Is the GMAT Harder Than Practice Tests?

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Last Updated on May 16, 2023

In preparing for the GMAT to apply to MBA programs, people typically take GMAT practice tests. So, a question that often comes up is, “Is the GMAT harder than practice tests?” One reason this question comes up is that people want to know how closely their practice test experience matches what they will experience on test day. Another reason is that there are rumors that the real test difficulty is higher than the difficulty of official practice tests.

So, in this article, I’m going to answer that question. I’ll also discuss why people get mistaken impressions when making difficulty comparisons between practice tests and the actual GMAT.

Here are the topics we’ll cover:

• Is the GMAT Harder Than the Official Practice Tests?
  • Is GMAT Prep Harder Than the Real GMAT?
• Why Do People Think the Real GMAT is Harder Than the Official Practice Tests?
  • Issues Associated With Taking the Real Test
  • Preparing for the Official Practice Tests Rather Than for the Real GMAT
  • Each Test Is a Little Different
• What About Third-Party Practice Tests?
• Do GMAT Prep Tests Accurately Reflect the Difficulty Level of the Actual GMAT?
• What Are Some Differences Between GMAT Prep and the Actual GMAT?
• Key Takeaways: How Accurate Are GMAT Practice Tests?
• What’s Next?

Let’s begin by discussing whether the GMAT is harder than official practice tests.

Is the GMAT Harder Than the Official Practice Tests?

Most people preparing for the GMAT use the official practice tests from mba.com. So, when people wonder about practice test vs. actual test difficulty, they are usually wondering about the official practice tests. (The official practice tests are often referred to as “GMAT Prep” tests since, in the past, they were included in software called “GMAT Prep.”)

So, is the actual GMAT tougher than “GMAT Prep” tests? Many people say it is, but what’s the real story? The evidence points to the answer being no, the GMAT is not harder than the official, or “GMAT Prep,” practice tests.

Here is the evidence:

• Many test-takers who take the official practice tests and then the actual GMAT score virtually the same on both. In fact, the predictive ability of scores on official practice tests is high.
• GMAT test-taker debriefs indicate that, generally, when there is a difference between official practice test scores and real GMAT scores, there is a clear reason for the difference that is not a difference in test difficulty. In other words, analysis of test-taker experiences and performances reveals no pattern indicating that there is a difference between official mock exam difficulty and the difficulty of the actual GMAT.
• GMAT prep professionals, such as tutors, who have taken both official practice tests and the real GMAT report that the difficulty is the same.

Meanwhile, what about the reverse? Are the official practice tests harder than the actual GMAT?

Is GMAT Prep Harder Than the Real GMAT?

Regarding whether the official “GMAT Prep” practice tests are harder than the real GMAT, the evidence indicates that they are not. While some test-takers report finding the real GMAT easier than the official practice tests, there is no consistent pattern that indicates that it is.

So, if the exam difficulty level of the real GMAT is the same as that of official practice tests, why do many people think that the real GMAT is harder?

Why Do People Think the Real GMAT is Harder Than the Official Practice Tests?

We’ve seen that analysis of test-takers’ scores and experiences indicates that the real GMAT is not harder than the official practice tests. However, many people think the real GMAT is harder. So, what’s going on?

People have experiences that cause them to think that the real GMAT is harder. One of those experiences is that they score lower on the real GMAT than on official practice tests. Another is that they find the questions on the real GMAT harder than those on the official practice tests.

However, those experiences do not occur because the GMAT is actually harder. Here are some reasons why people have those experiences.

Issues Associated With Taking the Real Test

People often score lower on the real GMAT than on practice tests because of issues associated with taking the real test. Test anxiety is one issue that can cause score drops. Another is distractions in the test center environment. Also, the use of unfamiliar technology can make the real GMAT harder than practice tests.

So, these issues cause people to experience a score difference between actual and practice tests. As a result, they get the impression that the real GMAT is harder.

Preparing for the Official Practice Tests Rather Than for the Real GMAT

Another reason people score lower on the real test is more insidious and results from common GMAT preparation mistakes. What often happens is that people unknowingly prepare for the official practice tests rather than for the real GMAT.

This outcome occurs because many GMAT test prep resources and many common beliefs about the GMAT are based on the official practice tests. So, GMAT students learn things they believe apply to the GMAT in general, but these things really apply to the official practice tests specifically. So, it’s no wonder that people find the official practice tests easier. Those tests are what they prepared for.

It’s for similar reasons that people find the questions on official practice tests easier than those on the real GMAT. What they’ve done to prepare or the practice questions they’ve used have been based on the questions on the official practice tests.

Each Test Is a Little Different

Finally, people get the impression that the real GMAT is harder than official practice tests because of differences between tests. Each GMAT and each GMAT practice test is a little different. Meanwhile, every test-taker has strengths and weaknesses. So, different mixes of GMAT questions on different tests will cause a test-taker to find some tests easier than others.

Thus, some test-takers find the mix of questions they see on the official practice tests easier than the questions they see on the real GMAT. As a result, they’ll say confidently that the real GMAT was harder, and they’re right. It was harder, but just the GMAT they took, and just for them.

We’ve talked a lot about practice vs. actual test difficulty with regard to official practice tests. But what about third-party practice tests?

What About Third-Party Practice Tests?

Mock exam difficulty levels vary widely among third-party practice tests. Some third-party mock exams are much more difficult than the actual GMAT. Others are much less difficult. Still others are pretty close in difficulty to the real test.

So, if your GMAT study plan includes using third-party practice tests, research online to learn about the practice test difficulty and score validity of the tests provided by different test prep companies.

Let’s now answer some common questions about official GMAT practice test difficulty.

Do GMAT Prep Tests Accurately Reflect the Difficulty Level of the Actual GMAT?

As we’ve discussed, the official practice tests, also known as “GMAT Prep” tests, are neither easier nor harder than the real GMAT. Also, their formats and computer-adaptive test algorithms are the same as those of the real GMAT. So, the official practice tests accurately reflect the difficulty level of the actual GMAT.

What Are Some Differences Between GMAT Prep and the Actual GMAT?

The official, or “GMAT Prep,” practice tests are very similar to the actual GMAT. The test format and scoring algorithm are the same. Also, the practice tests have the same overall look and feel as the real GMAT. However, there are some differences.

One significant difference is that the official practice tests do not include uncounted experimental questions. The real GMAT includes uncounted questions for the purpose of evaluating new questions before they are used. In contrast, all the questions on the practice tests are counted.

Another difference is that the questions, particularly the Sentence Correction questions, on the first two official practice tests are somewhat different from the questions on today’s GMAT. The questions on those tests were created over a decade ago, and GMAT questions have since evolved. At the same time, the difficulty of the questions is basically the same as that of today’s GMAT questions. So, even though the questions are a little different, people generally score about the same on the real GMAT as on those tests.

Let’s now wrap up with the key takeaways from what we’ve discussed.

Key Takeaways: How Accurate Are GMAT Practice Tests? 

In comparing the real GMAT with practice tests, we’ve seen the following;

• Evidence involving test-taker performance and experiences indicates that the difficulty of the real GMAT is the same as that of the official “GMAT Prep” practice tests.
• People perceive the real GMAT as harder than the official practice tests because issues such as test pressure and preparation mistakes cause people to score lower on the real test.
• The difficulty of third-party, or test prep company, practice tests varies. Some are harder than, some are easier than, and others are about the same as the real GMAT.
• There are some minor differences between the official practice tests and the real GMAT. However, the format, scoring, and look and feel of the official practice tests are essentially the same as those of the real test.

So, using official GMAT practice tests, possibly along with third-party practice tests, is a great way to get experience handling the GMAT, estimate your score breakdown, and practice test-taking strategies.

What’s Next?

You might also be interested in learning about how the GMAT computer-adaptive test works and GMAT practice test strategy.