HSK 5: test structure, pass mark and word count

HSK 5 has 100 questions in listening, reading and writing. The Level 5 page gives a full score of 300 and names no pass mark. The page's vocabulary sentence gives 2,500 Chinese words, and the HSK 3.0 syllabus has a separate set of counts for this level.

Who the level is for and how long it takes

The Level 5 page says the level is intended for intermediate-level Chinese learners and proficient users. It says the level puts a specific emphasis on listening, reading and writing.

The summary sentence on the Level 5 page says the test has 100 questions in three sections: listening, reading and writing. It says the entire exam takes about 125 minutes. That time includes 5 minutes for candidates to fill in personal information.

The page prints a test start time of 13:30, in local times. The page does not say how this start time applies to each test session. Ask your test centre.

Score report, full score and validity

The score report sentence on the Level 5 page says the score report gives four scores: Listening, Reading, Writing and Total. It says a full score means earning 300 points.

The same sentence says HSK scores are valid for two years, starting from the exam date.

The score report sentence on the Level 5 page names no pass mark. The page does not give a passing score anywhere in that sentence.

Vocabulary figures

The vocabulary sentence on the Level 5 page gives 2,500 Chinese words for the level.

The HSK 3.0 syllabus is a separate document. It is in Chinese only. Its cover prints November 2025 as the release date and July 2026 as the implementation date. The syllabus has numbered lists of vocabulary and characters. It does not print totals for them. The counts below were made by this site from the serial numbers in those lists:

• Vocabulary: 1,600 new words at level 5, and 3,600 cumulative, counted from serial numbers 2001 to 3600.
• Recognition characters (认读字): 431 in the level 5 list.
• Writing characters (书写字): 150 in the level 5 list.

The 2,500 figure on the Level 5 page and the counts above come from two different documents. This article does not say which one applies to a given test date.

Sources

• HSK (Level 5), Chinese Testing International
• HSK 考试大纲 / Syllabus for the Chinese Proficiency Test (PDF), Center for Language Education and Cooperation

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary; it is not published by Chinese Testing International, the Center for Language Education and Cooperation or the Ministry of Education, and the official page prevails if they differ.