How is the JLPT scored?
Last checked: 2026-11-06
The JLPT does not add up points for each correct answer. It uses scaled scores, worked out from your pattern of right and wrong answers. So there is no official points-per-question table, and you cannot work out your exact score from the number you got right.
Raw scores and scaled scores
| Raw score | JLPT scaled score | |
|---|---|---|
| How it is made | Add the points for each correct answer | Place your answer pattern on a common scale, using Item Response Theory |
| If a test is harder | Your score falls | Your score should not fall for that reason |
| Comparing two tests | Not fair if the difficulty differs | Possible for the same level and the same scoring section |
Why the JLPT does this
The JLPT says it is extremely difficult to make every test exactly as hard as the last one. With raw scores, people of the same ability would get different results on different days. Scaled scores aim to give them the same score, whenever they test.
How the score is worked out
The official explanation uses a small example.
- A test of 10 questions has up to 1,024 possible answer patterns.
- Each pattern gives a position on a scale from 0 to 60 for one scoring section. For language knowledge and reading at N4 and N5, the scale is 0 to 120.
- Those 1,024 patterns fall into 61 groups, one for each score from 0 to 60.
The real test has more questions than this example. The example shows why two results can surprise you:
- Same score, different answers. Two people can get the same score with different numbers of correct answers.
- Same number correct, different scores. Two people with the same number correct can get different scores if their answer patterns differ.
What this means for your practice
These points are our own advice.
- Do not convert workbook marks into a real score. A raw percentage is only a rough guide. The JLPT gives no official conversion that we could find.
- Be careful with online calculators that use points per question. The FAQ says the JLPT does not total allocated points. Any such table is an estimate.
- Leave a margin. Aim well above each section minimum, not just at it.
- Use official scores with our score calculator. It checks real scores against the marks. It does not predict a score from practice.
How the pass marks were set
The JLPT says the passing standard of the new test was designed to match the old one. People able to pass old Levels 1, 2, 3 and 4 are judged able to pass N1, N2, N4 and N5. N3 had no old level, so its pass mark was set to fall between old Levels 2 and 3. This may help explain why N3's mark of 95 is higher than N2's 90, but the JLPT does not say that directly.
Can you ask for a re-mark?
The AATJ, which runs the test in the USA, says scores cannot be reviewed or re-marked after they are issued. Check the rule with your own host. You also cannot retake one failed section, since the FAQ says you must sit all sections at a later test.
Next, learn to read your score report, or see the question types at each level.