How to Get Your GED in Pennsylvania (2026): Cost, Free Testing

Getting your GED in Pennsylvania comes down to four tests. You can take them one at a time, usually at a test center.

The catch? Pennsylvania’s prices are hard to pin down, and the free program has limits. This guide sorts out both.

If it’s been years since school, that’s normal. You don’t need the whole plan today, only the next step.

Pennsylvania GED at a glance

Pennsylvania GED facts, from Pennsylvania’s page on GED.com and its online testing table, checked October 13, 2026.
Price at a test center	GED.com lists no first-attempt price; the state says all four tests cost $120 to $144
Online testing	Limited, from age 18Restrictions may apply, and no first-attempt price is listed
Retake at a test center	One discounted retake per subject: $10
Help paying	PAFreeGED pays for first attempts in up to four subjects (residents 18+), first come, first served
Age to test	18Younger: 16–17 with a state age waiver and a written request from an employer, college, recruiter or institution
Must you live here?	Required
What you earn	Commonwealth Secondary School Diploma

Want to compare? See GED cost by state and GED requirements by state.

Who can take the GED in Pennsylvania

To take the GED in Pennsylvania, you need to be 18, live in Pennsylvania, and have no high school diploma. GED.com’s Pennsylvania page says it plainly: “Yes, in Pennsylvania you’re required to be a resident.”

Bring a valid driver’s license or other proof that you live in Pennsylvania to the test center.

Under 18? At 16 or 17, you need an age waiver approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE). You send the Age Waiver Form with a written request from an employer, a college admissions office, a military recruiting office or a state institution director, saying you need a GED.

No one under 16 can test. If you pass before you turn 18, you get a transcript first, and the diploma comes at 18.

No class or practice test is required before you test in person.

How much the GED costs in Pennsylvania

Here’s the odd part: GED.com’s Pennsylvania page doesn’t list a regular price for a first attempt (checked October 2026). In May 2025, PDE said Pennsylvania test takers “can expect to pay between $120-$144” for all four tests.

PAFreeGED can make your first tries free. With the code PAFreeGED, the state covers up to four subjects, including the test center or online proctoring fee.

It’s for Pennsylvania residents who are at least 18 and don’t have a high school diploma, testing at a public test center or online. PDE set aside $2 million for it, first come, first served.

Two limits to know. It covers first attempts only, and you can’t use the code for retakes. And because the money will run out at some point, check that the code still works when you book.

Retakes. At a test center, GED Testing Service waives its $26 fee when you retake a subject you failed, and you pay the $10 test center fee. An online retake costs $36, and you get one before a 60-day wait.

To add up your own total, with or without GED Ready, use our GED cost calculator.

Can you take the GED online in Pennsylvania?

In some cases. GED.com’s online testing table marks Pennsylvania as limited, for ages 18 and up, and says restrictions may apply (checked October 2026).

GED.com’s Pennsylvania page says you can take the exam online if you can’t reach a nearby test center.

If you test online, you need a green GED Ready score from the last 60 days in each subject, a private room with a door you can close, and a computer with a webcam and reliable internet.

PAFreeGED covers the online proctoring fee too, so a first online try can also be free.

How to get your GED in Pennsylvania, step by step

Step 1: Create your free GED.com account

You book each test at GED.com, and you see your scores there. Use an email address you’ll keep.

Step 2: Under 18? Get your age waiver approved

Send PDE the Age Waiver Form with your written request, and wait for approval before you book.

Step 3: Study for the four subjects

GED.com has free test previews for all four subjects, each about a quarter the length of the real test. GED Ready, the official practice test, costs $7.99 a subject.

Math is the subject most people have left at the end. Our free GED math practice test is full length and timed, and practice by topic lets you work on one skill at a time.

Step 4: Book your tests with PAFreeGED

Book each subject in your GED.com account and use the PAFreeGED code for your first try at each one. Book only when you’re ready, since the code doesn’t cover a retake.

Step 5: Pass all four subjects

Each subject is scored from 100 to 200, and you need 145 or higher in all four. Scores usually post within 24 hours.

If you don’t pass a subject, you retake only that one.

Step 6: Order your Pennsylvania diploma

When you pass all four, you order your diploma and transcript from DiplomaSender. The section below has the details.

GED classes in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania’s adult education programs are listed in the Find an Adult Education Program search from PA Adult Education Resources, which PDE links to.

Ask a program about class times and any cost before you sign up.

A class isn’t required. You can study on your own and book each test when you’re ready.

Your Pennsylvania diploma and transcript

Pass all four subjects and you earn the Commonwealth Secondary School Diploma (CSSD).

DiplomaSender handles every Pennsylvania high school equivalency diploma and transcript. You order your first one and any copies at DiplomaSender.com, and GED.com’s Pennsylvania page says documents can be mailed, emailed or faxed to you. Phone orders at 855-313-5799 may cost extra, and questions go to ra-edhse@pa.gov.

Pennsylvania also lets you mix tests. With DiplomaSender’s TotalTranscript, you can combine GED and HiSET subjects, and Spanish and English ones, toward the diploma.

There’s even a route with no test. The 30 College Credit Option awards the diploma for 30 semester hours of college study.

Written by

Coach Crissy

Math instructor

Coach Crissy teaches the video lessons behind the BooknBoost GED math course, working through GED-style problems on camera: ratios and proportions, percent and interest, mean, median and mode, slope, and the geometry students meet on test day.

GED guides for other states

Not listed? GED requirements by state covers every state.

How to Get Your GED in Pennsylvania: Cost, Free Testing, 6 Steps