GED meaning: what the test is, its subjects, format, scoring and price
Four separate subjects, 425 minutes in all, scored from 100 to 200 with 145 to pass. The full test costs $144 in the middle state.
GED in California, whole test
$164
Rank 40 of 49, cheapest first.
| States with a published price | 49 |
| Free for everyone | 5 |
| Cheapest paying state | Connecticut, $13 |
| Most expensive | South Dakota, $200 |
First pass of all 4 parts, discounts open to everyone and public codes included. Fees read on October 22, 2026.
| # | State | Whole test | List price | Minimum age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | $0 | $144 | 18 |
| 2 | Mississippi | $0 | $144 | 18 |
| 3 | New York | $0 | 19 | |
| 4 | Pennsylvania | $0 | $144 | 18 |
| 5 | West Virginia | $0 | 19 | |
| 6 | Connecticut | $13 | 19 | |
| 7 | District of Columbia | $15 | $144 | 18 |
| 8 | Arkansas | $16 | 18 | |
| 9 | Illinois | $40 | $144 | 18 |
| 10 | Maryland | $57 | $144 | 18 |
| 11 | Minnesota | $104 | $144 | 19 |
| 12 | Montana | $104 | 19 | |
| 13 | North Carolina | $104 | 18 | |
| 14 | Wyoming | $104 | 18 | |
| 15 | Rhode Island | $120 | 18 | |
| 16 | Nevada | $124 | 18 | |
| 17 | Missouri | $142 | 17 | |
| 18 | Alabama | $144 | 18 | |
| 19 | Delaware | $144 | 18 | |
| 20 | Idaho | $144 | 18 | |
| 21 | Kentucky | $144 | 19 | |
| 22 | Massachusetts | $144 | 18 | |
| 23 | Nebraska | $144 | 18 | |
| 24 | New Hampshire | $144 | 18 | |
| 25 | New Jersey | $144 | 18 | |
| 26 | New Mexico | $144 | 18 | |
| 27 | North Dakota | $144 | 16 | |
| 28 | Ohio | $144 | 18 | |
| 29 | Tennessee | $144 | 18 | |
| 30 | Utah | $144 | 18 | |
| 31 | Vermont | $144 | 18 | |
| 32 | Virginia | $144 | 18 | |
| 33 | Washington | $144 | 19 | |
| 34 | Texas | $145 | 18 | |
| 35 | South Carolina | $150 | 19 | |
| 36 | Florida | $152 | 18 | |
| 37 | Louisiana | $154 | 19 | |
| 38 | Kansas | $156 | 18 | |
| 39 | Arizona | $164 | 18 | |
| 40 | California | $164 | 18 | |
| 41 | Oklahoma | $164 | 18 | |
| 42 | Wisconsin | $164 | 18.5 | |
| 43 | Colorado | $174 | 17 | |
| 44 | Hawaii | $174 | 18 | |
| 45 | Michigan | $174 | 18 | |
| 46 | Oregon | $176 | 18 | |
| 47 | Indiana | $180 | 18 | |
| 48 | Georgia | $184 | 18 | |
| 49 | South Dakota | $200 | 18 |
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · fees and rules read on ged.com and hiset.org on October 22, 2026
The GED is a high school equivalency test made of four separate subjects, each booked, paid and passed on its own: Mathematical Reasoning (115 minutes), Reasoning Through Language Arts (150 minutes, with a 45-minute essay), Science (90 minutes) and Social Studies (70 minutes), 425 minutes in all. Questions are multiple choice plus drag and drop, fill in the blank, select an area and drop-down items; a calculator is available on part of math and on science and social studies. Each subject is scored from 100 to 200: 145 passes, 165 is College Ready, and 175 or more is College Ready + Credit, worth up to 10 college credit hours across the four subjects depending on the college. The test is given on computer at an official test center or online at home with a proctor, in 42 of the 49 jurisdictions that use the GED. The price is set by each state: the four subjects together cost $144 at a center in the middle state, nothing in Alaska, Mississippi, New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and up to $200 in South Dakota. The table above ranks every state.
The four subjects at a glance
| Subject | Time | Topics (ged.com) | Calculator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematical Reasoning | 115 min | Basic math, geometry, basic algebra, graphs and functions | Part 2 |
| Reasoning Through Language Arts | 150 min | Reading for meaning, arguments, grammar and language; one essay | No |
| Science | 90 min | Reading in science, experiments, numbers and graphics | Yes |
| Social Studies | 70 min | Reading in social studies, history and arguments, numbers and graphs | Yes |
Each subject has its own page with eight practice questions: math, language arts, science and social studies.
Question types
Besides classic multiple choice, the GED uses drag and drop (move items into order or into categories), fill in the blank (type a number or a word), select an area (click a spot on a graph or image) and drop-down menus inside a sentence. Language arts adds the extended response, an essay in which you compare two texts and argue which is better supported. Formula and calculator reference sheets are provided where a calculator is allowed.
Check four scores against the GED rules
Your GED result
1 to retake
| Math | 150 · Pass |
| Language arts (RLA) | 146 · Pass |
| Science | 158 · Pass |
| Social studies | 140 · 5 points short |
Scores and what they open
A subject passes at 145. The GED credential is issued by your state once all four subjects are passed. From 165, ged.com says the score shows readiness for college courses and can exempt you from placement tests; from 175, it can be worth college credit, up to 10 credit hours in all, if the college accepts it. The passing score page explains each level and checks a set of scores.
At a center or online
At a test center you test on a center computer under staff supervision and may bring your own TI-30XS calculator. Online, you test from a private room on your own computer with a webcam, watched by a proctor, and must first score green on the official practice test. 42 jurisdictions offer the online test; Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New York, West Virginia and Wyoming do not. The online GED page compares the two prices state by state.
Booking and paying
You create a free account on ged.com, choose a subject, a center or online, a date and a time, and pay for that subject alone. Nothing obliges you to buy the four at once: most state prices are per subject, so the cost of the whole test is spread over the months you study. Where the state runs a discount or a free program, the code or voucher is entered at checkout. A retake is booked the same way, at the retake price of your state, once any waiting period has passed.
Who can take it
Each state sets its own minimum age, residency rule and conditions for younger test takers; the minimum is 18 in 36 of the 49 jurisdictions, and 40 allow exceptions from 16 with conditions such as a withdrawal from school or parental consent. State policies also exclude people who already hold a high school diploma or equivalency, and younger candidates generally may not be enrolled in high school. The requirements page checks your age and state in one step.
Rules on test day
ged.com publishes exam rules that apply at centers and online. You may not receive help from anyone, nobody may see your screen, and screen sharing or remote software is forbidden. You agree to a candidate rules agreement and a non-disclosure agreement: test questions may not be copied, recorded or shared. Misconduct can lead to invalidated scores, a revoked credential, lost fees and a suspension from testing. Bring an accepted government-issued ID. Read the rules once before your first booking so that nothing on the day comes as a surprise; it is also why no website, ours included, can show you real GED questions.