IB May 2025 Exam Statistics

Session: May 2025

In May 2025, 202,102 students from 3,400 schools in 153 countries took IB exams, up from 192,866 in May 2024. Between them they had 758,854 subject entries.

In May 2025, 102,233 students received IB Diploma results. Of these, 81.9% were awarded the diploma, up from 80.5% in May 2024, and the average score was 30.6 points out of 45, up from 30.3.

In the Career-related Programme, 6,935 students received results and 76.2% were awarded the certificate, up from 74.9% in May 2024.

Students: 202,102; May 2024: 192,866
Schools: 3,400; May 2024: 3,323
Diploma pass rate: 81.9%; May 2024: 80.5%
Average score: 30.6; May 2024: 30.3

May 2025 compared with May 2024

The bulletin's overview of the session, with the Diploma and Career-related Programme results, beside May 2024, the same session a year earlier.

IB results, May 2025 and May 2024
Figure	May 2025	May 2024	Change
Students	202,102	192,866	+9,236
Subject entries	758,854	721,067	+37,787
Schools	3,400	3,323	+77
Countries	153	152	+1
Mean grade, all students	4.7	4.7	0.0
Diploma results	102,233	96,726	+5,507
Diplomas awarded	83,703	77,875	+5,828
Diploma pass rate	81.9%	80.5%	+1.4
Average score	30.6	30.3	+0.3
Mean grade, Diploma students	4.9	4.9	0.0
Career-related Programme results	6,935	6,429	+506
Career-related pass rate	76.2%	74.9%	+1.3

Students: everyone in the session, in the Diploma, the Career-related Programme or individual courses. Diploma results: Diploma students, including those retaking, who received results. Average score: their mean total points, out of 45. Change: for rates, in percentage points.

IB Diploma scores in May 2025

The share of Diploma results at each total, out of 45, with an average of 30.6 points. A diploma needs at least 24 points. The average IB score page has every session's.

Share of IB Diploma results by total points, May 2025.

IB Diploma results by total points, May 2025
Total points	Share of Diploma results
0–23	14.5%
24–29	27.7%
30–34	27.6%
35–39	20.4%
40–45	9.8%

Most popular subjects in May 2025

The 10 subjects with the most students, HL and SL added, not counting the language courses, which the bulletin reports by language. Every subject is ranked, for this and every May session, in most popular IB subjects.

Students at HL and SL in the 10 largest IB subjects, May 2025.

The 10 IB subjects with the most students, May 2025
Subject	Students	HL	SL	Share of entries
1Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches	67,324	24,966	42,358	8.9%
2Biology	55,041	33,102	21,939	7.3%
3Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation	51,495	8,527	42,968	6.8%
4History	46,481	37,228	9,253	6.1%
5Business Management	37,817	24,513	13,304	5.0%
6Chemistry	37,741	20,095	17,646	5.0%
7Physics	32,426	17,984	14,442	4.3%
8Economics	30,886	20,089	10,797	4.1%
9Psychology	28,659	15,094	13,565	3.8%
10Environmental Systems and Societies	22,078	—	22,078	2.9%

Share of entries: the subject's students as a percentage of all 758,854 subject entries in May 2025, the language courses included. —: not taken at that level in May 2025.

Highest grade 7 rates in May 2025

The subjects with the 10 highest shares of 7s at each level, among the subjects with at least 100 students there. Grade 7 rates reflect who takes a subject and how it is assessed, so they don't show which subjects are easier. Every subject is ranked, for this and every May session, in IB grade 7 rates by subject.

Highest IB grade 7 rates at HL, May 2025, of 22 subjects
Subject	Grade 7 rate	Students
1Physics	19.2%	17,984
2Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches	16.4%	24,966
3Chemistry	15.0%	20,095
4Economics	14.0%	20,089
5Theatre	13.9%	2,518
6Geography	13.0%	5,218
7Sports, Exercise and Health Science	10.6%	1,947
8Social and Cultural Anthropology	10.4%	1,091
9Philosophy	9.9%	1,904
10Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation	9.6%	8,527

Highest IB grade 7 rates at SL, May 2025, of 30 subjects
Subject	Grade 7 rate	Students
1Economics	14.9%	10,797
2Turkey in the 20th Century	14.0%	848
3Business Management	11.2%	13,304
4Physics	10.3%	14,442
5Chemistry	9.5%	17,646
6Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches	9.2%	42,358
7Geography	9.0%	4,528
7Philosophy	9.0%	2,745
9Computer Science	8.5%	4,402
10Art History	8.4%	131

Grade cells the bulletin leaves blank are shown as 0.0%. (May 2025)

Results by subject, May 2025

Every subject in the May 2025 bulletin by subject group, each group led by its totals. Each subject links to its own page, with its results in every session.

IB results by subject and level, May 2025
Subject	Level	Students	Mean grade	Grade 7 rate	Grade 6 or 7 rate
Group 1: Studies in Language and LiteratureLanguage A: Language and Literature and Language A: Literature: reported by language, in the results explorer.		150,211	4.9	4.3%	27.5%
Group 2: Language AcquisitionLanguage ab initio and Language B: reported by language, in the results explorer.		114,012	5.2	13.9%	44.7%
Group 3: Individuals and Societies		177,341	4.8	7.4%	30.3%
Art History	SL	131	4.3	8.4%	22.9%
Brazilian Social Studies	SL	441	4.9	6.3%	34.2%
Business Management	HL	24,513	5.0	7.5%	33.4%
Business Management	SL	13,304	4.9	11.2%	36.2%
Classical Greek and Roman Studies	SL	43	6.6	60.5%	100.0%
Digital Society	HL	1,261	4.4	1.7%	18.7%
Digital Society	SL	1,297	4.3	1.1%	18.1%
Economics	HL	20,089	5.2	14.0%	43.9%
Economics	SL	10,797	5.0	14.9%	38.4%
Geography	HL	5,218	5.3	13.0%	46.1%
Geography	SL	4,528	4.9	9.0%	34.9%
Global Politics	HL	6,263	5.1	5.6%	35.9%
Global Politics	SL	4,111	4.7	6.4%	23.9%
History	HL	37,228	4.4	2.6%	17.8%
History	SL	9,253	4.7	3.6%	25.1%
Philosophy	HL	1,904	5.0	9.9%	31.3%
Philosophy	SL	2,745	4.9	9.0%	34.1%
Psychology	HL	15,094	4.8	5.6%	30.0%
Psychology	SL	13,565	4.4	4.3%	23.5%
Social and Cultural Anthropology	HL	1,091	4.9	10.4%	33.1%
Social and Cultural Anthropology	SL	1,711	4.5	2.9%	16.7%
Turkey in the 20th Century	SL	848	5.5	14.0%	57.2%
World Arts and Cultures	SL	45	5.3	6.7%	37.8%
World Religions	SL	1,861	4.8	5.6%	26.8%
Group 4: Sciences		146,799	4.5	10.0%	26.1%
Astronomy	SL	53	4.3	13.2%	28.3%
Biology	HL	33,102	4.5	7.2%	23.8%
Biology	SL	21,939	4.3	5.9%	19.8%
Chemistry	HL	20,095	4.8	15.0%	35.7%
Chemistry	SL	17,646	4.3	9.5%	24.8%
Computer Science	HL	4,751	4.7	8.5%	29.0%
Computer Science	SL	4,402	4.3	8.5%	24.1%
Design Technology	HL	2,127	4.7	4.4%	26.6%
Design Technology	SL	1,869	4.1	0.9%	11.5%
Food Science and Technology	SL	26	5.5	19.2%	53.8%
Marine Science	SL	429	3.8	4.7%	13.3%
Physics	HL	17,984	4.9	19.2%	37.1%
Physics	SL	14,442	4.2	10.3%	22.1%
Sports, Exercise and Health Science	HL	1,947	4.8	10.6%	31.5%
Sports, Exercise and Health Science	SL	5,987	3.8	3.2%	11.6%
Group 5: Mathematics		118,819	4.4	8.9%	24.3%
Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches	HL	24,966	4.9	16.4%	36.7%
Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches	SL	42,358	4.5	9.2%	26.0%
Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation	HL	8,527	4.5	9.6%	25.6%
Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation	SL	42,968	3.9	4.0%	15.1%
Group 6: The Arts		28,804	4.3	3.8%	16.7%
Dance	HL	413	4.6	6.1%	25.5%
Dance	SL	437	4.1	4.3%	15.1%
Film	HL	2,962	4.4	3.7%	18.3%
Film	SL	1,792	4.2	2.4%	12.6%
Music	HL	1,475	4.8	6.4%	26.5%
Music	SL	1,551	4.3	3.8%	15.9%
Theatre	HL	2,518	5.1	13.9%	40.1%
Theatre	SL	1,264	4.6	6.6%	25.6%
Visual Arts	HL	10,312	4.3	2.6%	14.3%
Visual Arts	SL	6,080	4.0	0.7%	6.9%
Interdisciplinary		22,846	4.3	5.0%	18.2%
Environmental Systems and Societies	SL	22,078	4.3	5.0%	17.9%
Language and Culture	SL	185	5.0	4.9%	30.8%
Literature and Performance	SL	583	4.7	4.8%	25.7%

Group rows: the bulletin's totals for every subject in the group, the language courses included. Grade 7 rate: the share of students awarded a 7, as published. Grade 6 or 7 rate: the published shares for grades 6 and 7 added.

The bulletin's subject tables leave out subjects with fewer than 10 students, so the subject-group totals add up to slightly less than the session's total subject entries. (May 2025)
Subjects the bulletin only names, because fewer than 10 students took them, are not listed here. (May 2025)
Grade cells the bulletin leaves blank are shown as 0.0%. (May 2025)

Other sessions

Source and methodology

These statistics are from the International Baccalaureate's statistical bulletins. The latest data shown is from the May 2025 assessment session.

Bulletins

About this data

May and November are separate assessment sessions. November is much smaller and mostly taken by schools in the southern hemisphere, so its figures aren't directly comparable with May's.
Older bulletins call the people sitting the exams “candidates” and newer ones “students”. This site says “students” throughout.
“<10” means the IB didn't publish the exact number because fewer than 10 students took the subject. These figures are never estimated or counted as zero.
The grade 7 rate is the share of students the bulletin reports at grade 7. The grade 6 or 7 rate is calculated by IBonomics by adding the published shares for grades 6 and 7. Every other figure is as published.
The bulletins include students who received no grade (N) in each subject's percentages, so grades 1 to 7 add up to slightly less than 100%.

IBonomics is not affiliated with or endorsed by the International Baccalaureate.