Pearson Edexcel
Edexcel GCSE past papers
Pearson gives its Edexcel GCSE past papers away free on its own website. We do not copy or list them paper by paper: for each of the 5 subjects below, the button opens Pearson’s own past papers page, where the papers and mark schemes open.
GCSEs are sat at the end of Year 11 in England, usually at age 16, and are graded 9 to 1.
What is free: Pearson locks papers from roughly the most recent 12 months for teachers. After that, anyone can open them free on Pearson’s site.
What is held back: The most recent series stay locked for teachers at registered schools with an Edexcel Online account until about a year after the exam.
Biology (1BI0)
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Biology
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Biology (1BI0) has two papers of 1 hour 45 minutes and 100 marks each, at Foundation or Higher tier. Paper 1 covers key concepts, cells and control, genetics, natural selection and genetic modification, and health, disease and medicines. Paper 2 returns to the key concepts, then covers plant structures, animal coordination and homeostasis, exchange and transport, and ecosystems. Both papers ask about the core practicals.
When it is sat: June.
On Pearson’s page: question papers, mark schemes and examiner reports for each exam series, free once a series is about a year old. The newest series stay locked for teachers. Pearson keeps GCSE Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Combined Science together on one page, so pick the Biology papers there.
Open Pearson’s free Biology (1BI0) papers
It opens on Pearson’s website, in a new tab. We do not copy Pearson’s papers.
Biology at other boards: Cambridge IGCSE , Cambridge O Level , AQA GCSE , OCR GCSE
Chemistry (1CH0)
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Chemistry
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Chemistry (1CH0) has two papers of 1 hour 45 minutes and 100 marks each, at Foundation or Higher tier. Paper 1 covers key concepts, states of matter and mixtures, chemical changes, extracting metals and equilibria, and a set of separate-chemistry topics. Paper 2 returns to the key concepts, then covers groups in the periodic table, rates of reaction and energy changes, fuels and Earth science, and more separate-chemistry topics. Both papers ask about the core practicals.
When it is sat: June.
On Pearson’s page: question papers, mark schemes and examiner reports for each exam series, free once a series is about a year old. The newest series stay locked for teachers. Pearson keeps GCSE Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Combined Science together on one page, so pick the Chemistry papers there.
Open Pearson’s free Chemistry (1CH0) papers
It opens on Pearson’s website, in a new tab. We do not copy Pearson’s papers.
Chemistry at other boards: Cambridge IGCSE , Cambridge O Level , AQA GCSE , OCR GCSE
English Language (1EN0)
Pearson Edexcel GCSE English Language
Pearson Edexcel GCSE English Language (1EN0) has two untiered papers. Paper 1, Fiction and Imaginative Writing (1 hour 45 minutes, 64 marks), has questions on an unseen extract of 19th-century fiction, then a piece of imaginative writing. Paper 2, Non-fiction and Transactional Writing (2 hours 5 minutes, 96 marks), has questions on two linked non-fiction texts from the 20th and 21st centuries, then a writing task such as a letter, article or speech. Spoken language is assessed separately.
When it is sat: June, and November for students aged 16 or over.
On Pearson’s page: question papers, mark schemes and examiner reports for each exam series, free once a series is about a year old. The newest series stay locked for teachers.
Open Pearson’s free English Language (1EN0) papers
It opens on Pearson’s website, in a new tab. We do not copy Pearson’s papers.
English Language at other boards: Cambridge IGCSE , Cambridge O Level , AQA GCSE , OCR GCSE
Maths (1MA1)
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Mathematics
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Mathematics (1MA1) has three papers of 1 hour 30 minutes and 80 marks each, sat at Foundation tier (grades 1 to 5) or Higher tier (grades 4 to 9). Paper 1 is sat without a calculator; Papers 2 and 3 allow one. All three papers can test any part of the course: number, algebra, ratio and proportion, geometry and measures, probability and statistics.
When it is sat: June, and November for students aged 16 or over.
On Pearson’s page: question papers, mark schemes and examiner reports for each exam series, free once a series is about a year old. The newest series stay locked for teachers.
Open Pearson’s free Maths (1MA1) papers
It opens on Pearson’s website, in a new tab. We do not copy Pearson’s papers.
Maths at other boards: Cambridge IGCSE , Cambridge O Level , AQA GCSE , OCR GCSE
Physics (1PH0)
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Physics
Pearson Edexcel GCSE Physics (1PH0) has two papers of 1 hour 45 minutes and 100 marks each, at Foundation or Higher tier. Paper 1 covers motion and forces, conservation of energy, waves, light and the electromagnetic spectrum, radioactivity, and astronomy. Paper 2 covers energy and work, forces and their effects, electric circuits, static electricity, magnetism and the motor effect, electromagnetic induction, the particle model, and forces and matter.
When it is sat: June.
On Pearson’s page: question papers, mark schemes and examiner reports for each exam series, free once a series is about a year old. The newest series stay locked for teachers. Pearson keeps GCSE Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Combined Science together on one page, so pick the Physics papers there.
Open Pearson’s free Physics (1PH0) papers
It opens on Pearson’s website, in a new tab. We do not copy Pearson’s papers.
Physics at other boards: Cambridge IGCSE , Cambridge O Level , AQA GCSE , OCR GCSE