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Last Updated on November 14, 2023
Many test-takers wonder how many full GRE practice tests they should take to get ready for the real test. Do you need to take all the practice tests that ETS (the GRE-maker) offers? Is taking just the free GRE practice tests enough? Can you retake practice tests?
In this article, I’ll tell you how many full GRE practice tests you should take before test day and discuss the top 3 reasons why taking those tests is an essential part of your GRE prep.
Here are the topics we’ll cover:
- GRE Practice Test FAQ
- How Many GRE Practice Tests Should I Take?
- The Flaw in Mixing & Matching Practice Tests
- In Conclusion
- What’s Next?
Keep in mind that this article discusses the GRE General Test. Check out this page for information about GRE Subject Test practice materials.
Now, let’s get started by answering some common questions about practice GRE tests.
GRE Practice Test FAQ
Here are the answers to some common questions about GRE practice tests.
How Many GRE Practice Tests Are There?
ETS provides a total of 5 full-length, official practice tests: 2 free GRE practice tests and 3 practice tests that are available for a fee of $39.95 per test.
There are also many unofficial GRE practice tests out there offered by various test prep companies. But, as we’ll discuss more in this article, the value of those tests can be questionable and, at the very least, is limited compared to the value of official exams.
KEY FACT:
ETS, the maker of the GRE, offers 5 full-length practice tests.
How Long Does a Practice GRE Take?
The official practice GRE exams from ETS mirror the structure and format (and content) of the real test. So, they contain Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning sections that are the same length as those on the actual GRE, as well as an Analytical Writing section just like the GRE’s.
Thus, the official practice tests are the same length as the GRE exam you will take on test day, meaning that they take about 3 hours and 45 minutes to complete.
KEY FACT:
Official practice tests are the same length as the actual GRE and thus take about 3 hours and 45 minutes to complete.
Is the Actual GRE Harder Than Practice Tests?
Since no two GREs are exactly alike — whether we’re talking official practice tests or real tests — any given GRE exam is going to vary somewhat from the next one. So, depending on what questions you see from one test to the next, and what your current strengths and weaknesses are, you may find one GRE exam somewhat more or less challenging than another.
Nevertheless, the full-length, official practice tests provided by ETS are designed to mirror the experience of taking the real GRE. So, overall, the difficulty level of official practice tests is basically on par with that of the real test. That said, the older official tests (POWERPREP I) are slightly easier than the current GRE, particularly in quant. On the other hand, the newer tests (POWERPREP II) pretty much exactly match the difficulty of the real GRE.
Now, if you’re taking full-length practice tests from companies other than ETS, there is no guarantee that the difficulty level of those tests will be comparable to that of the actual GRE. (More on that later.)
KEY FACT:
The overall difficulty level of official practice tests is on par with that of the actual GRE.
How Many Times Can I Take GRE Practice Tests?
Technically, you can take the 2 free GRE practice tests from ETS as many times as you’d like. Likewise, you can retake the 3 official tests available for purchase as often as you like. However, you’ll have to repurchase the test each time.
In other words, your $39.95 purchase of an official practice test allows you to take that test only once. To take that particular test again, you’ll have to pay another $39.95.
However, there are very few scenarios in which you’d need to purchase a practice test twice. For instance, let’s say you’ve taken all 5 of the available official practice tests, but for some reason, you really want to take a sixth practice test. In that case, you’d have 2 free tests available to retake before you needed to consider retaking a paid test.
In fact, by the time you got to the point at which you’d be repurchasing a test, you would’ve already taken 7 practice tests! Why would you want or need to take an eighth?
KEY FACT:
There is no limit on the number of times you can retake official practice tests, although you must repurchase any paid tests you retake.
Avoid Retaking Practice Tests
One way you might get yourself into the unfortunate scenario of retaking practice tests is by using practice tests as your primary means of preparing for the GRE. The thing is, taking practice tests is not a good way to learn content.
Full-length practice tests need to be incorporated into your GRE study in a strategic way, at specific points during your test preparation, for the purpose of accomplishing specific goals (goals which I’ll discuss shortly). If your study plan consists primarily — or solely — of taking practice tests, you’re not going to get the full benefit of the tests. Moreover, you’re not going to effectively learn the content you need to learn to earn a high GRE score. You’re just going to (maybe) get good at taking those particular practice tests.
Keep this in mind: the scores you earn on a particular practice test become less and less reflective of your actual skills each time you retake that exact test. Even if you think you don’t remember anything about the test, or you haven’t taken the test for a couple of months, you’re still going to have the advantage of having seen that test before. That advantage could artificially inflate your practice test score, giving you a false impression of how you’d perform on the actual GRE.
TTP PRO TIP:
The scores you earn on a particular practice test become less and less reflective of your actual skills each time you retake that practice test.
An Exception to the Rule
There could be a scenario in which a test-taker took all 5 official practice tests and sat for the real test a few years ago. Then, for whatever reason, he took a break from the GRE, and now he is resuming test prep. In that case, retaking practice tests may be a necessity.
However, at that point, I wouldn’t worry too much about having seen the tests. There is a big difference between retaking the same practice test you took a few months ago and retaking the same test you took a few years ago. After a couple of years have passed, I’d say that any unfair advantage will have largely dissipated.
TTP PRO TIP:
If it has been years since you last prepared for the GRE, don’t worry about retaking the official practice tests.
Now that we’ve answered some basic questions about GRE practice tests, let’s talk about how many practice tests a GRE student should take in preparing for test day.
How Many GRE Practice Tests Should I Take?
I recommend to all of my GRE students that they take all 5 official GRE practice tests, and there are 3 key reasons why. Let’s take a look.
TTP PRO TIP:
Take all 5 official GRE practice tests.
Reason 1: To Accurately Gauge Your Current Score
I’ve seen it time and time again: a GRE student sets an arbitrary test date and sits for the GRE without any solid indication that she’s actually ready to hit her score goal.
Likewise, I’ve seen many GRE students plan study timelines for themselves with no information about how much work they’ll need to put in to reach their score goals.
Would you enter a race without knowing how many miles you’ll have to run to reach the finish line? Moreover, why waste time and money sitting for the GRE before you have evidence that you’re prepared enough to earn the score you need?
So, how do you formulate a realistic GRE study plan and make sure you’ve done enough to prepare for the GRE before you actually sit for the exam? By taking official practice tests!
Official, full-length practice tests are the closest thing you’ll get to the real GRE before test day. So, they are your best chance at gauging what your score report would likely look like at any given time. If you know that you’ve hit your score goal on multiple official practice tests (more than 1 or 2!), then you can walk into the test center feeling ready and confident, not nervous and wishing you’d studied for another month.
Similarly, it doesn’t make sense to plan out weeks or months of GRE study, or schedule a particular test date, without knowing whether you’re 30 points or 130 points from your score goal. So, just as you can use official practice tests in the final stages of your GRE prep in order to gauge your readiness for test day, you can take an official practice test before you start your prep in order to see how close you are to your target score.
TTP PRO TIP:
Full-length, official practice tests are the best means of gauging your current GRE score.
Reason 2: To Get the Test-Day Experience
We all know that mastering GRE content is essential for earning a good GRE score. However, it’s also important to become skilled at and comfortable with the process of sitting for the exam.
Taking all of the available full-length, official practice tests gives you ample opportunity to build the mental and physical stamina you need to endure a stressful, nearly 4-hour exam. Would you compete in a weightlifting contest if you’d only ever performed a single squat or shoulder press? That would be crazy, right?
You’ll want to spend plenty of time strengthening your “test-day muscles” before you do the heavy lifting of taking the GRE. Of course, to get the most out of your training — and get as accurate scores as possible — you’ll want to replicate test day as closely as you can. In other words, take your practice tests in a quiet space, free from distractions and interruptions. Additionally, follow all of the test-day rules and procedures.
Remember, the goal is to get as accustomed as possible to the demands of the GRE. By taking all 5 of the official practice tests under realistic testing conditions, you reduce your level of anxiety about the exam and set yourself up to make the actual GRE feel like just another practice test.
TTP PRO TIP:
Taking all 5 official practice tests allows you to build the mental and physical stamina you need for the GRE and get comfortable with the testing experience.
Reason 3: To Refine Your Pacing Strategies
Another key to performing well on the GRE is properly pacing yourself throughout the exam. Simply completing timed sets of practice questions — as important as doing so may be — is not enough to ensure that your time-management skills will be up to snuff on test day.
You have to experience what it feels like to maintain proper pacing throughout a full-length GRE. Taking all of the official practice tests gives you a chance to, literally, put your pacing strategies to the test. You can see what works and what doesn’t, and make adjustments as necessary. Timing yourself as you, for example, work through a book of GRE practice problems over the course of weeks of study isn’t going to allow you to hone your pacing skills and refine your time-management strategies in that realistic way.
Of course, practicing questions under increasingly restrictive time constraints in the later stages of your GRE prep will certainly help you learn to deal with time constraints of the exam. However, to fully prepare yourself for the unique time-management challenges that the GRE presents, your best bet is to take all of the official practice GREs.
TTP PRO TIP:
To fully prepare yourself for the unique time-management challenges that the GRE presents, take all 5 official practice GREs.
Given the 3 key reasons we’ve just discussed for taking GRE practice tests, you may wonder whether you should just take as many full-length GRE practice tests, from whatever sources, as you can find. Let’s discuss why that isn’t a productive strategy.
The Flaw in Mixing & Matching Practice Tests
I once had a student who came to me feeling disillusioned after failing to hit his GRE score goal on test day. He couldn’t understand what went wrong, since he had been hitting his score goal on practice tests.
As it turned out, in an effort to save some money, he had taken the 2 free official practice tests, and then 3 full-length practice tests from a couple of different test prep companies. In his mind, since he was hitting his score goal by the time he took the last couple of tests, he was ready to sit for his GRE. What he didn’t realize was that he was comparing apples to oranges.
When you take full-length practice tests that are not provided by ETS, you run the risk of getting inaccurate scores. After all, no one knows the “secret sauce” of the GRE scoring algorithm except for ETS. So, no one else is going to be able to replicate GRE scoring precisely.
Furthermore, there may be inherent (but not outwardly noticeable) differences between the practice tests of different companies. So, scoring 310 on Company A’s test and then 330 on Company B’s doesn’t necessarily indicate that your GRE score has improved.
In other words, mixing and matching practice tests from ETS and other companies may not give you an accurate view of your test readiness. To get the most accurate view of whether you’re prepared to hit your score goal, stick with official practice tests.
TTP PRO TIP:
To get the most accurate view of your test readiness and current GRE score, stick with the official practice tests.
Should I Ever Take Unofficial Practice Tests?
Does the fact that non-ETS tests may yield inaccurate scores mean that you should never, under any circumstances, take an unofficial full-length practice test? I wouldn’t go that far.
However, I would say that you should definitely prioritize the 5 ETS practice exams. They will provide the most realistic GRE experience and the most accurate scores (assuming you follow test-day rules).
After taking those tests, you’re likely to find that you don’t need to take more full-length practice tests prior to your GRE. If you feel that you absolutely must take more practice tests, then you can take some non-ETS tests. Just don’t be surprised (or stress yourself out) if your scores vary from those you earned on the official tests.
In Conclusion
To put yourself in the best possible position to hit your GRE score goal on test day, take all 5 official, full-length practice tests from ETS. Furthermore, be sure to follow all test-day rules and mimic the testing experience as much as possible when you take each test. Remember:
- Official, full-length practice tests are the closest thing to the real GRE that you can get before test day. So, if you take them under realistic testing conditions, they will give you the most accurate view of your current GRE score.
- Taking all 5 official practice tests gives you ample opportunity to build the mental and physical stamina required for the GRE and get comfortable with the testing experience.
- Taking all 5 official practice tests gives you ample opportunity to experience the unique time-management challenges of a full-length GRE and refine your pacing strategies.
What’s Next?
Now that you know how many GRE practice tests to take, it’s important that you have a strategy for how and when to take practice tests in order to get the greatest benefit from them. Check out this article on how to incorporate practice tests into your GRE prep for a detailed plan to ensure you make the most of each practice test you take and sit for the real test when you’re really ready.
Was your score on the actual GRE lower than your practice test scores? Learn the top 10 reasons why test-takers experience GRE score drops.
