# New HSK Exam Format (HSK 3.0): All Levels

Page: https://sentencecoach.com/hsk/3-0/exam-format
Source: HSK 3.0 sample papers and answer keys on CTI's syllabus page (https://www.chinesetest.cn/syllabus), checked 2026-11-06. Task descriptions are summaries. Real papers may differ. Pass marks: not stated in the samples.

Word ordering (连词成句) and the HSK 6 summary (缩写) do not appear in the HSK 3.0 sample papers.

## HSK 1: 40 questions, about 40 minutes

| Section | Questions | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening (about 12 min) | 1–5 | Listen and choose the matching picture from three. |
| Listening (about 12 min) | 6–10 | Listen to a question and choose the right reply from three. |
| Listening (about 12 min) | 11–15 | Match short dialogues to pictures. |
| Listening (about 12 min) | 16–20 | Listen to a sentence and a question, then choose from three answers. |
| Reading (20 min) | 21–25 | Match sentences to pictures. |
| Reading (20 min) | 26–30 | Match each question to its answer. |
| Reading (20 min) | 31–35 | Fill each blank with a word from a list. |
| Reading (20 min) | 36–40 | Read a short text and choose the answer from three. |

## HSK 2: 60 questions, about 60 minutes

| Section | Questions | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening (about 17 min) | 1–5 | Listen and choose the matching picture from three. |
| Listening (about 17 min) | 6–15 | Match short dialogues to pictures. |
| Listening (about 17 min) | 16–25 | Listen to a short dialogue and a question, then choose from three answers. |
| Reading (25 min) | 26–30 | Match sentences to pictures. |
| Reading (25 min) | 31–35 | Fill each blank with a word from a list. |
| Reading (25 min) | 36–45 | Match each sentence to the one that goes with it. |
| Reading (25 min) | 46–50 | Read a short text and choose the answer from three. |
| Writing (10 min) | 51–55 | A character is missing a component: choose the component that completes it. |
| Writing (10 min) | 56–60 | Write the missing character in a sentence, with pinyin given. |

## HSK 3: 70 questions, about 83 minutes

| Section | Questions | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening (about 23 min) | 1–10 | Match short dialogues to pictures. |
| Listening (about 23 min) | 11–20 | Listen to a short dialogue and a question, then choose from three answers. |
| Listening (about 23 min) | 21–30 | Listen to a short passage and a question, then choose from three answers. |
| Reading (30 min) | 31–40 | Match each sentence to the one that goes with it. |
| Reading (30 min) | 41–50 | Fill blanks in sentences and short dialogues with words from a list. |
| Reading (30 min) | 51–60 | Read a short text and choose the answer from three. |
| Writing (20 min) | 61–65 | Write the missing character in a sentence, with pinyin given. |
| Writing (20 min) | 66–70 | Look at a picture and write one sentence using the given word. |

Separate speaking paper: 15 questions, about 15 minutes including 6 minutes of preparation.
- Listen and repeat (8): 10 seconds each
- Talk about a picture (5): 15 seconds each
- Answer a question (2): 3 min preparation, 1.5 min answer each

## HSK 4: 70 questions, about 85 minutes

| Section | Questions | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening (about 20 min) | 1–14 | Listen and choose the correct answer. |
| Listening (about 20 min) | 15–32 | Listen and choose the correct answer. |
| Reading (30 min) | 33–42 | Fill blanks with words from a list; each list has one extra word that does not fit. |
| Reading (30 min) | 43–57 | Read short texts and choose the correct answer. |
| Reading (30 min) | 58–64 | Fill blanks in a passage with the right sentences. |
| Writing (25 min) | 65–69 | Look at a picture and write one sentence using the given word. |
| Writing (25 min) | 70 | Write a short text of at least 80 characters on a given topic. |

Separate speaking paper: 5 questions, about 20 minutes including 10 minutes of preparation.
- Listen and retell (2): 40 seconds each
- Talk about a picture (1): 3 min preparation, 2 min answer
- Answer a question (2): 3.5 min preparation, 2 min answer each

## HSK 5: 72 questions, about 110 minutes

| Section | Questions | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening (about 25 min) | 1–19 | Listen and choose the correct answer. |
| Listening (about 25 min) | 20–35 | Listen and choose the correct answer. |
| Reading (35 min) | 36–45 | Read passages and choose the correct answers. |
| Reading (35 min) | 46–55 | Put shuffled paragraphs in the right order. |
| Reading (35 min) | 56–70 | Read passages and choose the correct answers. |
| Writing (40 min) | 71 | Write a story of at least 100 characters from four pictures. |
| Writing (40 min) | 72 | Write an essay of at least 200 characters on a given topic. |

Separate speaking paper: 5 questions, about 23 minutes including 10 minutes of preparation.
- Listen and retell (2): 1.5 min each
- Talk about a picture (1): 3 min preparation, 2 min answer
- Answer a question (2): 3.5 min preparation, 2.5 min answer each

## HSK 6: 82 questions, about 125 minutes

| Section | Questions | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Listening (about 30 min) | 1–8 | Choose the statement that matches what you hear. |
| Listening (about 30 min) | 9–28 | Listen and choose the correct answer. |
| Listening (about 30 min) | 29–40 | Listen and choose the correct answer. |
| Reading (40 min) | 41–50 | Fill blanks with the right words. |
| Reading (40 min) | 51–60 | Fill blanks with the right sentences; one option is an extra that does not fit. |
| Reading (40 min) | 61–80 | Read passages and choose the correct answers. |
| Writing (45 min) | 81 | Write a practical text of at least 150 characters, such as an online notice. |
| Writing (45 min) | 82 | Write an opinion essay of at least 300 characters on a given topic. |

Separate speaking paper: 5 questions, about 23 minutes including 10 minutes of preparation.
- Listen and retell (2): 1.5 min each
- Talk about a picture (1): 3 min preparation, 2 min answer
- Answer a question (2): 3.5 min preparation, 2.5 min answer each

## Levels 7–9: one exam of 91 questions, about 200 minutes: listening (40, about 33 min), reading (40, 50 min), writing (2, 55 min), translation (4, about 42 min), speaking (5, about 20 min).