Official GRE General Test scores come out 8 to 10 days after your test date. ETS posts them in your ETS account, emails you, and sends them to the schools you chose on test day at the same time. If you choose to report your scores, you see unofficial Verbal and Quant scores on screen as soon as the test ends.
Enter your test date below to see the exact dates, and add an application deadline to check whether you're cutting it close. The timing is the same at home and at a test center. Every rule here comes from ETS's GRE score pages and the 2026-27 GRE Information Bulletin, checked November 8, 2026.
The calculator counts calendar days from your test date using ETS's 8–10 day range. For deadlines it uses the upper end, 10 days, plus a 4-day buffer: our planning assumption for the time a program needs to match an arriving score to your application. ETS doesn't publish that last part, and programs differ.
Unofficial Verbal and Quant scores appear the moment you finish (if you report), official scores 8 to 10 days later, and everything else follows from those two dates. Here's the whole timeline for a test taken on Monday, November 9, 2026.
| What | When | Example: test on Nov 9, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Unofficial Verbal and Quant | End of the test, if you report | Monday, November 9 |
| Official scores in your ETS account | 8–10 days after the test date | Tuesday, November 17 to Thursday, November 19 |
| Official reports to test-day recipients | Same time as your official scores | November 17–19 |
| Additional score report ordered after scores post | About 5 business days to process | About Thursday, November 26 (or Friday, November 27 if ETS skips Thanksgiving), if ordered November 19 |
| GRE Diagnostic Service (free) | About 15 days after the test, for 6 months | From about November 24 |
| Earliest retake | 21 days after the test | Monday, November 30 |
The two dates people get wrong are the weekend and the essay. ETS doesn't say whether its 8–10 days are calendar or business days, so we count calendar days and plan with the buffer. And the Analytical Writing score only arrives with the official scores, never on test day.
Your Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning scores do, unofficially, if you choose to report them. Analytical Writing doesn't, because the essay is scored after the test. When you finish the last section, the screen asks whether you want to report or cancel your scores. Choose report and you see two unofficial scores on the 130–170 scale, then pick up to four free score recipients.
Want to know what your two numbers mean before the official report? Our GRE percentile calculator uses ETS's current percentile tables.
Schools you name on test day get your official report when your scores post, 8 to 10 days after the test. Schools you add later get it about 5 business days after you order and pay for an additional score report. That second route is slower and costs money, which is why choosing your four free recipients on test day matters if you're near a deadline.
| How you send | Cost | When the school gets it |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 4 recipients chosen on test day | Included in the test fee | When official scores post, 8–10 days after the test |
| Additional score report (ASR) after test day | US$40 per recipient | About 5 business days after you order (if your scores have already posted) |
| ASR ordered before your scores post | US$40 per recipient | Sent on or after the date your scores become available |
An ASR order can't be canceled, changed or refunded, so double-check the institution before you pay. After ETS sends a report, it's the program that matches it to your application, and that step isn't on ETS's clock. If your program's application portal shows received scores, check there; otherwise ask the admissions office before reordering.
Take the GRE at least 14 days before your deadline: ETS's 10-day upper end plus our 4-day buffer. To leave room for one retake, take the first attempt at least 35 days (5 weeks) before. The 21 days come from ETS's rule that you can take the General Test once every 21 days, up to five times in any rolling 12-month period.
| Deadline | Latest test date (one attempt) | First attempt with room for a retake |
|---|---|---|
| December 1, 2026 | Tuesday, November 17, 2026 | Tuesday, October 27, 2026 |
| December 15, 2026 | Tuesday, December 1, 2026 | Tuesday, November 10, 2026 |
| January 1, 2027 | Friday, December 18, 2026 | Friday, November 27, 2026 |
| January 15, 2027 | Friday, January 1, 2027 | Friday, December 11, 2026 |
| February 1, 2027 | Monday, January 18, 2027 | Monday, December 28, 2026 |
Some programs accept scores that arrive shortly after the deadline as long as the application itself is in on time. That's a program policy, not an ETS one, so check with the program before you count on it. Our GRE test dates guide has a planner that works backward from your deadline including study time.
With ScoreSelect you decide which test dates each school sees. On test day you choose Most Recent or All for each free report, or send none; after test day you can also choose Any. Schools see only the scores you send, with no sign that you took other GRE tests.
| Option | Sends | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Most Recent | Scores from the test you just took (or your latest test, after test day) | Test day and after |
| All | Every GRE General Test administration in the last 5 years | Test day and after |
| Any | One or as many test administrations from the last 5 years as you like | After test day only (US$40 per recipient) |
| None | Nothing now; you can order reports later for a fee | Test day |
Each test date is sent whole: you can't send Verbal from one date and Quant from another. Some programs require all scores from applicants who've taken the GRE more than once, so check each program's rules before you pick Most Recent.
Sign in to your ETS account. When ETS emails you that official scores are available, your Test-taker Score Report is there to view and print. It lists your Verbal, Quant and Analytical Writing scores with percentile ranks, your test dates, the recipients you authorized and the scores each received, and your record of scores reported in the last 5 years.
Our guide to what makes a good GRE score puts the numbers in context, and the GRE score calculator helps if you're estimating a score from practice before deciding on a retake.
You can cancel only on the screen at the end of the test, before you see your scores. Once you view them, they can't be canceled. Canceled scores aren't added to your reportable history, aren't sent anywhere and aren't refunded. You also can't cancel one section and keep the others.
Changed your mind? You can reinstate canceled scores online in your ETS account within 60 days of your test date, for a US$50 fee (ETS fees effective August 1, 2026). ETS reports reinstated General Test scores about two weeks after your request. The calculator shows your 60-day reinstatement cutoff. Because ScoreSelect already lets you hide a test date from schools, the Bulletin advises thinking carefully before canceling at all.
If day 10 has passed and you have no email, sign in to your ETS account first, because that's where scores post. If they're still missing a few days later, contact GRE Services. Work through these in order:
GRE scores are reportable for 5 years after your test date. ETS's own example: a test taken July 3, 2022 is reportable through July 2, 2027. The calculator shows your exact date. ETS also warns that ASRs take about 5 business days to process, so order before the end of the window, not on the last day. More detail is in our guide to GRE score expiration and the 5-year rule.
Once your official scores post, decide quickly whether to send more reports or retake, because both have lead times.
Last verified against ETS's GRE score, score-sending, fees, at-home test day and contact pages and the GRE Information Bulletin 2026-27: November 8, 2026. The 4-day buffer is our planning assumption, not an ETS rule.