![](\"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/gmat\/files\/2019\/10\/GMATDifficulty.png\")
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\nThe GMAT is known to be significantly more challenging than the SAT and ACT, the high school exams. However, it is widely considered less challenging than the LSAT or MCAT, the law school and medical school exams, respectively. Of course, it\u2019s always good to remember that test difficulty is a subjective matter. Individual opinions vary regarding which test is, in fact, more or less challenging. This is especially true when comparing the GMAT to the GRE: Students who excel at math and struggle with verbal, tend to find the GMAT easier to navigate. Conversely, students who are verbal dynamos but flounder a bit with quantitative subject matter, tend to find the GRE friendlier than the math-heavy GMAT.\n<\/p>\n
\nBottom line: Answering the question, How Hard is the GMAT, depends on a host of individual factors such as your background in math and reading, test-taking skills, and the schools you are targeting.\n<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n \nThe GMAT, including the optional 10-minute break, is 2 hours and 15 minutes long, significantly shorter than the previous GMAT version. It\u2019s not quite as short as the GRE, which clocks in at just under 2 hours. Yet, it still requires less time than the LSAT, which takes almost 3 hours to complete and is much<\/em> shorter than the MCAT, which lasts 7 hours! While this shorter GMAT reduces test fatigue, allowing for more focused performance throughout the exam, it\u2019s still important to practice your pacing<\/a> and build up your stamina.\n<\/p>\n \nThe GMAT has a total of 64 questions spread across three sections:\n<\/p>\n \nIf we compare the number of questions you have to answer on the GMAT to other exams, the only test with fewer questions is the GRE, and there\u2019s only a difference of 10 questions between the two. The other tests, both in the high school and graduate categories, have significantly more questions to slog through.\n<\/p>\n \nThe GMAT provides a different pacing challenge compared to other exams. Here\u2019s a breakdown of the average time per question between the GMAT and GRE:\n<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \nAs you can see, the average time allotted per question for both verbal and quant questions on the GRE is noticeably less than the allotted time for GMAT questions. Yes, the total number of questions plays a part; however, that isn\u2019t the whole picture. Rather, the average time allotted per question tells us more. In particular, it gives us an idea of how difficult the test makers think their own questions are. Because GMAT gives you nearly 2 (or more!) minutes per question, we can deduce that the folks who write GMAT questions know that many of their questions are highly complex, requiring advanced analytical thinking and higher-level computational skills.\n<\/p>\nComparing the GMAT’s Structure to Other Graduate Exams<\/h2>\n
Length<\/h3>\n
Number of Questions<\/h3>\n
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Time Per Question<\/h3>\n
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\n \nExam<\/th>\n Total Questions<\/th>\n Total Time<\/th>\n Time Per Verbal Question<\/th>\n Time per Quant Question<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n \n GMAT<\/td>\n 64<\/td>\n 2.25 hours<\/td>\n 1.96 minutes<\/td>\n 2.15 minutes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n GRE<\/td>\n 54<\/td>\n 2 hours<\/td>\n 1.50 minutes<\/td>\n 1.75 minutes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n