What's on the GED Test? All 4 Subjects in Plain English (2026)

If you’ve been out of school for years, the GED can look like one giant exam. It’s really four smaller tests, and you choose when to take each one.

The catch? Some guides online are out of date.

They still describe five tests, a social studies essay or a passing score of 150. None of that is true today.

We checked every fact here against ged.com and state sources in October 2026.

The 4 GED tests at a glance (2026)

Each test has its own time limit and its own score. Here’s how they line up, using the official subject details on ged.com:

• The times include a few minutes of instructions and any built-in breaks. For the minute-by-minute version, see how long the GED test is.
• The question counts come from a South Carolina state flyer. GED Testing Service doesn’t list counts on its test pages, so we say “about.” Added up, that’s about 160 questions, plus the essay.
• The calculator is an on-screen TI-30XS. At a test center you may also bring your own handheld TI-30XS for Math, Science and Social Studies, but online you use the one on screen. Our GED calculator guide has a free one to practice on.
• The reference sheets: the calculator reference sheet is a one-page guide to the calculator’s keys. The math formula sheet lists formulas like area, volume and slope, and our formula sheet guide works through each one.

What kind of questions are on the GED?

Multiple choice is only part of it. All four tests also use drag and drop, drop-down menus and select-an-area questions, and three of them add fill in the blank.

Want to see these formats in action before test day? Our GED math question types page lets you try each one on a math question.

What’s on each test, in plain English

Here’s what each test covers. The percentages are GED Testing Service’s own, from its Passing the Test guide (6th edition).

Math: everyday numbers, plus a lot of algebra

About 45% of the math test is working with numbers: fractions, percents, measuring shapes and reading data. The other 55% or so is algebra: equations, inequalities, graphs and functions.

In real life, that’s a sale price, the carpet for a room, or which phone plan costs less. The first part has no calculator, and you get a formula sheet.

Math has its own page. What’s on the GED math test lists every skill with a sample question, plus nine topics you can skip.

Reasoning Through Language Arts: reading, editing and the essay

RLA is the longest test, at 150 minutes. Here’s what’s in it:

• Reading: passages of 400 to 900 words, about the length of a short news article, with questions on each. About three-quarters are informational (nonfiction) and a quarter are literary, says GED Testing Service’s RLA test guide.
• Editing: some passages have drop-down menus inside them. You pick the word or phrase that fixes the sentence, the way you’d proofread an email before you send it.
• The essay: one 45-minute extended response. It’s the only essay on the GED, so it gets its own section below.

RLA has no calculator and no reference sheet.

Science: graphs, data and no formulas to memorize

Science is 90 minutes and about 34 questions. Here’s how it splits:

The good news? GED Testing Service says you don’t need to memorize formulas for Science. Each question gives you the information you need.

It also says you should be comfortable reading graphs and data sets. Think of reading a nutrition label or a weather chart and saying what it shows. You get the on-screen calculator and the calculator reference sheet.

Social Studies: half of it is civics

Social Studies is the shortest test: 70 minutes and about 35 questions. Half of it is about how government works:

GED Testing Service puts it plainly: “The social studies test is not a memorization test!” It asks you to read graphs and charts and apply social studies ideas.

Think of reading a voter guide, a pay stub or a map and working out what it means. There’s no essay, and there hasn’t been one since 2016. You get the on-screen calculator and the calculator reference sheet.

The one essay: how the RLA extended response works

The only essay on the GED sits inside the RLA test. GED Testing Service calls it the extended response, and you get 45 minutes for it.

Here’s how it works, based on GED Testing Service’s description:

1. You read two passages that take different sides on the same issue.
2. You decide which side has the more convincing evidence.
3. You write an essay that explains why, using evidence from the passages.

Picture two online reviews of the same used car. One gives the mileage, the repair records and the price, while the other just says it’s a great car. Your job is to say which review makes the better case, and why.

The essay earns up to 6 points: up to 2 for each of three traits. The official scoring guide describes them like this:

• Argument and evidence: you build an argument and back it up with evidence from the passages.
• Organization: you develop your ideas in an organized way.
• Clear writing: you follow the rules of standard English, like grammar and punctuation.

How long should it be? GED Testing Service’s essay guidelines say a full answer often runs 4 to 7 paragraphs, or about 300 to 500 words. A much shorter answer risks a score of 0.

Old GED facts to ignore

Today’s GED started in 2014, and it changed again in 2016. If a guide or video tells you any of these, it’s out of date:

• “There are five tests.” That was the GED before 2014, and today there are four.
• “Social Studies has an essay.” GED Testing Service dropped it in 2016. The RLA essay is the only one left.
• “You need 150 to pass.” The passing score dropped to 145 in 2016, and it’s still 145 on each test.
• “The GED costs the same everywhere.” Each state sets its own price: New York pays for the test, while South Dakota charges $50 a subject (both checked October 2026). Our GED cost by state page has the rest.

Bottom line: if a GED guide has no recent date, check its numbers against ged.com before you trust them.

What it takes to pass: 145 on each test

Each test gets a score from 100 to 200, and 145 passes. To earn your GED, you need 145 or higher on all four.

The scores aren’t averaged, so a great Science score can’t cover a low Math score. Our GED scores guide explains the levels above 145, and the GED score calculator checks all four at once.

Where to start: find out where you stand in math

Not sure which test to start with? Math is a good place to look first, because it’s the one that holds most people up.

GED Testing Service tracked 77,000 people who had passed three of the four tests. For 82% of them, the one left was math.

So it helps to know early where you stand. Our free GED math practice test has 46 questions on a 115-minute clock, with no calculator for the first 5 and every answer explained.

For the other three subjects, GED Testing Service offers free Test Previews, each a quarter the length of the real test.