A national standardized international examination assessing the Chinese proficiency of non-native speakers, including foreigners, overseas Chinese and members of ethnic minorities.
The HSK (Chinese Proficiency Test) is an international standardized examination organized and implemented by Chinese Testing International (CTI). It focuses on assessing the ability of non-native Chinese speakers to use Chinese for communication in daily life, study, and work. The test operates under a unified system of question-setting, examination, scoring, and score reporting. HSK has been upgraded from the original six-level system to a “three-tier, nine-band” framework, comprehensively covering elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels and assessing five language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and translation (at advanced levels). Currently, HSK has 1,477 test centres in 168 countries, with cumulative test-takers exceeding 8.5 million. In 2025, the number of candidates is expected to reach 750,000.
HSK scores have become an essential proof of Chinese language proficiency for international students applying for admission, graduation, and scholarship assessment in China, and can also serve as a points item for foreigners applying for a work visa in China. Specific uses of HSK scores include: college enrollment, class placement, course exemption, and credit awarding; employee recruitment, training, and advancement; evaluation of teaching effectiveness by institutions; and self-assessment and improvement by Chinese learners. HSK score reports are valid for two years from the date of the test. As the world’s largest standardized Chinese proficiency test, HSK provides the most authoritative and widely recognized proof of Chinese proficiency for further education, employment, and personal certification.
HSK 3.0 is a major system upgrade of the Chinese Proficiency Test. Compared with HSK 2.0, its overall difficulty, vocabulary load and assessment dimensions are all significantly raised, and it aligns more closely with international language standards such as the CEFR. HSK 3.0 uses a three-tier, nine-band structure.
The requirements for each HSK 3.0 band — vocabulary, characters, paper structure and exam duration — are based on the officially published syllabus, all on one page.
Bands 1 to 6 each have their own paper. Bands 7, 8 and 9 are assessed by a single combined paper that places you into one of the three advanced bands. The competencies at each level are described below:
Basic everyday communication, with a focus on stroke order, basic pronunciation and high-frequency vocabulary.
Complex social and workplace communication, strengthening paragraph writing and extended reading comprehension.
Academic research, cross-cultural business and professional fields. One paper covers three bands: your score range places you at Band 7, 8 or 9.
Switch between what you need to know and what you will sit on the day.
| Band | New words | Total words | Reading characters | Handwriting characters | Speaking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 300 | 300 | 246 | — | — |
| 2 | 200 | 500 | 371 | 100* | — |
| 3 | 500 | 1,000 | 655 | 250 | Speaking |
| 4 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 1,096 | 400 | Speaking |
| 5 | 1,600 | 3,600 | 1,527 | 550 | Speaking |
| 6 | 1,800 | 5,400 | 1,940 | 700 | Speaking |
| 7–9 | 5,600 | 11,000 | 3,088 | 1,200 | Integrated |
HSKK moves from the three HSK 2.0 levels (Elementary, Intermediate, Advanced) to four levels — 3, 4, 5 and 6 — matched to HSK Bands 3 to 6. Candidates registering for a Band 3–6 written paper must register for the speaking test in the same entry.
Every figure on this page is traceable to one of these documents. Where they are silent, we say so rather than estimate.
Find the next sitting in your region and enter your written and speaking papers together.
