AQA A-level Chemistry (7405): papers, topics and grade boundaries

AQA A-level Chemistry papers at a glance

Papers 1 and 2 are short and long answer questions. The qualification is linear: all A-level exams are sat at the end of the A-level course, and the AS (7404) is a separate qualification. The June 2022 paper cover lists a scientific calculator, and AQA issues a data booklet with the papers.

What AQA A-level Chemistry covers

The content has three groups of sections. Marks for maths are built in: at least 20% of the marks across assessments require mathematical skills at Level 2 or above.

Physical chemistry (3.1)

Atomic structure, amount of substance, bonding, energetics, kinetics, chemical equilibria and Le Chatelier's principle with K_(c), and redox. The A-level only sections are thermodynamics (3.1.8), rate equations (3.1.9), Kₚ for homogeneous systems (3.1.10), electrode potentials and electrochemical cells (3.1.11) and acids and bases (3.1.12).

Inorganic chemistry (3.2)

Periodicity, Group 2 and Group 7 (the halogens), plus the A-level only sections on Period 3 elements and their oxides (3.2.4), transition metals (3.2.5) and reactions of ions in aqueous solution (3.2.6).

Organic chemistry (3.3)

Introduction to organic chemistry, alkanes, halogenoalkanes, alkenes, alcohols and organic analysis, then the A-level only sections: optical isomerism, aldehydes and ketones, carboxylic acids and derivatives, aromatic chemistry, amines, polymers, amino acids, proteins and DNA, organic synthesis, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and chromatography.

Practical endorsement and required practicals

A-level grades are based only on the written exams. Practical skills are assessed in two ways. In the exams, questions test the practical skills that can be assessed on paper, which is where the 40 marks of Paper 3 come from. Separately, your teacher assesses your competence against the Common Practical Assessment Criteria (CPAC) across a minimum of 12 practical activities, and the result is reported on your certificate as a pass or not classified, alongside your grade. AQA's specification defines 12 required practicals, and the exam papers can ask about any of them.

Worked examples in AQA style

Kinetics: finding a rate constant

A reaction has the rate equation rate = k[A]²[B]. At [A] = 0.20 mol dm⁻³ and [B] = 0.10 mol dm⁻³ the initial rate is 2.4 × 10⁻³ mol dm⁻³ s⁻¹. Rearrange for k and work out the units from the equation:

The units are worth a mark in their own right. Rate is mol dm⁻³ s⁻¹ and the concentration terms give mol³ dm⁻⁹, so k is dm⁶ mol⁻² s⁻¹. Practise this in our Reaction Kinetics course, then press Mark to check your answer in the course:

Acids and bases: pH of strong and weak acids

A strong acid is fully ionised, so for 0.0250 mol dm⁻³ HCl the pH is the negative log of that concentration. For a weak acid HA of concentration 0.10 mol dm⁻³ with Kₐ = 1.8 × 10⁻⁵, assume little dissociation so [H⁺] = √(Kₐc):

State the assumptions: the dissociation of the acid is negligible, and [H⁺] equals [A⁻].

Energetics: calorimetry

A reaction in 100 g of aqueous solution raises the temperature by 6.5 K, and 0.020 mol of the limiting reactant was used. Use q = mc ΔT with c = 4.18 J g⁻¹ K⁻¹:

The temperature rose, so the reaction is exothermic and ΔH is negative. Convert joules to kilojoules before giving the final answer.

AQA A-level Chemistry grade boundaries

These are AQA's subject grade boundaries from its document "Grade boundaries, June 2026 exams: A-level", published on 13 August 2026. Each figure is the lowest total mark, out of 300, that earns that grade.

An A* needed 255 of 300, which is 85%, and an A needed 220. An E needed just 66. Boundaries move every year with paper difficulty, so use them as a guide, not a target.

How AQA A-level Chemistry differs from Edexcel

Pearson Edexcel A level Chemistry (9CH0) is also three papers, but they are weighted 30%, 30% and 40%, and are 1 hour 45 minutes (90 marks), 1 hour 45 minutes (90 marks) and 2 hours 30 minutes (120 marks). Edexcel splits the content into 19 numbered topics across Paper 1 (advanced inorganic and physical chemistry) and Paper 2 (advanced organic and physical chemistry), and its 120-mark Paper 3 draws on any topic and on its core practicals. It lists 16 core practicals against AQA's 12 required practicals. See theEdexcel A-level Chemistry guide. For the data booklet, formulae and other boards, see ourA-level Chemistry guide.

Use the daily paper as a short timed mock

Uni-Sine publishes a free daily paper on theA-level Chemistry: Paper 1andA-level Chemistry: Paper 2tracks. Each is a short timed paper of 8 questions worth 25 to 35 marks, not a full AQA paper, and it is not written by AQA. Track 1 covers ionisation energy, bonding and shapes, enthalpy and Hess's law, kinetics and Maxwell-Boltzmann distributions, equilibria, redox, amount of substance, alcohols, periodicity and organic analysis. Track 2 covers transition metals, Born-Haber cycles and entropy, electrode potentials, NMR, rate equations, aromatic chemistry, buffers, carbonyls, amines and polymers, organic synthesis and Kₚ. That roughly matches the physical, inorganic and organic mix across AQA's Papers 1 and 2, so one of each in a week is a good short mock routine.

Common mistakes in AQA A-level Chemistry

• Missing or wrong units on rate constants and equilibrium constants.
• Wrong significant figures. Match the data given, and do not round in the middle of a calculation.
• Not stating assumptions in weak acid and buffer calculations.
• Curly arrow errors. A mechanism arrow starts at a lone pair or a bond and ends at an atom or a new bond.
• Describing an observation as an explanation. The 30 multiple-choice marks and data questions on Paper 3 reward precise reading.

Exam answers

The answers and a worked mark scheme come with today's paper once it is marked. We do not publish official or past paper answers. Every question on the daily paper is our own.

Read next

UK · A-levelAQA A-level Chemistry grade boundaries 2026: A* to EAQA's official June 2026 A-level Chemistry (7405) grade boundaries, A* to E out of 300, compared with 2025, with a worked example.