GCSE Grade Boundaries 2024: The New Grading System Explained
The GCSE grade boundaries system we have for 2024 was first introduced in 2017. We moved from the familiar A*-G letter grades to the number grades 9-1.
Maths, English language and English literature were the first subjects to move over to this new grading system, with more subjects changing over in 2018 and then the remaining subjects by 2020.
In this guide, we look at the 9-1 grading system and the reformed GCSEs. We explain GCSE grade boundaries, how they are set, the proportions of students achieving different overall grades and how the new grades compare to the old grades.
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Analysis of GCSE Maths Paper 1 (2024)
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What’s the difference between the new and old grades and how do they compare?
The new grading system runs from 9-1, with 1 being the lowest grade and 9 being the highest grade. The old system ran from A*-G.
The new numerical system allows more differentiation among the higher grades. Grades 4-6 cover grades B and C and grades 7-9 cover the top grades of A and A* in the old system. Grade 9 is considered higher than an A* and roughly the top 20% of GCSE students who achieve a grade 7 or above will achieve a grade 9.
The new GCSE grading system
- Grade 9, Grade 8 and Grade 7 are equivalent to the old Grades A* and A.
- Grade 6, Grade 5 and Grade 4 are equivalent to the old Grades B and C.
- To pass you need at least a Grade 4 or Grade 5.
- Grades 1 to 3 are like the old D to G.
- The U grade, meaning “ungraded”, remains the same.
A 9 is awarded to students who perform exceptionally well – usually in the top 5% of the cohort. A Grade 7 matches the bottom of the old Grade A and a Grade 1 aligns with the bottom of the old Grade G. Grade 4 is a standard pass. Grade 5 is a strong pass.
This means that any student who would have achieved at least a Grade C under the old system will now achieve at least a Grade 4. Keeping standards the same makes it easier for educational establishments and employers to compare the old and new grades.
- 9 = High A*
- 8 = Low A* or high A grade
- 7 = Low A grade
- 6 = High B grade
- 5 = Low B or high C grade
- 4 = Low C grade
- 3 = D or high E grade
- 2 = Low E or high F grade
- 1 = Low F or G grade
- U = U
Before the system change, Grade C was considered a pass at GCSE. This translates to a Grade 4 standard pass in the new system. Where a Grade C was previously accepted as a qualification grade in further education or employment, a Grade 4 should now be accepted.
Grade 5 is labelled a ‘good pass’ and it is worth noting that schools are now held to account for the percentage of students achieving grade 5 or higher.
The current Foundation GCSE exam paper covers grades 1-5 and the current higher paper covers grades 3-9.
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Download Free Now!Why have they changed the GCSE grading system?
GCSEs in England have been reformed. All courses are now linear qualifications, meaning that they are examined at the end of the course rather than in modules throughout the course. Additionally, there is less coursework. All GCSEs contain new and more demanding content, aiming to bring English standards up to match those in other high performing countries.
Changing the grading system is a clear way of indicating that the GCSE courses have changed. Hopefully, the new system will give sixth forms, colleges, universities and employers a better idea of what level someone is working at. This should allow them the opportunity to micro-distinguish between the various grades, such as 7, 8 and 9.
Ofqual rules regarding design of exam papers
As part of the redesigned maths course, Ofqual set some rules regarding the design of exam papers to ensure exam boards are consistent with setting their papers.
These rules state that:
- In a higher tier paper, half of the marks should target grades 9, 8 and 7 with the other half targeted at grades 6, 5 and 4.
- In a foundation tier paper, half of the marks should target grades 5, 4 and the top of grade 3 with the other half targeted at the bottom of grade 3 and grades 2 and 1.
When setting these rules, Ofqual aimed to ensure sufficient challenge across the ability range. It does mean that higher papers now contain more demanding questions and that only around 20% of the questions on the paper are designed for grade 4. This helps to explain the low grade boundaries for a grade 4 on higher papers.
What are the GCSE grade boundaries?
The GCSE grade boundaries tell us the minimum total number of component marks a student needs to achieve to receive a certain grade. The grade boundaries differ for each subject and vary slightly each year to ensure the system is fair for students.
Each year, senior examiners set the grade boundaries. These grade boundaries determine whether a student achieves a grade 1, 2, 3, … etc.
How GCSE grade boundaries are defined
Exam boards strive to ensure that it is not easier or harder to achieve a particular grade from one year to the next. This means that if one paper is harder than the previous year, the grade boundaries are lowered to reflect this. This principle is called Comparable Outcomes.
Subject grade boundaries are decided after the exams have been sat and all of the marking has been completed.
Senior examiners take into account a number of factors when deciding on grade boundaries. These include:
- Feedback from examiners about the particular paper;
- Question papers from previous years;
- Data about the previous achievements of the cohort of students taking the exam;
- Previous statistics.
Examiners look especially carefully at the work of students around the grade boundaries to decide where the grade boundaries should be set.
When are the GCSE grade boundaries released?
Grade boundaries are released on GCSE results day. Much like A-Levels, they used to be released prior to results day, but this was changed to try and reduce stress amongst students trying to predict their grades. The grade boundaries from previous years can be found on the websites of each exam board.
What were the GCSE grade boundaries in 2024?
In 2024, the post-results day grade boundaries continued the trend of getting back to the pre-pandemic ‘normal’. We can see that the proportion of students achieving each grade in maths in 2023 and 2024 is very similar, indicating that we are getting back to a more stable situation of comparable outcomes, where the grade boundaries are altered slightly to reflect the difficulty of the paper and the previous data of the cohort among, among other factors.
While the immediate impact of the pandemic was pushed to the back of minds, it was recognised that the pandemic still significantly impacted the education of those students taking exams in June 2024. For this reason, students taking GCSE maths in 2024 could still use the formula sheet.
Edexcel GCSE maths grade boundaries 2024
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 197 | 167 | 137 | 105 | 73 | 42 | 26 | ||
| Foundation | 175 | 142 | 103 | 65 | 27 |
AQA GCSE maths grade boundaries 2024
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 219 | 191 | 163 | 129 | 95 | 61 | 44 | ||
| Foundation | 186 | 157 | 117 | 77 | 37 |
OCR GCSE maths grade boundaries 2024
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 245(196) | 195(156) | 145(116) | 110(88) | 76(61) | 42(34) | 25(20) | ||
| Foundation | 180(144) | 131(105) | 93(74) | 55(44) | 18(14) |
WJEC Eduqas GCSE maths grade boundaries 2024
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 191 | 151 | 111 | 84 | 57 | 30 | 16 | ||
| Foundation | 132 | 104 | 76 | 49 | 22 |
All marks are out of 240, except OCR where the raw marks are out of 300. For comparison, the numbers in brackets for OCR represent the scaled grade boundary had it been out of 240.
What were the GCSE grade boundaries in 2023?
2023 was the second exam sitting following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Although learners taking their exams in 2023 did not suffer school closures during their GCSE years, it was recognised that they had suffered significant disruption to their studies leading up to their GCSEs. Therefore, steps were taken to ensure fairness to these learners.
Firstly, maths students were provided with a formula sheet during the exams. Secondly, grade boundaries were set similarly to when the grading system first changed. This means that examiners looked at the grades achieved in pre-pandemic years by cohorts of students, along with the prior attainment data of those cohorts. They aimed to decide upon grade boundaries which meant that students with similar prior attainment data would achieve the same grade pre- and post-pandemic.
Edexcel GCSE maths grade boundaries 2023
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 203 | 174 | 145 | 112 | 79 | 47 | 31 | ||
| Foundation | 182 | 147 | 109 | 71 | 33 |
AQA GCSE maths grade boundaries 2023
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 214 | 186 | 158 | 125 | 92 | 59 | 42 | ||
| Foundation | 189 | 158 | 117 | 76 | 35 |
OCR GCSE maths grade boundaries 2023
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 242(194) | 193(154) | 144(115) | 109(87) | 74(59) | 39(31) | 21(17) | ||
| Foundation | 178(142) | 129(103) | 92(74) | 56(45) | 20(16) |
WJEC Eduqas GCSE maths grade boundaries 2023
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 187 | 152 | 117 | 88 | 60 | 32 | 18 | ||
| Foundation | 133 | 105 | 77 | 49 | 21 |
All marks are out of 240, except OCR where the marks are out of 300. For comparison, the numbers in brackets for OCR represent the scaled grade boundary had it been out of 240.
What were the GCSE grade boundaries in 2022?
Summer 2022 saw the first full exam series for GCSE qualifications since 2019. GCSE exams were not sat in 2020 and 2021 and grades were given through teacher assessment.
To recognise the significant disruption to teaching and learning due to the pandemic, exam boards offered students several adaptations to the GCSE exams. These included optional content, additional support materials such as formulae sheets, and advanced information.
Additionally, results reflected a mid-point between summer 2019 and summer 2021 teacher-assessed grades. This meant overall results were higher than in summer 2019 when exams were last sat but lower than 2021’s alternative arrangements.
Edexcel GCSE maths grade boundaries 2022
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 194 | 165 | 137 | 104 | 71 | 38 | 21 | ||
| Foundation | 173 | 135 | 100 | 66 | 32 |
AQA GCSE maths grade boundaries 2022
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 214 | 185 | 156 | 121 | 86 | 51 | 33 | ||
| Foundation | 172 | 135 | 101 | 57 | 33 |
OCR GCSE maths grade boundaries 2022
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 242 | 200 | 158 | 120 | 82 | 45 | 26 | ||
| Foundation | 170 | 119 | 85 | 52 | 19 |
WJEC Eduqas GCSE maths grade boundaries 2022
| 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| Higher | 170 | 136 | 103 | 77 | 52 | 27 | 14 | ||
| Foundation | 125 | 99 | 73 | 47 | 21 |
All marks are out of 240, except OCR where the marks are out of 300. For comparison, the numbers in brackets for OCR represent the scaled grade boundary had it been out of 240.
GCSE grade boundaries for 2018-2024
What proportion of students achieve each GCSE grade?
This will vary between different year groups and different subjects. The design of the grade boundaries does not mean that a certain proportion achieves each grade, they are set according to the difficulty of the paper and the prior data of the cohort taking the paper.
We can, however, look at data from previous years to give us an idea of the proportion of students who achieve each grade.
Let’s look at the data for 2024, 2023 and 2022, the three most recent exam sittings. The following percentages of students achieved each grade:
| 2024 | U | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9-4 |
| Maths | 2.6% | 7.9% | 12.4% | 17.6% | 17.1% | 15.9% | 9.8% | 7.7% | 5.8% | 3.3% | 59.6% |
| Total | 2% | 5% | 9.3% | 16.3% | 15.5% | 16.6% | 13.7% | 9.6% | 7.1% | 5.0% | 67.4% |
| 2023 | U | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9-4 |
| Maths | 2.5% | 7.6% | 12.6% | 16.3% | 17.9% | 15.8% | 10.1% | 7.6% | 6.2% | 3.3% | 61% |
| Total | 2% | 4.9% | 9.3% | 16% | 15.6% | 16.6% | 14% | 9.6% | 7.1% | 4.9% | 67.8% |
| 2022 | U | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9-4 |
| Maths | 2.5% | 7.5% | 11% | 13% | 17% | 16% | 10% | 8.4% | 7.1% | 4.4% | 64.9% |
| Total | 1.6% | 4% | 8.5% | 13% | 14%. | 17.4% | 14.7% | 10.9% | 8.5% | 6.6% | 73% |
You can see from this graph that the percentage of students achieving grades 9-4 in Maths is lower than the percentage receiving grades 9-4 across all subjects.
The results for GCSE English language are similar to those for Maths. This could be because every student must sit Maths and English, but students choose which other subjects they take for GCSE.
The following chart shows the proportion of students achieving each grade in maths over the years 2018-2023:
We can see that in 2020 and 2021 the percentages achieving the lower grades noticeably decreased compared to 2018 and 2019, whilst the percentages achieving the higher grades increased. This is particularly noticeable in the percentage achieving grades 9-4.
Examining previous data, we can see that this is an anomaly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and does not just affect the maths results. Over the last three years, examiners worked to bring the results back to pre-pandemic levels.
What about other GCSE subjects?
In general, the proportions achieving each grade in each subject do vary. Let’s have a look at the proportion achieving 9-4 in 2024 across a few subjects:
| Maths | 59.6% |
| English language | 61.6% |
| Physical education | 72.1% |
| Religious studies | 72.5% |
| German | 77.5% |
| Double award science | 57.1% |
| Physics | 90.2% |
| Computer science | 68.3% |
If we compare these results, Maths and English results both sit lower than many other subjects. As previously mentioned, all students take English and Maths, whereas they chose other subjects due to preference. It is worth considering the situation with Science. In general, higher ability students sit GCSEs for separate sciences, whilst lower ability students sit combined science. This could explain the differences between the grades awarded in these subjects.
Some subjects with the highest achievements are modern foreign languages such as Urdu, Punjabi and Chinese. This is likely because those taking these GCSEs are native speakers of the languages in question. 92.5% of those taking modern foreign languages in 2023 received a grade 9-4.
Grading in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland
The grading system is different in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Wales reformed their GCSEs in 2015 but still use the A*-G grading system. Northern Ireland has introduced a new grade, C*, and so now also has a 9 point grading system. Students taking exams under English exam boards will receive grades 9-1. Scotland has a separate exam system, Scottish Highers. Scottish National 5 certificates grade A to C are equivalent to GCSEs grade 4 to 9.
What GCSE grade is 75%?
75% is GCSE grade 8 on a higher paper or grade 5 on a foundation paper. Remember that this is not guaranteed, however looking back over the past few years, is usually true.
Were GCSE grade boundaries in 2024 higher than in 2023?
Grade boundaries were similar in 2023 and 2024, and a similar proportion of students achieved each grade. We are returning to a more stable situation where the system of comparable outcomes is used to set grade boundaries.
What is a passing grade for GCSE maths?
Grade 4 at GCSE is considered to be a ‘standard pass’. Grade 5 is considered to be a ‘strong pass’.
Free GCSE maths revision resources for schools
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– GCSE maths topic list
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