AQA GCSE Biology grade boundaries 2025, Foundation and Higher
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AQA GCSE Biology grade boundaries June 2025
Taken from the Biology Tier H and Tier F rows of AQA's GCSE grade boundaries for June 2025 (version 1.0, published 21 August 2025). Each is the lowest total out of 200 for that grade, and a dash means the tier does not award it.
| Grade | Higher tier, out of 200 | Foundation tier, out of 200 |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | 141 | - |
| 8 | 127 | - |
| 7 | 113 | - |
| 6 | 94 | - |
| 5 | 75 | 140 |
| 4 | 56 | 121 |
| 3 | 46 | 87 |
| 2 | - | 53 |
| 1 | - | 19 |
Biology has two papers of 100 marks. The GCSE Biology guide and AQA GCSE Biology guide cover what the two papers test.
A Biology total, worked through
Take a Higher candidate on 49 and 43, which makes 92. The 2025 grade 5 boundary is 75 and the grade 6 boundary is 94, so 92 is a grade 5, 2 marks under a 6. In June 2024 the grade 6 line was 90, so the same 92 would have been a grade 6. That one example shows why last year's table is a poor guide to this year.
On Foundation, 125 is a grade 4 in 2025 (grade 4 needs 121, grade 5 needs 140), so 15 marks short of a 5.
2025 against 2024 and 2023
Using AQA's 2024 and 2023 documents:
| Higher grade | June 2023 | June 2024 | June 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 132 | 141 | 141 |
| 8 | 118 | 126 | 127 |
| 7 | 104 | 112 | 113 |
| 6 | 86 | 90 | 94 |
| 5 | 69 | 69 | 75 |
| 4 | 52 | 48 | 56 |
| 3 | 43 | 37 | 46 |
Higher had two different stories. At the top, 2024 and 2025 were almost identical (grade 9 at 141 both years, after 132 in 2023). At the bottom, 2025 rose: grade 5 from 69 to 75, grade 4 from 48 to 56, grade 3 from 37 to 46. Foundation:
| Foundation grade | June 2023 | June 2024 | June 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 134 | 132 | 140 |
| 4 | 117 | 113 | 121 |
| 3 | 85 | 82 | 87 |
| 2 | 53 | 52 | 53 |
| 1 | 21 | 22 | 19 |
Foundation grade 5 rose by 8 to 140, and grade 1 fell to 19, the lowest in the table.
What to take from the 2025 Biology boundaries
- Higher grade 4 is 28%. That is 56 marks, a little higher than Chemistry's 42, so Biology candidates get slightly less slack at the pass line.
- Higher grade 9 is 71%. It leaves about 59 marks to lose across two papers.
- Foundation grade 4 is 61%. That is the second highest Foundation grade 4 share among the three single sciences in 2025, after Physics at 66%.
Use today's paper to estimate your grade
Sit today's Foundation paper or Higher paper. It is a short timed paper of 8 questions worth 25 to 35 marks, written by us and not by AQA. Mark it, divide by the total, and compare with the shares above: 17 out of 28 is 61%, which is above the Higher grade 7 share of 57% and below the grade 8 share of 64%. See the GCSE Biology mock paper guide for sitting it under timed conditions.
Mistakes to avoid
- Using the 2024 table for a 2025 result. Higher grade 5 went up 6 marks.
- Looking up one paper. The boundaries apply to the total of both.
- Mixing Biology with Combined Science. Trilogy and Synergy grade on their own tables.
Common questions
What were the AQA GCSE Biology grade boundaries in 2025?
What mark was a grade 4 in AQA GCSE Biology 2025?
What mark was a grade 9 in AQA GCSE Biology 2025?
Were the 2025 Biology boundaries higher than 2024?
When did AQA publish them?
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