Pearson Test of English (PTE)  Reviews 694

I haven't so far managed to attend one of their tests, but let me cover their so called platforms.

1) The PTE booking platform in terms of UX is rubbish, there is no way a company that charges so much for a test could keep their standards so low.

2) The PTE portal is a joke, there is no coherent navigation. Finding something is a mission, even after you have done it like 5 times previously. It seems like it has been stitched together by a 7 years old.

Nothing in their platform has been thought through, you will be asked to login your credentials countless times as the authentication is not persisted in the browser. The support chat is just glued on top of their website, it doesn't have a clue if you are logged in or not.

After raising an issue with them for paying for the test, they got me back an email saying try again from another device in 24h, so I did and the issue was still there. However they resolved the issue at their end, you know KPIs.

When their platform doesn’t work, the chat agents just default to giving out their toll rate phone numbers. Very convenient, isn’t it? When the problem is clearly on their side, why should you have to pay extra to sort it out over the phone?

Ah and the cherry on top of the cake is when you order learning materials and you pay 100+ bucks, these will appear in your accounts within 5-7 days.

I took the B1 Home exam 3 days ago and it was terrible! I'm currently attending Entry 3 and I got a score high enough to start L1 next year. But the audio recordings were faster than the B1 ones and I couldn't keep up. I don't think that's fair! Next time I'll be taking Trinity College's in-person speaking exam if I don't pass!

Update 21 May 2026:

I received a reply from the PTE team asking me to provide my PTE ID so a team member could review my case via email. There is no option on Trustpilot for a reviewer to reply to a company response, so I am adding it here.

My PTE ID is PTE004359096.

The specific concern I would like reviewed is the variation in my Writing score across three recent attempts: 54, then 31 six days later, then 53 in the most recent test. The other skills moved within a much narrower range, so a 23-point swing on the same skill in such a short window is what feels inconsistent.

Looking forward to the email follow-up.

--- PAST REVIEW

I didn’t want to write this, but I genuinely feel stuck and need to share my experience.

I have taken the PTE multiple times because I only need a Competent English score, and I have been very close to achieving it.

What is really difficult to understand is the inconsistency across my results.

In my first test, my Speaking was lower, but in my most recent test it improved. That makes sense with practice.

However, my Writing shows a completely different pattern.
I scored 54 in one test, then just 6 days later it dropped to 31, and in my latest test it went back to 53 again.

It is very hard to believe that my ability could drop and recover so drastically in such a short time, especially when other skills are improving more naturally.

Because of this inconsistency, I am now just a few points away from my goal, but I am unable to move forward.

Each test is expensive, and I am currently not in a position to keep paying for more attempts. This situation is not just frustrating, it is financially stressful.

I am not asking for special treatment, just fairness and consistency in how scores are evaluated.

I genuinely hope someone can review cases like mine more carefully, because right now it feels like I am being held back by something that is not fully in my control.

I am extremely disappointed with my experience with PTE.
I was refused entry to my exam due to a small mistake in my application (incorrect country of citizenship), despite having all my correct identification with me on the day. I brought my valid passport, arrived early, drove 2 hours to the test centre, and took time off work to attend. I did everything right on the exam day itself.
I contacted Pearson immediately after the incident to explain the situation and kindly asked for consideration or flexibility, but I was simply told that I would need to pay the full fee again. I even followed up a second time, explaining that paying another $490 would put me under financial pressure, but there was no compassion or willingness to review my case.
What makes this even more frustrating is that I personally know of a case where a candidate was allowed to reschedule at no cost after forgetting their passport. This makes the process feel inconsistent and unfair.
I fully understand the importance of ID policies, but there should be room for reasonable discretion when a genuine candidate clearly made a minor mistake and made every effort to attend the test correctly.
At the moment, I feel taken advantage of and unsupported. I am now having to work extra hours just to afford booking the test again, which is very stressful.
I hope Pearson can reconsider cases like mine with more fairness and understanding, especially given the high cost of the exam and the impact on candidates.

I purchased a b2 test from them but it keeps getting hang and the website is slow and not worth it. It is better to purchase a subscription of some other app

Very disappointing experience. My PTE account has been locked for 4 days, and I still cannot access the result of the exam that I paid for. I have contacted support many times through chat, phone calls, emails, and even social media, but no one is willing to properly assist or resolve the issue.

I have repeatedly said that I am willing to pay again if needed, but there has been no clear help or urgency from the support team.

Because of this, I cannot access my exam result which is required for my visa application, and my visa deadline is extremely close. It is very stressful and unfair that after paying for an exam, a candidate cannot even access their own result.

This situation is causing serious stress and anxiety. I hope Pearson PTE will take responsibility and improve their support for candidates facing urgent situations.

PTE Number: PTE002643536

I had a very disappointing experience with my PTE test booking and the customer support process.

My test was originally scheduled for 19 February. I registered using my legal full name, exactly as it appears on my official documents. However, when I arrived at the test centre, I was not allowed to take the test due to a name mismatch.

I tried to explain that I am from North Africa, where it is culturally common for a woman’s husband’s last name to sometimes appear informally alongside her name. This name is not part of my legal name, and I registered using my correct legal name. Despite showing additional documents and explaining the cultural difference, I was still refused entry on the day of the exam.

The test centre raised a case and gave me a reference number. The next day, I called customer support and was told that my case would be reviewed. Four days later, I received an email apologising and informing me that I could reschedule the test for free by calling an agent.

When I called to reschedule, the agent was extremely unhelpful. He told me he had rescheduled my test for 5 March, but when I asked whether the name issue had been resolved so I wouldn’t face the same problem again, he simply kept saying “I don’t know.” It honestly felt like speaking to a robot rather than someone trying to help.

After three to four days, I still had not received any confirmation email, so I called again. A different agent then told me that there was no rescheduled booking in the system and that my test had actually been cancelled, and I would simply receive a refund within 24–48 hours.

Because I had biometrics scheduled and urgently needed the test for my application, I had no choice but to book another PTE test myself and pay again, which meant I effectively paid for two tests.

Later, when I called again to check on the refund, another agent told me that the refund would actually take 7–10 days, which was completely different from the 24–48 hours I had been told previously. Now it has been well over 10 days, and I still have not received my refund.

Although the test itself eventually went smoothly when I took the new booking, the overall administration, communication, and customer support were extremely poor. I received conflicting information from multiple agents, no proper follow-up, and I am still waiting for money that I was promised would be refunded.

Overall, this was a very stressful and frustrating experience, especially since the exam was part of an important immigration process. I hope PTE improves its customer support and internal communication so that other candidates do not have to go through the same situation.

Awful customer services, very difficult to get in contact with the appropriate department, some departments you can't even speak to, only via email and they are awful at getting back to you in time and with the correct information. I unfortunately paid to use this company and nearly 2 months later still trying to book my test and still no light at the end of the tunnel. AVOID!!!

I had a very frustrating experience with the booking system of Pearson. Despite many complaints from international candidates regarding the middle name issue, their system still has not been fixed.
When I booked the exam online, my name fields were greyed out, which made me think everything was correct. There was no option to edit the details. I previously took the exam in the Philippines with no issues, so I assumed the system was fine.
However, when I arrived at the test center in Brisbane, I was not allowed to take the exam because my middle name was missing.
This was extremely inconvenient because Brisbane is a 3-hour drive from where I live, and I made sure to arrive early for the exam.
What makes it worse is that:
No one from Pearson contacted me beforehand to inform me about the name issue.
I tried calling customer support multiple times, but no one seemed to know how to fix or edit the personal details.
The only change required was simply adding a middle name, which should be a very easy fix.
Instead, the system makes such a simple correction unnecessarily difficult.
This exam costs around $450, which is not cheap. With that price, candidates should at least expect a system that works properly and support staff who can resolve simple issues.
There are already many problems international candidates deal with, and it is disappointing that Pearson continues to make such a simple fix so inconvenient and confusing.
Very frustrating experience!
PTE ID: PTE001988625

I am writing this to express my deep disappointment regarding the handling of my case. I took my PTE Academic exam on February 16th, and I have been waiting for my results for 17 days.
Two days ago, I posted my situation on Trustpilot, and your team replied publicly stating that I would be contacted via email. However, no one has contacted me. There has been no email, no update, and no resolution. This 'we will contact you' response seems to be just a way to silence my public complaint without actually solving the problem.
My account remains locked due to a 'matching account' issue (I had an account in 2023). I have done my part by taking the exam and paying the fee. Your team's failure to merge my accounts and release my scores after nearly three weeks is unacceptable.
I demand an immediate resolution before this weekend. I need my accounts merged and my February 16th score released today.
My Details:
• Full Name: Rebeen Younis Omer
• PTE ID: PTE004620844
• Exam Date: February 16, 2026
Stop telling me to 'wait.' I have waited 17 days. Please escalate this to a manager immediately.
Regards,
Rebeen Younis Omer

I had a disappointing experience with the PTE exam. The test center was noisy, which made it difficult to concentrate during important sections like speaking and listening. For an exam that is expensive and requires full focus, the environment should be strictly controlled and quiet.
Additionally, I am not confident that my desired score was assessed accurately. There is very little transparency in how the scoring works, especially for speaking and writing sections. It makes candidates feel unsure whether the scores truly reflect their performance.
Another major concern is that if a candidate does not pass one category, they are required to retake the entire exam. This is extremely frustrating and feels like a waste of money and time. Candidates should have the option to retake only the section they did not pass, rather than paying the full exam fee again.
Overall, the high cost combined with these issues makes the experience very discouraging.

I spent nearly £250 to make a booking.... then they 'auto-cancelled' with no explanation. Then i get sent to an email address, which takes 2 DAYS to respond with a security question, only to state it will take ANOTHER 2-5 DAYS FOR A RESPONSE. Need I go on?

I purchased the premium PTE academic course. I received an order confirmation email but no access codes to access the material. I spoke to a representative who directed me to a form to complete which required so much additional information including ID copies. I purchased a product and before they even provide the product I should provide my ID?

Now I must wait for them to get back to me while they hold my money without delivering the service.

This process should be automated. Thanks for payment, here are the access codes. If only only it were that simple.

Update - I have received the access codes and received feedback within the same day. I have changed the rating from 1 to 3 stars due to follow up service received.

I experienced a disastrous technical failure during my exam. Right from the start, the headphones produced an extremely loud, continuous “beep.” Despite my attempts to lower the volume, the controls were completely unresponsive. While I was struggling with this deafening noise, the exam launched automatically—without me clicking anything—and the timer started running while I had no functional audio.
Two staff members tried to help but couldn’t fix it. A male staff member then logged me out and moved me to another PC while the test was still running. By the time I logged into the second computer (where the audio was finally working), the exam had progressed “live” without me. I had no idea which task was active or what I was supposed to do.
The staff witnessed this entire ordeal and were supposed to file an incident report, so Pearson VUE management should already be fully aware of this.
Because of their technical errors and the chaotic mishandling of the situation, I suffered severe emotional and physical distress. I am currently 39 weeks pregnant, and the stress caused me to shake and cry uncontrollably; I was completely unable to calm down. No candidate, especially not a heavily pregnant one, should be subjected to such an unprofessional and negligent environment.
I am demanding an immediate and full refund. I also strongly urge management to secure the CCTV footage—including the audio recording—from the exam room. The audio clearly captures a female staff member falsely assuring me that the test would not proceed automatically and that “we must click Next.” The footage will also clearly show my extreme distress. This situation was entirely Pearson VUE’s fault, and I expect my money back immediately.
I already sent official complain.
Case #34109409

Pearson have a trap in their application form to force the applicants to pay double, if you like to refund never get it.In the application they ask for 1st and surename,never ask for middle name,but they do accept your application and payment but they don’t allow you to have the test arguing that you missed the middle name no refund and new appointment should be paid.Staff saying this happens daily , so it looks as a trap otherwise they should change the application and ask for the middle name .No director sitting here in UK then you have to call India to speak to a director. Someone from Home Office should handle this issue and advise not to go with this company.This case belongs to my son ,he asked me to put this review in his behalf,he's in touch with Pearson for refund but it seems they are trying to avoide it.
To resolve such cases Pearson should mention 1st name & Middle name required direct on the application also they should have
authorised director sitting in UK so customers can refer to and discuss .
As I said this case belongs to my son and he registered case No. 34083671 on 16th February asking for refund .
Regards

I had a really good experience with PTE Academic. The test was well organised and easy to follow, and I liked that everything was computer-based, which made the process feel fair and unbiased. The instructions were clear, and the test centre staff were professional and helpful.

The best part was getting my results quickly — it made my application process much less stressful. Overall, I’d definitely recommend PTE to anyone looking for a reliable English test.

The examination room is very conducive for taking the exams, and the the people ushering the exams are friendly.

Its always been a great experience taking PTE. Nothing to worry about if you know you made the necessary preparations. Good luck to the test takers.

Staff were nice to candidates very polite and helpful. Overall it was good experience.

I had a very good experience taking the PTE test for my visa. In my first attempt, I almost reached my desired score because I didn’t have much time to prepare. After two more weeks of preparation, I took the test again and successfully achieved my target score.

My advice is to practice as much as possible and make sure you are well prepared. During the exam, other test takers will be sitting close to you, and the surrounding noise can be distracting. Try to stay calm and focus only on your own test. If you stay confident and prepared, you will achieve your goal too!