PTE Core is a general English test for Canadian permanent residence, citizenship and PGWP, while PTE Academic is an academic English test used for study and for Australian/New Zealand visas; both run about 2 hours on the same 10–90 scale. Both are Pearson tests, both cover all four skills, and both are taken on a computer at a test centre. The differences that matter are who accepts each one, the kind of English it tests and a handful of task types.
The short version: pick the test your application asks for. If you are applying to IRCC for Express Entry, citizenship or a post-graduation work permit, you need PTE Core. If you are applying to a Canadian university or college, or for an Australian visa, choose PTE Academic rather than PTE Core. Below are the differences side by side, the tasks unique to each test, and an honest answer on whether PTE Core is easier.
PTE Core vs PTE Academic at a glance
| PTE Core | PTE Academic | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | "The faster, fairer and simpler English test for Canadian permanent residency and citizenship" (Pearson) | "University admissions (including in Canada), and migration visas to Australia and New Zealand" (Pearson) |
| Accepted by IRCC (Canada) | Yes: Express Entry, citizenship and PGWP | Not one of IRCC's accepted tests for Express Entry, citizenship or PGWP |
| Accepted by Australia's Home Affairs | Not on the list | Yes, when taken at a secure test centre |
| Type of English | General English for "a workplace or community" | Academic English |
| Length | A single 2-hour test | A single 2-hour test |
| Score scale | 10–90 overall and per skill | 10–90 overall and per skill |
| Speaking & Writing section | 50–65 minutes, 7 question types | 76–84 minutes, 9 question types |
| Reading section | 27–37 minutes, 5 question types | 23–30 minutes, 5 question types |
| Listening section | 22–37 minutes, 7 question types | 31–39 minutes, 8 question types |
| Tasks found only in this test | Write Email | Write Essay, Retell Lecture, Summarize Group Discussion, Highlight Correct Summary |
| Shared task worth knowing | Respond to a Situation | Respond to a Situation (added 7 August 2025) |
| Changed in August 2025? | No | Yes |
Section times come from Pearson's PTE Core and PTE Academic pages. For a walk-through of the PTE Core screens and timings, see our test interface, timing and study plan guide.
Is PTE Core and PTE Academic the same test?
No. They share a format and a scoring method, and Pearson says so directly: "Both tests are 4-skills tests … taken on a computer at a test center, and use similar scoring methods." Both are scored by computer. Pearson's scoring page states that "All PTE tests, including PTE Core, are scored by a computer" and that "There is no interaction with a human examiner during your test."
The content is where they part ways. Pearson describes PTE Core as "a general English test that assesses language that might be used everyday in a workplace or community", and PTE Academic as "an academic English test". Its PTE Core help centre gives a concrete example: "in PTE Core you may be asked to read a magazine article or write an email. You will not be asked to consider lecture materials or academic articles."
That difference carries through to preparation. When asked whether PTE Academic preparation materials can be used to practise for PTE Core, Pearson's help centre answers: "No".
Task types: what each test has that the other doesn't
Most task types appear in both tests. Comparing Pearson's format pages, the differences sit in the Speaking & Writing part and in one listening task.
Only in PTE Core
- Write Email. Pearson's Speaking & Writing page asks you to "write an email containing between 80 and 120 words" in 9 minutes. The scoring note on the same page gives full credit for length at 50 to 120 words, so aim for the 80–120 range the instruction sets.
Only in PTE Academic
- Write Essay, listed in PTE Academic's Speaking & Writing part.
- Retell Lecture, in the same part.
- Summarize Group Discussion, also in that part, added in August 2025.
- Highlight Correct Summary, one of PTE Academic's 8 listening question types.
In both
- Respond to a Situation. In PTE Core you get "20 seconds to think … 40 seconds to speak". PTE Academic added this task on 7 August 2025.
Pearson's PTE Core scoring page counts 19 question types for PTE Core. Some tasks score more than one skill at once, which our task map and dual scoring guide breaks down for PTE Core.
Which one should you take?
Choose by goal, because a score from the wrong test won't be accepted however high it is.
- Canadian permanent residence through Express Entry. Take PTE Core. IRCC's Express Entry language testing page lists three English tests and says of Pearson's: "You must take the PTE Core option."
- Canadian citizenship. Take PTE Core. IRCC lists PTE Core among the accepted tests for citizenship and asks for "28 or higher in listening and 42 or higher in speaking" if you are 18 to 54.
- Post-graduation work permit (PGWP). Take PTE Core. IRCC's PGWP documents page says: "You should take the PTE Core option."
- Studying at a Canadian university or college. Take PTE Academic. Pearson's PTE Core FAQ says: "If you plan to apply to a Canadian university or college, you'll need PTE Academic instead of PTE Core." Check your school's own requirements too.
- Australian visas. Take PTE Academic. The Home Affairs English language page lists PTE Academic among accepted tests taken on or after 7 August 2025, and PTE Core does not appear on it. Score thresholds depend on the visa, so check the visa page itself.
If you are headed for Canada, our PTE Core for Canada PR guide covers the details. If Australia is on your list, see is PTE Core accepted in Australia?.
PTE Academic and IRCC
PTE Academic does not appear on IRCC's lists for Express Entry, PGWP or citizenship, so it is not one of IRCC's accepted tests for Express Entry, citizenship or PGWP. Express Entry accepts CELPIP-General, IELTS General Training and PTE Core for English. Citizenship accepts CELPIP General, CELPIP General-LS, IELTS General Training and PTE Core.
PTE Core scores are converted to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) levels skill by skill. IRCC uses your four skill scores; Pearson's help centre says "your overall PTE score will not be required and cannot be converted into CLB". Pearson also notes that the overall score "is not an average" of the skill scores. Our PTE Core score targets and CLB levels guide has the full conversion chart.
Is PTE Core easier than PTE Academic?
Neither Pearson nor IRCC publishes a difficulty comparison between the two tests, and none of the official pages we checked claims one is easier. They test different content, so the honest answer depends on you. Here is what actually differs:
- Topics. PTE Core uses everyday workplace and community English, such as magazine articles and emails. PTE Academic uses academic material, including lectures.
- Writing task. PTE Core has Write Email. PTE Academic has Write Essay.
- Speaking tasks. PTE Academic adds Retell Lecture and Summarize Group Discussion. PTE Core has neither.
- Section balance. PTE Core's Speaking & Writing part runs 50–65 minutes with 7 question types. PTE Academic's runs 76–84 minutes with 9.
How these differences feel depends on your own background, and no official source ranks them. Since each test serves a different purpose, the useful question is which one your application accepts. For most people the goal decides it before difficulty ever comes up.
What changed in August 2025
Pearson updated PTE Academic in 2025. Its 2025 updates page says: "The changes affect PTE Academic and PTE Academic UKVI. PTE Core and PTE Home tests remain unchanged." Pearson's news release of 10 July 2025 announced two new PTE Academic speaking tasks, Respond to a Situation and Summarize a Group Discussion, taking effect from 7 August 2025.
So if you read about "new PTE tasks" from 2025, that applies to PTE Academic. PTE Core already had Respond to a Situation, and we found no announcement of a 2026 PTE Core format change on pearsonpte.com.
Fees, test centres and at-home testing
Pearson doesn't publish a fixed fee list; prices come from the price finder on its test centres and fees page. Pearson's price finder listed PTE Core at CAD 360 in Canada when we checked on 7 October 2026, and in every country we checked, PTE Academic was listed at the same price as PTE Core. Whether tax is included isn't stated, and the price shown at booking is final. Our PTE Core fee guide lists prices in other countries.
Pearson's PTE Core page is plain about at-home testing: "PTE Core cannot be taken at home." For PTE Academic, Pearson's own pages don't fully agree. Its "which test is right for me" page says all PTE tests must be taken at a test centre, while the price finder still lists a PTE Academic Online at-home version. Pearson's 2024 PTE Core launch release said "PTE Academic Online is not accepted for work and migration purposes." Australia's Home Affairs page separately states that it does not accept tests "delivered completely online (also known as 'remote-proctored' or 'at-home')".
Preparing for the right test
Once you know which test you need, prepare for that one. Since Pearson says PTE Academic materials aren't suitable for PTE Core, look for practice that uses PTE Core's general-English topics and its Write Email task. You can practise PTE Core tasks in the PrepAmigo question bank and time yourself on full mock tests. For an overview of the whole test, start with what is PTE Core?.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between PTE Academic and PTE Core?
PTE Core is a general English test accepted by IRCC for Canadian permanent residence, citizenship and the post-graduation work permit. PTE Academic is an academic English test used for university admissions and for Australian and New Zealand visas. Both take about 2 hours and are scored from 10 to 90, but they use different topics and some different tasks.
What is the difference between PTE and PTE Core?
PTE on its own can also refer to PTE Academic, Pearson's test for study and for Australian and New Zealand visas. PTE Core is a separate Pearson test for Canadian immigration. Bookings opened in January 2024 and the first PTE Core tests could be taken from 12 February 2024.
Is PTE Core and PTE Academic the same?
No. They share a computer-based format, a 10 to 90 score scale and similar scoring methods, but PTE Core tests general English and PTE Academic tests academic English. PTE Core has Write Email, while PTE Academic has Write Essay, Retell Lecture, Summarize Group Discussion and Highlight Correct Summary.
Is PTE Core easier than PTE Academic?
There is no official difficulty comparison. The tests cover different content: PTE Core uses everyday workplace and community topics, and PTE Academic uses academic material such as lectures. Choose the test your application accepts rather than the one you think is easier.
Can I use PTE Academic for Canada PR?
No. PTE Academic is not one of IRCC's accepted tests for Express Entry, citizenship or the post-graduation work permit. For those applications IRCC asks for the PTE Core option.
Can I use PTE Core for Australia?
No. Australia's Home Affairs list of accepted English tests includes PTE Academic, and PTE Core does not appear on it.
Related guides
Sources and further reading
- Pearson: PTE Core, purpose, 2-hour length, section times, the Core vs Academic FAQ, "cannot be taken at home".
- Pearson: PTE Academic, PTE Academic section times and question-type counts.
- Pearson: PTE Core Speaking & Writing, PTE Core task list, Write Email and Respond to a Situation details.
- Pearson: PTE Academic Speaking & Writing, PTE Academic task list including Write Essay, Retell Lecture and Summarize Group Discussion.
- Pearson: PTE Academic Listening, PTE Academic listening tasks including Highlight Correct Summary.
- Pearson: PTE Core scoring, 10–90 scale, 19 question types, computer scoring.
- Pearson help centre: PTE Core FAQs, general vs academic content, preparation materials, CLB conversion.
- Pearson: PTE updates 2025, 2025 changes apply to PTE Academic only.
- Pearson: news, 10 July 2025 release on the new PTE Academic speaking tasks.
- Pearson: test centres and fees, price finder.
- IRCC: Express Entry language testing, accepted English tests for Express Entry.
- IRCC: PGWP documents, accepted tests for the post-graduation work permit.
- IRCC help centre: accepted language tests for citizenship, the English tests accepted for citizenship.
- IRCC: citizenship language proof, step 5, PTE Core minimum scores for citizenship.
- Pearson: PTE Core launch release (30 January 2024), launch dates and the PTE Academic Online statement.
- Pearson: which test is right for me, Pearson's statement that PTE tests are taken at a test centre.
- Home Affairs: English language, Australia's accepted tests and the at-home exclusion.