should you take?

If a university, scholarship or employer names a level, take that one. HSK 4 is the usual bar for admission and scholarships, but the requirement belongs to the programme, so read its own wording, including whether it also asks for a speaking (HSKK) result.

If you are choosing for yourself, use vocabulary as the yardstick: it is the one requirement the syllabus publishes as a number. Estimate how many words you can read without looking them up, and find the highest level you have mostly covered.

HSK 1

300 words

HSK 2

500 words

HSK 3

1,000 words

HSK 4

2,000 words

HSK 5

3,600 words

HSK 6

5,400 words

HSK 7–9

11,000 words

Then sit a mock paper at that level on the clock. HSK 1–6 pass at 60%, so a practice score that only just clears it leaves no margin on the day: give yourself more time, or register one level lower. HSK 7–9 needs no choice at all. You register for the one paper, and the result decides the level.

HSKK: the speaking test is a separate exam

The HSKK (汉语水平口语考试) is not one of the nine levels. It is a separate speaking exam with its own registration and certificate, in three levels, each out of 100 with 60 to pass: Beginner (paired with HSK 1–2, about 17 minutes), Intermediate (HSK 3–4, about 23) and Advanced (HSK 5–6, about 25). It is not the speaking test HSK 3.0 attaches to levels 3–6, nor the speaking section inside the HSK 7–9 paper. Until the 3.0 speaking tests are published in full, the HSKK is the speaking exam candidates actually sit.

HSKK levels, format and practice

HSK levels: common questions