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HSK 6 exam format

How long the HSK 6 exam takes, what each section contains, and what every task type asks you to do. The structure and timing below are the same ones used to assemble the practice papers on this site.

HSK 3.0 · about 125 minutes in total, of which 115 are timed sections · 82 questions · Listening, Reading and Writing · pass mark 180 of 300

Compared with HSK 5, the prescribed vocabulary rises by 1,000 words to 6,000, the CEFR band moves from B2 to C1. On the paper itself, sentence gap-fill appears for the first time, sentence ordering drops out, the writing minimum rises from 450 characters to 600.

These figures are the HSK 3.0 format, set by the official standard GF0025-2021. Earlier HSK 2.0 papers were structured and timed differently, so figures published for those will not match.

1 free mock

What to expect, section by section

Every HSK 6 paper here is assembled to the official HSK 3.0 blueprint: the same sections in the same order, the same task types, the same clock. Open a section below to see every task inside it, so nothing on exam day comes as a surprise.

The full written paper is 82 questions across 3 sections, about 115 minutes, scored out of 300. The pass line is 180 of 300.

听力 · Listening40 items · ~30 min · 100 pts · audio ×1

Audio drives this whole section: in exam mode each clip plays exactly once, and it never pauses, rewinds or shows a transcript. Practice mode lifts the cap so you can replay freely. The questions are printed, so you read as you listen.

Part 1: Multiple choiceItems 1-8 · 8 questions

One voice delivering a short piece, a news item or an announcement, with a single question and four options. Every clip in this part carries exactly one question.

Click the letter of the correct option.

Marked automatically against the answer key when your paper is scored, at no cost.

Tip: One question per clip, and it usually turns on the point the speaker ends on. Stay with the clip to its last sentence.

Part 2: Multiple choiceItems 9-28 · 20 questions

A long single-voice passage, a talk or a report of several hundred characters, carrying about four questions. There is no second speaker and nothing is restated.

Click the letter for each question. They are scored separately.

Marked automatically against the answer key when your paper is scored, at no cost.

Tip: Read the four questions before the audio starts. At this length you cannot recover a detail you were not already listening for.

Part 3: Multiple choiceItems 29-40 · 12 questions

The longest audio in this exam. Some pieces here are interviews between two speakers and others are talks by one, and each carries about four questions.

Click the letter for each question. They are scored one by one.

Marked automatically against the answer key when your paper is scored, at no cost.

Tip: In the interview pieces the questions track the interviewer's turns. Use each new question they ask as your marker for where you are.

阅读 · Reading40 items · ~40 min · 100 pts

No audio here: printed passages, sentences and options against the section clock. The clock is the real opponent, so pacing matters more in Reading than anywhere else on the paper.

Part 1: Multiple choiceItems 41-50 · 10 questions

A printed passage of a few hundred characters with a run of questions on it. Every question in this part belongs to a shared passage.

Click the letter. Each question is scored on its own.

Marked automatically against the answer key when your paper is scored, at no cost.

Tip: The options here paraphrase rather than quote. Match the meaning to the passage, not the wording.

Part 2: Sentence gap-fillItems 51-60 · 10 questions

A continuous passage with numbered gaps, and a set of complete sentences labelled A to F. Each gap takes exactly one of them, and the set is larger than the one at HSK 4.

Choose the letter that belongs in each gap.

Marked automatically against the answer key when your paper is scored, at no cost.

Tip: Read across the gap in both directions. A pronoun or a connector on the far side is usually what fixes the answer.

Part 3: Multiple choiceItems 61-80 · 20 questions

Long printed texts of several hundred characters each, with about four questions per text.

Click the letter. Questions on one text are scored separately.

Marked automatically against the answer key when your paper is scored, at no cost.

Tip: Budget the clock per text and hold to it. Leaving one text unread costs more than reading every text a little faster.

写作 · Writing2 items · ~45 min · 100 pts

Everything in this section is produced rather than chosen: characters, sentences or compositions, typed in Chinese. If your device has no Chinese input method, the app's built-in pinyin keyboard is available inside the exam.

Part 1: Short composition (写作)Items 81 · 1 question

A situation and a reader, such as a manager, a landlord or a community office, and the document that situation calls for: a proposal, a report, a notice, an invitation or a letter of thanks. The minimum length is printed with the task.

Type your document. The counter under the box tracks the minimum as you write.

Tip: Write it as the document it claims to be, with a greeting, the point, and a sign-off. Form is part of what is being judged here rather than decoration.

Part 2: Short composition (写作)Items 82 · 1 question

A statement, or a pair of opposing views, and the task of arguing your own position on it at length. The minimum length is printed with the task.

Type your essay. The counter tracks the minimum as you write.

Tip: Decide your position before you write a word, then give it three parts: the claim, the reasons, and the qualification. Essays that find their position halfway through lose marks for structure.

口语 · Speaking (spoken)5 items · ~10 min · 100 pts

The speaking paper (口语, spoken Chinese) is its own sitting, separate from the written exam, and is part of the With Speaking plan.

The speaking paper is its own sitting, separate from the written exam. Every turn is spoken aloud into your microphone, recorded once and timed per turn like the real oral test. There is no typed fallback: speaking means speaking.

Part 1: Listen and retell (听后复述)Items 1-2 · 2 questions · ~90s per turn

A short audio passage. When it ends, you retell the content in your own words.

Speak within the response time, keeping every key fact.

Marked by the AI examiner when your paper is graded: a band, the specific errors, and a corrected version. These are the points a plan unlocks, and your first free paper gets them once with a confirmed email. Spoken answers also carry a pronunciation score from the speech engine, folded into the mark at a fixed weight.

Tip: Retell in the same order the passage used. Inventing a new structure under time pressure is how details get lost.

Part 2: Describe the picture (看图说话)Items 3 · 1 question · ~120s per turn

One photo, or a picture story of several panels in order. You describe what is happening.

Speak within the response time. When there are several panels, cover them in order so the story stays intact.

Tip: Name the people, the place and the action first. Add detail only once the whole story has been told.

Part 3: Answer the question (回答问题)Items 4-5 · 2 questions · ~150s per turn

A printed question, answered aloud in Chinese.

Speak your answer within the response time.

Tip: A direct answer plus one reason is a complete answer. Long lists of reasons trail off under the clock.

HSK 6 questions, answered

How long is the HSK 6 exam?

The HSK 6 exam is about 125 minutes long under the HSK 3.0 format, of which 115 minutes are timed sections. The difference is the time the standard sets aside for filling in your details and your answer sheet. Figures published for the older HSK 2.0 paper are different and will not match.

What is on the HSK 6 exam?

The HSK 6 written paper has 3 sections: Listening, Reading and Writing. Between them they ask 82 questions worth 300 points in total. Every section is timed separately and the listening audio plays once.

What score do you need to pass HSK 6?

You need 180 out of 300 to pass HSK 6, which is 60%. The HSK compensates across sections, so a weak section can be carried by a strong one as long as the total clears the line.

How many words do you need for HSK 6?

HSK 6 prescribes 6,000 words. That is the vocabulary the HSK 3.0 standard sets for this level, and the paper is written within it.

How much do you have to write for HSK 6?

The official standard expects no less than 600 Chinese characters, in a limited time. It asks for common narratives, expositions and argumentations, plus various common practical writing formats, judged on appropriate vocabulary, correct sentence patterns, complete content and fluent, coherent expression, using common rhetorical devices, with correct format and standard expression. That is GF0025-2021, the standard the exam is built against.

Is HSK 6 hard?

HSK 6 sits at C1 on the CEFR scale. The honest answer is that difficulty is relative to where you are, which is what a timed mock exam is for: it measures you against the 180-point line rather than guessing.

See real HSK 6 questions

Free HSK 6 practice questions with the answer to each one, section by section. No account needed.

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