The GMAT score range on the current Focus Edition runs from 205 to 805, reported in 10-point steps that always end in 5. Each of the three sections — Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and Data Insights — is scored on a 60–90 scale and contributes equally to that total. This guide walks through every part of the scale, using GMAC’s August 2026 percentile tables, so you know what your score report means.
The GMAT total score range on the Focus Edition is 205 to 805, moving in 10-point increments. Every reported total ends in 5, which is the fastest way to tell a current-edition score apart from a legacy one. Only 61 distinct totals are possible from end to end.
205 is the floor and 805 is the ceiling. Every score in between moves in discrete 10-point steps: 205, 215, 225, all the way up through 795 and 805. That 10-point step is why two test-takers with slightly different section performances can end up sharing the same total.
The previous 10th Edition used a 200 to 800 scale with totals that always ended in 0. Because Focus Edition totals end in 5, admissions offices and applicants can spot the exam version from the score alone: a 645 is a Focus Edition score, while a 700 is a 10th Edition score.
When you set a target score, the 10-point increment matters. You cannot land on a 650 or a 648 — the available totals are 645 or 655. Aiming for "645+" is cleaner than aiming for "at least a 648," because 648 is not a score that exists on the scale.
| Score Type | Range | Increment | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Score | 205–805 | 10 points | Every total ends in 5 |
| Quantitative Reasoning | 60–90 | 1 point | Equally weighted in total |
| Verbal Reasoning | 60–90 | 1 point | Equally weighted in total |
| Data Insights | 60–90 | 1 point | Equally weighted in total |
The GMAT section score range is 60 to 90 for every section, reported in 1-point increments. All three sections use identical endpoints, so your score report shows three numbers on the same scale.
Every GMAT Focus Edition total is built from three section scores. Quantitative Reasoning (21 questions) is problem solving in arithmetic and algebra. Verbal Reasoning (23 questions) covers critical reasoning and reading comprehension. Data Insights (20 questions) spans data sufficiency, multi-source reasoning, table analysis, graphics interpretation, and two-part analysis; the Data Insights section guide covers each type.
The 1-point increment on section scores is finer than the 10-point jump on the total, and single points matter. In GMAC’s August 2026 tables a Verbal 78 is the 37.7th percentile and a Verbal 79 is the 46.0th, even though both could end up in the same total. When you review a practice test, track section-score changes at the 1-point level, not just the total.
Because every section uses the same 60–90 range, it’s tempting to read a 78 in Quant and a 78 in Verbal as equal. They aren’t: a Quant 78 is the 50.2nd percentile and a Verbal 78 is the 37.7th, because each section has its own distribution of test takers. Compare sections by percentile. GMAC hasn’t published a Data Insights table alongside its concordance tables (DI has no 10th Edition equivalent), so we don’t show DI percentiles; your official score report includes yours.
This is the question most students actually want answered: given three section scores, how do they turn into one total? GMAC confirms the weighting but not the conversion.
GMAC states that “the contribution of each section score to Total Score is equally weighted across sections” (GMAC: How Is the Exam Scored?). A one-point improvement in Quant moves your total as much as a one-point improvement in Verbal or Data Insights. If Data Insights is your weakest section, it pulls your total down just as much as a weak Quant score would, and improvement there is worth as many total-score points as improvement elsewhere.
GMAC does not publish how section scores convert to the total, so every section-to-total chart is an approximation. Drawing a straight line between the endpoints (60/60/60 = 205 and 90/90/90 = 805) gives about 6.7 total points per section point, or roughly one 10-point step for every 1.5 points added to your section-score sum. Your official total can land a step away from that estimate.
One consequence of equal weighting is that many different section-score combinations produce about the same total. Two candidates can both post a 655 with very different section breakdowns, as long as their section sums are close.
Worked Example
Setup: Two test-takers have very different section profiles. Do they end up with the same total?
Enter your three section scores (each 60–90) to estimate your GMAT Focus Edition total. The total is an estimate because GMAC doesn't publish the conversion; the percentile and old-GMAT equivalent for that total are GMAC's August 2026 values.
To plan a target, see how many section points you still need, or estimate a Superscore across several attempts, use the full GMAT score calculator. How the GMAT scoring algorithm works explains where section scores come from in the first place.
The Focus Edition and the legacy 10th Edition scales are the biggest source of confusion for current test-takers. Older admissions pages and prep books still cite scores from the 200–800 era, which do not line up with today’s 205–805 scale.
The 10th Edition reported a 200 to 800 total built from Quant and Verbal, with Analytical Writing (0–6) and Integrated Reasoning (1–8) reported separately. Its Quant and Verbal section scores ran from 6 to 51. The Focus Edition has three equally weighted sections (Quant, Verbal, Data Insights), each scored 60 to 90, and a 205 to 805 total. There is no essay.
GMAC says the two exams “are not on a common scale” and that scores like 600 and 605 “may look similar” but represent very different performance levels (GMAC). An old 600 and a Focus 605 are not interchangeable just because the numbers are close.
GMAC publishes a concordance table that links each 10th Edition total to the Focus totals with the same percentile standing (GMAC, August 2026). It often gives a range, because the two scales use different step sizes. The most quoted pair: an old 700 lines up with a Focus 645–655, which is why a 645 is sometimes called "the new 700."
| Feature | GMAT Focus Edition | GMAT 10th Edition |
|---|---|---|
| Total score range | 205–805 | 200–800 |
| Total score increment | 10 points (ends in 5) | 10 points (ends in 0) |
| Section score range | 60–90 for all three sections | 6–51 for Quant and Verbal (AWA 0–6 and IR 1–8 reported separately) |
| Scored sections in total | Quant, Verbal, Data Insights (equal weight) | Quant and Verbal |
| How to compare across editions | GMAC concordance table (by percentile) | GMAC concordance table (by percentile) |
Pick any Focus Edition total to see the 10th Edition (200–800) totals GMAC's August 2026 concordance links it to, and its percentile.
A GMAT score chart is only useful if you know how to read the percentiles attached to it. A percentile ranks you against other recent test-takers, which is what admissions committees look at when they compare scores.
A percentile is not the share of questions you got right. It is the share of test-takers who scored below you. A 645 is the 85.6th percentile, meaning about 85.6% of test-takers in GMAC’s data scored lower, however many individual questions you answered correctly on the way there.
A handful of totals make useful mental anchors. The median is about 565 (the 50.4th percentile). A 605 is the 69.4th, a 645 the 85.6th and a 655 the 89.6th. A 685 is the 95.1st, a 705 the 97.5th, and a 735 the 99.4th, meaning only about 0.6% of test-takers score 735 or higher. For what these numbers mean when you apply, see what is a good GMAT score.
| Total Score | Percentile (GMAC) | Share scoring this or higher | Old GMAT equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 565 | 50.4th | 49.6% | 600–610 |
| 605 | 69.4th | 30.6% | 650 |
| 645 | 85.6th | 14.4% | 690–700 |
| 655 | 89.6th | 10.4% | 700–710 |
| 685 | 95.1st | 4.9% | 730–740 |
| 705 | 97.5th | 2.5% | 750 |
| 735 | 99.4th | 0.6% | 760–770 |
Percentiles are how GMAC bridges the two editions. A Focus 655–665 sits around the 90th percentile (89.6th and 91.2nd), and the concordance links an old 710 to exactly that range. The raw numbers look different, but the standing is the same. GMAC refreshes its percentile tables every year in the third quarter and updates the percentiles on your Official Score Report automatically, so your score never changes but its percentile can shift slightly.
Knowing what each score report contains and when it arrives removes most of the uncertainty after test day.
When you finish, you see your unofficial total and your three section scores on screen. That is enough to begin planning applications or deciding whether to retake. Schools don’t accept screenshots or printed copies; official scores must be sent through mba.com.
GMAC says official scores are usually available within 3–5 days, occasionally up to 20, and you get an email from mba.com when yours is ready. You can then send up to five free score reports within 48 hours, and programs typically receive scores within about 8 hours (GMAC: sending your official score). After that window, additional score reports cost a fee. How to send GMAT scores to schools walks through the steps.
Since August 12, 2026, GMAC also builds a GMAT Superscore from your highest Quant, Verbal and Data Insights scores across all valid Focus Edition attempts; 10th Edition and expired scores don’t count. It uses the same 205–805 scale as the total but has no percentile ranking (GMAC: What is a GMAT Superscore?). When you send a single attempt’s score, the Superscore is included automatically, with the exam date and delivery method of each section it uses, and you can’t opt out (GMAC). You still choose which programs receive a report. GMAT score reports explained shows what schools see.
Four fast questions to check that the GMAT scoring system has clicked. Answer each one, then read the explanation to confirm.
The GMAT Focus Edition total score runs from 205 to 805 in 10-point steps, so every total ends in 5. Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning and Data Insights are each scored from 60 to 90 in 1-point steps, and GMAC weights the three sections equally in the total.
Focus Edition totals end in 5 (205–805), while totals on the old 10th Edition ended in 0 (200–800). So a 645 or a 705 is a Focus score and a 700 is an old-GMAT score. GMAC says the two editions are not on a common scale, so the numbers can't be compared point for point.
GMAC says each section contributes equally to the total but doesn't publish the conversion. A straight line between the endpoints (60/60/60 = 205, 90/90/90 = 805) works out to about 10 total points for every 1.5 section points, so treat any section-to-total conversion as an estimate. Different section mixes with the same sum land on about the same total.
Find your place on the 205–805 scale — then move up it.
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