A-Level A* thresholds by subject
Every Cambridge International A Level ranked by the percentage its A* boundary has sat at, on average, across March 2022–November 2025 — built from the official grade threshold tables, not estimates.
The short version
Across the 44 full A Level subjects with at least three sessions of data, the A* boundary averages 79% of the maximum mark and the E (pass) boundary averages 36%. But the spread between subjects is large: Geography averages 63% for an A*, while Design and Technology averages 89%. Within a single subject the A* line also moves — Psychology has ranged from 62% (June 2026) to 75% (March 2024), whereas Chinese Language and Literature has stayed between 84% and 85%.
Lowest A* thresholds
Average minimum percentage for A* on the subject's main paper route.
| Subject | A* | A | E | Sessions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geography (9696) | 63% | 56% | 31% | 9 |
| Psychology (9990) | 68% | 60% | 31% | 14 |
| Law (9084) | 69% | 61% | 33% | 9 |
| Economics (9708) | 70% | 62% | 32% | 14 |
| Tamil (9689) | 70% | 63% | 33% | 9 |
Highest A* thresholds
| Subject | A* | A | E | Sessions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design and Technology (9705) | 89% | 82% | 51% | 9 |
| Drama (9482) | 89% | 79% | 38% | 8 |
| Urdu (Pakistan only) (9686) | 89% | 80% | 48% | 9 |
| Mathematics (9709) | 88% | 77% | 27% | 14 |
| Media Studies (9607) | 88% | 78% | 40% | 5 |
What the numbers mean — and don't
Cambridge sets each session's thresholds after marking so that a grade represents the same standard from one series to the next. When a paper turns out harder than intended, the boundary comes down; when candidates find it more accessible, the boundary goes up. A subject with a low average A* threshold is therefore one whose papers tend to be demanding to score on — long free-response questions, essays with strict mark schemes, practical components — not one that is generous. A subject with a high threshold usually has papers where strong candidates routinely score close to full marks, so the top grade has to be set high to distinguish them.
Two practical consequences. First, don't compare your percentage across subjects: 75% may be a comfortable A* in one subject and a B in another. Second, a "typical" boundary is a planning aid, not a target. Aim a few percentage points above the highest value your subject has reached in recent sessions and you leave room for a tougher-than-usual paper.
Every subject, ranked
Sorted from lowest to highest average A* threshold. "Latest" is the A* percentage in the most recent session we hold for that subject. Click a subject for its full trend chart.
| # | Subject | Route | A* avg | A* range | Latest A* | A avg | E avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Geography (9696) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 63% | 60–65% | 65% June 2026 | 56% | 31% |
| 2 | Psychology (9990) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 68% | 62–75% | 62% June 2026 | 60% | 31% |
| 3 | Law (9084) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 69% | 67–71% | 69% June 2026 | 61% | 33% |
| 4 | Economics (9708) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 70% | 64–73% | 69% June 2026 | 62% | 32% |
| 5 | Tamil (9689) | Papers 2, 3, 4 and 5 | 70% | 65–76% | 76% June 2026 | 63% | 33% |
| 6 | Thinking Skills (9694) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 70% | 64–74% | 74% June 2026 | 61% | 28% |
| 7 | Information Technology (9626) | Papers 02, 04, 1 and 3 | 71% | 68–77% | 77% June 2026 | 64% | 33% |
| 8 | Global Perspectives Research (9239) | Papers 02, 03, 04 and 1 | 75% | 72–76% | 76% June 2026 | 69% | 42% |
| 9 | History (9489) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 75% | 68–77% | 74% June 2026 | 66% | 36% |
| 10 | Sociology (9699) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 75% | 73–79% | 73% June 2026 | 68% | 39% |
| 11 | Accounting (9706) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 76% | 68–80% | 77% June 2026 | 66% | 28% |
| 12 | Biology (9700) | Papers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 | 76% | 72–82% | 77% June 2026 | 67% | 34% |
| 13 | Computer Science (9618) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 76% | 73–80% | 80% June 2026 | 65% | 25% |
| 14 | Biblical Studies (9484) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 77% | 73–79% | 77% June 2026 | 69% | 40% |
| 15 | Chemistry (9701) | Papers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 | 77% | 68–80% | 80% June 2026 | 68% | 29% |
| 16 | Chinese (9715) | Papers 2, 3 and 4 | 77% | 75–80% | 77% November 2023 | 69% | 40% |
| 17 | Marine Science (9693) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 77% | 74–79% | 77% June 2026 | 67% | 29% |
| 18 | Spanish Language and Literature (9844) | Papers 1, 2 and 3 | 77% | 75–80% | 75% June 2026 | 68% | 33% |
| 19 | French (9716) | Papers 01, 2, 3 and 4 | 78% | 75–80% | 78% June 2024 | 69% | 39% |
| 20 | Arabic (9680) | Papers 2, 3, 4 and 5 | 79% | 75–81% | 79% June 2026 | 70% | 39% |
| 21 | Physics (9702) | Papers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 | 79% | 74–82% | 78% June 2026 | 70% | 31% |
| 22 | Cambridge International Project Qualification (9980) | Paper 01 | 80% | 78–80% | 80% June 2026 | 72% | 38% |
| 23 | Digital Media Design (9481) | Papers 01, 02 and 03 | 80% | 78–80% | 80% June 2026 | 69% | 28% |
| 24 | English Language (9093) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 80% | 74–83% | 80% June 2026 | 70% | 33% |
| 25 | Physical Education (9396) | Papers 02, 04, 1 and 3 | 80% | 78–81% | 81% November 2023 | 71% | 36% |
| 26 | Spanish (9719) | Papers 01, 2, 3 and 4 | 80% | 78–82% | 80% November 2023 | 72% | 41% |
| 27 | Business (9609) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 81% | 77–84% | 78% June 2026 | 74% | 45% |
| 28 | Classical Studies (9274) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 82% | 79–83% | 83% November 2025 | 71% | 35% |
| 29 | German (9717) | Papers 01, 2, 3 and 4 | 82% | 81–83% | 83% November 2024 | 74% | 42% |
| 30 | Portuguese (9718) | Papers 01, 02, 03 and 04 | 82% | 79–84% | 82% June 2026 | 74% | 43% |
| 31 | English Literature (9695) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 83% | 78–87% | 85% June 2026 | 73% | 37% |
| 32 | Art and Design (9479) | Papers 01, 02 and 03 | 84% | 78–85% | 85% June 2026 | 74% | 34% |
| 33 | Chinese Language and Literature (9868) | Papers 1, 2 and 3 | 84% | 84–85% | 84% June 2026 | 75% | 39% |
| 34 | German Language & Literature (9897) | Papers 1, 2 and 3 | 84% | 84–85% | 85% June 2026 | 74% | 39% |
| 35 | Travel and Tourism (9395) | Papers 02, 1, 3 and 4 | 85% | 81–89% | 85% June 2026 | 76% | 44% |
| 36 | Further Mathematics (9231) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 86% | 82–90% | 86% June 2026 | 74% | 31% |
| 37 | Islamic Studies (9488) | Papers 1, 2, 3 and 4 | 86% | 83–87% | 87% June 2026 | 76% | 39% |
| 38 | Music (9483) | Papers 02, 03, 04 and 1 | 86% | 84–87% | 87% June 2026 | 75% | 37% |
| 39 | Mathematics (9709) | Papers 1, 3, 4 and 5 | 88% | 84–93% | 90% June 2026 | 77% | 27% |
| 40 | Media Studies (9607) | Papers 01, 03, 2 and 4 | 88% | 85–90% | 90% June 2026 | 78% | 40% |
| 41 | Urdu (9676) | Papers 02, 03, 04 and 05 | 88% | 87–89% | 88% June 2024 | 79% | 47% |
| 42 | Design and Technology (9705) | Papers 02, 04, 1 and 3 | 89% | 87–90% | 87% June 2026 | 82% | 51% |
| 43 | Drama (9482) | Papers 02, 03, 04 and 1 | 89% | 85–90% | 90% June 2026 | 79% | 38% |
| 44 | Urdu (Pakistan only) (9686) | Papers 02, 03 and 04 | 89% | 86–90% | 90% June 2026 | 80% | 48% |
How this table is built
For each subject we take its main paper route — the full A Level combination with the most papers that is still offered in the latest session (for example Papers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in Physics), so a syllabus change doesn't mix old and new structures — and, where a session offered several timezone variants of that route, the variant with the middle A* threshold. Sessions in which that route wasn't offered are skipped, which is why the session count differs between subjects. Each threshold is expressed as a percentage of that option's maximum weighted mark, rounded up, then averaged across every session from March 2022 to November 2025 that we have ingested from the official Cambridge grade threshold PDFs. AS-only syllabuses are excluded because they have no A*. Figures update automatically when a new series is published.
Frequently asked
- Which Cambridge A Level has the lowest A* threshold?
- Across March 2022–November 2025, Geography (9696) has the lowest average A* boundary on its main route at about 63% of the maximum mark, followed by Psychology (68%) and Law (69%).
- Which subject needs the highest percentage for an A*?
- Design and Technology (9705) needs the most: an average of 89% for A*, with Drama at 89% and Urdu (Pakistan only) at 89%. High thresholds usually mean the papers are answered very accurately by strong candidates, not that the subject is "easy".
- Does a low A* boundary mean the subject is hard?
- Not by itself. A low boundary means candidates as a whole found the papers demanding, so fewer marks were needed to demonstrate A* performance. It says nothing about how hard the subject is for you, and the boundary is reset every session.
Related: what percentage is an A*? · grade boundaries explained · grade calculator
Independent study tool. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Cambridge Assessment International Education. Grade boundary figures are sourced from official releases; always confirm with your exam board.