How many questions are on the GRE?

The five sections

The essay always comes first. After that, Verbal and Quant can come in either order. There’s no scheduled break, and no unscored section on the current test.

Why the second section feels different

Verbal and Quant are adaptive by section. Your first section in each is of average difficulty. Do well on it and the second section is harder; struggle and it’s easier. Your score takes into account both how many you got right and how hard the questions were.

That’s why two people with the same number right can get different scores. It also means the first section matters, so don’t rush it.

There’s no pass mark

Nobody passes or fails the GRE. Each program decides what scores it wants, and many publish the scores of the students they admit. Your report shows a percentile next to each score: the share of test takers who scored lower than you.

What counts as a good score?

Compare yourself with other test takers. These figures are from ETS, based on everyone who tested between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2025. The average was 151.4 in Verbal, 157.6 in Quant and 3.5 in Analytical Writing. A combined 309 or so is about average.

Same score, different percentile

Quant percentiles are lower than Verbal ones for the same score, because more test takers score high in Quant. So a 165 in Quant beats about two-thirds of test takers, while a 165 in Verbal beats 95%. When you set a target, check which measure your program cares about most.