Free GRE practice tests are a fantastic study aid. Not only do they not cost money, but they provide the perfect platform to push you toward your ideal GRE score. They allow you to practice realistic GRE questions, gauge what areas you’re excelling in and those you’re lagging in, get an insight into what to expect from the actual GRE test conditions and let you know where you currently stand in terms of a GRE score.
To help you out, we’ve broken down a mixture of sites and free GRE practice test options that are out there. Some offer a more holistic and thorough diagnostic test analysis, others offer purely a means to practice GRE questions. Each serves their purpose and each will help you get that GRE test prep fix that you’re in need of!
11 Best GRE Practice Question Sets
Here are 11 GRE practice question sites, together offering over 2,200 free questions. Get comfortable and let’s begin!
1. ETS PowerPrep GRE Practice Tests
These two full-length timed GRE practice tests are provided by ETS, the brain behind the GRE, making them the most reliable and best practice source available. The PowerPrep questions are from real past GRE tests, giving you an accurate representation of what the questions will be like and how difficult the actual test will be.
On top of this, the user interface is set up to match that of the real test. This allows you to get to grips with the GRE design features that you’ll encounter on the big day, like moving back and forth between questions, the on-screen calculator, and changing answers within a section.
What We Like
- They’re real GRE test questions
- You’ll feel fully prepared for the real deal – the set up simulates that of the actual GRE test conditions so there won’t be any surprises
- It’s provides an accurate prediction of how you should perform on the big day and what your final GRE score should like look
What We Don’t Like
- If you choose the untimed option, a test score won’t be displayed
- They don’t score your essay responses – what they offer is scored sample responses for users to compare their essay response to
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
2. Manhattan Prep Free GRE Practice Test
Manhattan Prep offers a free full-length GRE practice test that mimics the real GRE with realistic calibration for the closest feel to a real GRE test. This GRE practice test is new, so it’s matched to what types of questions you’ll see on the current GRE guidelines. You can review your results through their free Assessment Report and get data on difficulty level, timing, and more.
If you decide you like this free GRE practice test, you can also buy their full set of 6 practice tests. But we recommend trying the freebie first.
What We Like
- Online calculator includes the same functions that you’ll see on the real GRE
- Assessment report helps you gauge where you need to improve
- Option of having your test timed or untimed
What We Don’t Like
- The GRE verbal questions are a bit more complex than what’s seen on the real GRE
> Get This Free GRE Practice Test
3. Manhattan Review Free GRE Practice Questions
Popular among GRE test takers, these 70 free online GRE practice questions are designed to give users a thorough understanding of how to go about problem-solving. By offering explanations and breakdowns which indicate what to expect from the GRE questions, they bring attention to common GRE test-taking misconceptions and challenges. These insights can then be implemented on the actual test day.
The questions are set up via a simple user interface, where you can choose to answer all the questions in one go, or pick and choose specific questions. At the end of the test, you’ll be given a thorough analysis of your test performance, giving you a fairly decent understanding of where you stand with your GRE score.
What We Like
- It’s a good diagnostic test due to the high caliber and diversity of the practice questions
- Straightforward insights and explanations help you to understand the GRE questions better
- You have the freedom to answer the questions in a row or only questions from a specific section or just a single question
What We Don’t Like
- This isn’t a simulation of what the actual test day will be like
- The practice questions aren’t timed
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
4. Kaplan On Demand Free GRE Practice Test
This is one of the toughest practice GRE tests out there, even slightly tougher than the real GRE test questions themselves. Don’t be put off by this – getting yourself acquainted to more challenging questions can put you at an advantage and make you exceptionally well prepared for the real deal. Just be prepared that your scores will potentially come back lower than expected, and this is nothing to lose sleep over.
It’s recommended to use these practice questions alongside others which offer a more accurate representation of your score, so you have a thorough understanding of where you stand. Be sure to tackle the Kaplan GRE question of the day as part of your routine.
What We Like
- The format is set up like the actual GRE test – it’s a good simulation of the real thing
- It’s a timed practice test, giving you 4 hours to complete it
- You’ll get a score analysis, answers, and explanations for every question
What We Don’t Like
- You may not end up with an entirely accurate GRE score, due to the challenging nature of the questions
- You will need to use this practice test alongside other ones
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
Related: 1, 2, 3, and 6-Month GRE Study Plans
5. Princeton Review Free GRE Practice Test
Princeton offers a full-length practice test under realistic testing conditions, incorporating the types of questions you’d find on the actual GRE test. At the end of their practice GRE test, you’ll receive a personalized diagnostic score report which highlights both your strengths and areas that need to be improved.
Users reported that their scores are slightly higher than expected, as the questions are comparatively on the easier side. As a result, don’t take your practice GRE score from Princeton Review as gospel. Similar to the Kaplan practice test, use this alongside others to gain a more accurate all-round picture.
What We Like
- Friendly user interface
- A good simulation of the actual test due to the realistic testing conditions
- The score report gives you a good benchmark from which to work from
What We Don’t Like
- You may not end up with an accurate GRE score due to the nature of the questions being slightly on the easier side
- You’ll need to use this practice test alongside others
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
Related: The Ultimate List of 37 FREE GRE Prep Resources
6. Mometrix GRE Practice Test
Perhaps not as well known as some of the other practice tests, the Mometrix GRE practice test is still a useful tool for testing yourself before the big day arrives. You have the opportunity to take both a Quantitative Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning practice test, set out as two separate tests. The level of difficulty of the questions are similar to what you would expect for the real GRE test, giving you a chance to gauge how prepared you are.
What We Like
- Similar level of difficulty to the real GRE test questions
- It exposes any areas of weakness that need further attention
What We Don’t Like
- You can’t measure your performance as thoroughly as you can in other tests
- Not realistic test conditions – there is no timer and the sections are provided as separate tests
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
7. Test-Guide Free GRE Practice Test
The guys at Test-Guide offer a wealth of resources for GRE practice tests. They provide 15 GRE practice tests, broken down into Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning practice tests. They provide full answers and explanations and links to 6 other official older versions of GRE practice tests from ETS.
What We Like
- A large bank of free online GRE practice questions to help you prepare
- The practice questions are similar to those on the real GRE tests
What We Don’t Like
- There is no timer so you’ll need to time yourself
- You won’t be given a diagnostic analysis of your performance – these are just practice questions
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
8. ETS Practice Test: Quantitative Reasoning
If you’re after some extra Quantitative Reasoning practice, you can’t go wrong with some official ETS practice questions. This practice test includes both sections of the Quantitative Reasoning and some short explanations about how these sections work. This isn’t to be used for a thorough look at your performance, but works well as a supplementary section.
What We Like
- A great source for extra Quantitative Reasoning practice
- Sourced from ETS, the creators of the GRE mean reliable and accurate questions
What We Don’t Like
- The answer key is in a separate book and will need to be marked manually by the user
- It’s a PDF practice test, so it’s not as interactive as others on our list
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
Related: How Many Times Can You Take the GRE?
9. Magoosh GRE Math Practice Questions
This practice test is focused just on the GRE maths questions aka the Quantitative Reasoning section – it’s not an actual full GRE test, but it makes it easy to divide it up into a GRE math question of the day. Their questions cover realistic topics that you would expect to encounter in the math section of the GRE test itself. Offering a slightly different set up to the other practice tests, Magoosh splits their questions into easy, medium and hard. They also provide the answers and explanations.
What We Like
- They’ve tried to calibrate their questions to mirror the real GRE test
- A good source of extra quantitative reasoning practice questions
- Detailed video and written explanations for each question
What We Don’t Like
- You can keep track of your answers but there’s no option to submit them
- You won’t be given a GRE score at the end of the test
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
10. 4Tests GRE Practice Questions
Although not a full-length GRE practice test, 4Tests offers a decent number of questions in their one free test, covering each of the three sections. In terms of the quality of the questions and how close they are to the actual GRE, they fall short when compared to other practice tests at the top of our list. However, they still fair pretty well and will certainly be helpful to your overall GRE test prep.
What We Like
- You can check your answers as you go or at the end of the test
- They offer an explanation for the answers
What We Don’t Like
- No timer
- You won’t be given a GRE score at the end
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
11. Union Test Prep Practice Test
Union’s one free practice test offers users a chance to practice all three sections of the GRE test. The sections are set up as separate tests, and you can check answers as you go, have a hint if you’re unsure and read the explanation. The types of questions are similar to what you’d find on the real test, so you should feel more prepared for what to expect.
What We Like
- The hint is a unique feature and can give you the little push you need (not something to rely on though!)
- Covers all three sections
What We Don’t Like
- Not realistic test conditions
- Just questions – not a full test analysis
> Get These Free GRE Practice Questions
Grad Prep Free Mini Test
Grad Prep is known for their GRE practice tests and they are offering a free “mini” test that gives you a 3-day access to their GRE practice sample questions.
Included are 12 sample questions to try. See our in-depth review of the Grad Prep GRE course.
How to Use GRE Practice Tests
While having access to a wealth of free GRE practice questions – over 2,200 to be precise – is pretty great, it’s essential to know how to use them to your advantage:
- Start with a diagnostic test before anything else as it’s important to work out what you need to focus your study energy on. A diagnostic test will provide you with a complete test performance analysis, giving you an accurate starting GRE score to work from, and a crucial understanding of where your strengths and weaknesses are. The Manhattan practice test is ideal for this initial analysis.
- Once you have a ballpark GRE score and awareness of the areas where you’re lagging, use some of the practice tests closest to the bottom of our list. While they won’t give you a full test analysis, they’re perfect for both general and specific question practice.
- Take another diagnostic test as your test date edges nearer to see how you have improved and what you still need to work on. The Princeton and Kaplan practice GRE tests are good ones to use.
- Practice, practice, practice. Go back to any of those general practice questions you haven’t used yet, and focus in on your areas of weakness.
- Take your final full-length practice tests. This is where we would recommend the ETS PowerPrep practice tests as they are as close to the real deal as they get. They will give you the most accurate indication of how well you might do on the real GRE test day and prepare you for the test conditions.
The Top 4 GRE ‘Question of the Day’ Picks
Another excellent resource to boost that GRE test prep are the GRE practice questions of the day. A simple yet effective study method where you can access a daily GRE practice question, with the answer and an explanation. These tend to be a mix of Verbal and Quant questions, but some sites may be section specific, like a GRE math question of the day site.
Let’s look at three test prep companies who offer the GRE practice question of the day:
1. Test Prep Nerds GRE Math Question of the Day
You read that right. We have been hard at work with our team of GRE experts to create a FREE 30-day GRE Math Question of the Day sequence. Each morning, you’ll wake up to a new GRE math question to solve. These questions range from Arithmetic, Geometry, Data Analysis, and Algebra. Each question includes a detailed explanation that you can utilize to better understand how we got to the correct solution. We hope you enjoy it!
<<Get These Free GRE Questions>>
2. Kaplan GRE Question of the Day
Sent over email everyday, Kaplan’s GRE question of the day tends to err on the higher quality side. They’re pretty similar to the real GRE test questions and are a mixture of all the different question types. They offer robust explanations, both for correct and incorrect answers. You may find some inconsistency between the Verbal and Quantitative questions, with the Verbal ones sometimes a little simpler than you’d expect.
<<Get These Free GRE Questions>>
3. Varsity Tutors GRE Question of the Day
Although they offer a GRE question of the day for both Verbal and Quantitative, Varsity Tutors don’t get as good a write up as other sites, with their questions supposedly not a true representation of the real GRE test questions. They offer explanations for the answers, but these aren’t as robust as some of their competition, like Kaplan.
<<Get These Free GRE Questions>>
4. GRE Question-A-Day
This is another GRE practice question of the day site where you can sign up to be emailed a daily practice question. They offer a mix of both Verbal and Quantitative questions, covering actual GRE topics and question types. They will give you a pretty functional, but sometimes a bit too simple, explanation for your answer, whether you got it right or wrong.
<<Get These Free GRE Questions>>
Added features include getting a new question each time you refresh the page and having access to their archive of past GRE questions of the day, so you can practice more than once a day if you wish to!
How to Use GRE Question of the Day
We’ve looked at some GRE practice question of the day sites, so now let’s look at how to utilize these questions to ensure they make the biggest impact on your test prep.
- Keep a record of how you get on everyday with the questions, as a means to track your progress. Writing down any questions you get wrong can help you identify a pattern forming within a certain topic or question format, giving you an indication of any areas of weakness. You can then focus your practice on these specific areas.
- Read the explanations. Learning from your mistakes and understanding why you got a question wrong is crucial GRE test prep. It can be really beneficial when it comes to building up your weaker skills. It’s also worth understanding why you got a correct answer, especially when you might not have been completely certain of why the answer was right. The explanation may also offer a different strategy of how to get to the answer, which can prove useful for solving other questions.
Final Words
We’ve looked at a range of different free GRE resources there are out there to help you not only pass your GRE test, but get that ‘good’ GRE score you’ve been dreaming about. Now it’s your turn. Whenever your actual GRE test date is, there’s no time like the present to start practicing. Remember, practice makes perfect!
