When you’re planning to apply for an MBA, you may be faced with a dilemma: GMAT vs. GRE. These are both standardized tests you can take to assess your preparedness for a graduate program, submitting your score as part of your application. The official stance of most MBA programs is that both tests are equally valid.
So which test should you take? The short answer: usually the GMAT, which is specifically designed for the needs of business schools. The GRE is a more general test that’s used for applicants to a wide range of graduate programs, not just MBAs. The majority of MBA applicants take the GMAT.
Still, there are good reasons to go for the GRE instead in specific cases. While both exams have their own difficulties, they’ll challenge you in different ways, and you may find that your skills are better suited to the GRE. Find out more about all the differences below.
| GMAT | GRE | |
|---|---|---|
| Tends to be easier for people who … | Do well under pressure; are sharp critical thinkers; and/or have time to prep extensively | Get anxious about exams; have a lot of background knowledge (math and English) or are good at memorizing information; and/or have limited prep time |
| Length | 2 hours 15 minutes | 1 hour 58 minutes |
| Sections | Verbal Reasoning; Quantitative Reasoning; Data Insights | Verbal Reasoning; Quantitative Reasoning; Analytical Writing |
| Accepted by … | All graduate business programs | Most graduate programs in a variety of subjects, including business |
| Designed to test … | Higher-order thinking predictive of success within MBA program and into business career | Understanding of verbal and quantitative content, predictive of success in graduate education generally |
| Average scores* | Top 10%: 715 Median: 546.01 | Top 10%: 162 V, 167 Q Median: 151 V, 153 Q |
| Difficulty | Question-level adaptive: each question is harder or easier depending on your performance on the previous question | Section-level adaptive: the second section is harder or easier depending on your overall performance in the first section |
| Cost | $275–$300 | $220–232 |
* Average scores refer to the average score across all GMAT and GRE takers. Check out our article if you want to know about average GMAT scores at top MBA programs.
The official stance of most MBA programs is that the GMAT and GRE are equivalent: a score on either test is an equally valid measure of your ability. Unless a program’s guidelines state that it doesn’t accept GRE scores, both are perfectly acceptable.
That said, we do recommend starting with the GMAT. Why? Because it’s a long-established test that’s trusted by—and designed exclusively for—business schools. When it comes to predicting your ability to complete an MBA, it’s simply the more accurate test—because that’s what it’s specialized in.
That means that when admissions officers see an impressive GMAT score, it might mean more to them than a similarly impressive GRE score, whatever the official stance. And it means that it’s a more useful measure for you, personally—you’re targeting an MBA program, after all.
But while the GMAT is the right choice for most people, there are a few questions you should ask yourself first.
The main reason you might consider taking the GRE for your application is because you expect to get a better score on it than you would on the GMAT—obviously, you want your application to be as strong as possible, and a higher score helps you stand out. But how would you know what score to expect?
A rule of thumb you’ll sometimes read online is that the GRE is better for people with good language skills—people argue that the Verbal content on the GRE is trickier than that on the GMAT. In our experience, it’s not really as straightforward as that. Rather than focusing on Verbal vs. Quant, ask yourself the following questions.
Maybe you’re the kind of person who could be described as a memorizer. You have a great memory or extensive knowledge of math and/or English. You’re good at “cramming,” at retaining information. These skills are rewarded on the GRE, which tends to rely considerably on the knowledge you bring to the exam (e.g., vocabulary, knowledge of math operations).
The GMAT, meanwhile, is more likely to reward critical thinkers: people who excel at considering all possible answers, thinking outside the box, and spotting “the con”—the misleading quality in most GMAT questions that allows them to trip you up. In the words of Chris Kane, Head of Test Prep at Menlo Coaching: “Three-quarters of the difficulty doesn’t come from knowledge. It comes from the con game.”
Of course, both skills are important for both exams. But the GRE places more weight on background knowledge, the GMAT on critical thinking, and if you tend to do better with one than the other, this can inform your choice of test.
The GMAT is known for its question-level adaptive difficulty. That means that your performance on each question determines what question you’ll see next. Get it right, and you’ll see a slightly harder question. Get it wrong, and you’ll see a slightly easier one.
Many students find this setup pretty stressful. For one thing, it means you have to go through the questions within a section in a set order, managing your time appropriately—there’s no saving the toughest questions for later.
As Chris says, “If you’re doing well on the GMAT, it’s a really frustrating experience, because everything is hard! And it’s made even harder by the strategy implications of a question-adaptive setup: you have to know when (and how) to guess on a problem and when you should spend extra time.”
Those who tend to struggle with exam anxiety, on the other hand, may have a better chance on the GRE. The GRE uses section-level adaptive difficulty. That means your performance on the first section determines the difficulty of the second section.
Because the difficulty isn’t being adjusted question by question, you’re free to tackle the questions within a section in any order, for example saving the tricky ones for last. This allows for greater flexibility in how you manage your time and, for those who tend to get nervous about exams, can be substantially less stressful.
People who take the GMAT for the first time without much prep tend to score poorly, even if they normally perform well on exams. This is largely because of the GMAT’s reliance on “the con,” as mentioned above. Whatever your level of background knowledge, there’s an art to doing well on the GMAT—it involves learning how to approach its tricky questions logically and efficiently.
That doesn’t mean you can’t get a great score on the GMAT. It just means you’re likely to need some real prep time, or even a GMAT prep course, before you’re ready. Those with the time to spare for prep, therefore, are best placed for the GMAT.
Conversely, those who are short on prep time—say, with a demanding job or not much time left before the application deadlines they’re targeting—may be better off taking the GRE.
As mentioned above, the GRE is somewhat more knowledge-based than the GMAT. Counterintuitively, that tends to mean it’s actually a good option for those with limited prep time, because they can rely on what they already know and concentrate whatever prep time they do have on their weak spots.
For example, someone prepping for the GRE after majoring in English likely doesn’t need much Verbal prep. They can focus their limited time on refreshing their math abilities.
Unfortunately, there’s no simple answer to the question of which test is “easier.” As explained above, different people will have different experiences depending on their strengths and weaknesses.
Some people will confidently tell you the GRE is easier; some people will just as confidently claim the opposite. From our experience helping people prep for both exams, there are a couple of things we can say:
One key difference our tutors tend to observe between applicants prepping for GMAT and those prepping for GRE is the nature of their progress.
Improvement on the GMAT is often nonlinear—that is, as you take mock exams at different stages of the process, you might see your performance fluctuate rather than improving consistently. This is because of the tricky nature of the GMAT (“the con”) and the skillset you’ll need to build up to approach it.
Improvement on the GRE, meanwhile, shows a more traditional linear progression. As you prep for the exam, working on your math and building up your vocab, you’ll typically see consistent improvement, the kind you might be used to from prepping for other exams.
If you’re unsure about your choice of exam and thinking of swapping to the other, first ask yourself how tight your deadline is. Are you targeting schools with application deadlines in the next few months? It may be better to stick with what you’re doing rather than trying to start over with a different exam.
If you have a more flexible MBA timeline, it can be good to feel out both options and figure out which you’ll perform best on. For instance, take a mock test of each to see which one will suit you better.
Don’t worry too much if you get a low score—it’s better to focus on the process of reviewing the questions afterwards. When checking your performance against the correct answers, ask yourself: do I “get” where I went wrong, or am I still struggling to understand the logic of the questions? This is a good way to assess your likely performance after some prep work.
Most people start with the GMAT (as we advise) and consider switching to the GRE if they’re struggling. The good news is that making the switch doesn’t mean throwing away all your prep work: as we’ve mentioned, there’s substantial overlap between the two tests.
The GMAT is more narrowly focused than the GRE, since it’s used only for MBAs, not graduate programs more generally. In fact, it helps to think of the content covered on the GMAT as a subset of the content covered on the GRE.
So everything you’ve covered in your GMAT prep is likely to carry over to the GRE, making the transition easier. And the critical thinking skills (“spotting the con”) that are so crucial for the GMAT will also be a big help on the GRE.
In the event that you switch from GRE to GMAT, you’ll experience the opposite dynamic. The GRE includes questions designed to test some skills that don’t feature on the GMAT (e.g., vocabulary), meaning your prep on these topics won’t help if you switch to the GMAT.
As mentioned, the GMAT also differs from the GRE in that it tests your critical thinking more than your knowledge. So the transition to the GMAT requires you to reorient your approach away from “cramming” and towards developing the right way of thinking.
If you’re unsure, an experienced GMAT tutor or GRE tutor is best placed to offer you advice on the possibility of switching exams.
Finally, let’s take a quick look at the structure and content of each exam. Note that the information below pertains to the new “GMAT Focus Edition” and “shorter GRE”—both exams were significantly revamped and shortened in 2023.
The current GMAT format is illustrated in the diagram below.
Next, here’s an up-to-date summary of the GRE.
As you can see, the exams have a lot in common. Both of them:
The obvious difference is the remaining section:
Further differences largely concern the ways in which individual questions are formulated and the specific topics covered within the two exams’ Verbal and Quant sections. To learn more, check out our deep dives on GMAT structure and GRE structure.
If you’re still unsure which test is right for you, we’re here to help. At Menlo Coaching, we offer both live courses and one-on-one tutoring for the GMAT and GRE to guide you toward your best score. A conversation with Hailey Cusimano, our Director of Tutoring, can help you decide on the next steps. Hailey will take the time to understand your study history, strengths, and goals, helping you make the smartest choice for your MBA journey. Reach out today and get personalized advice to set you on the right path.
Hailey Cusimano
Director of Tutoring
Education: BA, MBA
Hailey is a 99th-percentile performer and a self-proclaimed standardized test nerd. Drawing from her years of experience as an instructor, she knows how to assess students’ main obstacles and strategize accordingly, maximizing efficiency in short study windows. Plus, her enthusiasm is infections, and most students find studying with Hailey actually becomes—dare we say—fun.
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