What the numbers mean, how they compare to the letters you grew up with, and the tier decision that quietly caps your child's grade.
By Websink Tutoring · Updated 18 October 2026
GCSEs in England are graded from 9 (highest) to 1 (lowest), with U for ungraded. The numbers replaced the old A* to G letters in 2017. They do not map one-to-one, but there are three fixed comparison points:
| New grade | Comparable to the old scale |
|---|---|
| Bottom of grade 7 | Bottom of the old grade A |
| Bottom of grade 4 | Bottom of the old grade C |
| Bottom of grade 1 | Bottom of the old grade G |
Grades 8 and 9 sit across the old A and A*, which is why a 9 is rarer than an A* used to be. Wales and Northern Ireland have kept their own grading, so this guide applies to GCSEs taken in England.
The Department for Education calls grade 4 a standard pass and grade 5 a strong pass. The practical consequence is in English and maths: a student who does not reach grade 4 in either subject has to keep studying it after 16, alongside whatever else they go on to do. Many sixth forms and colleges also ask for grade 5 or 6 in the subjects a student wants to take further.
That is why the gap between a 3 and a 4 in maths or English is the single most valuable place for tutoring time to go.
Maths, the sciences and modern foreign languages are tiered. Your child sits either the Foundation or the Higher paper, and the tier sets the range of grades available:
| Tier | Grades available | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation | 1 to 5 | Grade 5 is the ceiling, however well your child does on the day |
| Higher | 4 to 9 (plus an allowed 3) | A student who narrowly misses grade 4 is awarded a 3; below that is a U |
Schools usually decide tiers during Year 10 or early Year 11. If your child is entered for Foundation but wants a 6 to study a subject at A-level, the tier — not effort — is the barrier. Ask the school early, and ask what your child would need to show to move up.
There is no fixed percentage for a grade. Boundaries are set after each exam series to reflect how hard the papers turned out to be, so a mark that earned a 5 one year might earn a 4 or a 6 the next. Past-paper scores are a useful guide, but treat any “you need 70% for a 7” claim with caution.
We start from the grade your child needs, the tier they are entered for and the board they are sitting (AQA, Edexcel or OCR), then work backwards. See our GCSE maths, GCSE science and English tutoring.
Meet your matched tutor in a free intro session, watch a full lesson, then decide. No card details and no contract.