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IB Grade Boundaries 2026: What They Are and Where to Find Them

IB Grade Boundaries 2026: What They Are and Where to Find Them

11 min readOliver Kidd (Co-founder)3 Nov 2026

IB grade boundaries are the cut-off marks that turn your total raw marks in a subject into a grade from 1 to 7. They are set for each subject, level and exam session once marking is finished, so nobody can give you an exact 2026 boundary in advance. What you can do is learn how boundaries work, know where the official numbers appear, and revise against a realistic target. We explain all three below.

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TL;DR

  • A boundary is the lowest total mark that earns a given grade (1 to 7) in one subject, at one level, in one session.
  • The IB sets boundaries after marking, so they can shift from session to session, and from one subject to another.
  • May 2026 results were released on 6 July 2026. November session results go to schools on 16 December, with the exact timing set by the IB each year.
  • Revise for a safe margin above the grade you want, not for last year’s boundary.
  • Mark schemes, topic tests and mock exams are the most practical way to see where you stand.

Table of Contents

What an IB grade boundary actually is

Every paper you sit is marked against a mark scheme. Those marks are added up across your components (papers and the internal assessment), and the total is converted into a grade. The boundary is the line between one grade and the next.

The IB explains that marks record credit against a mark scheme, while grades judge your work against a defined standard, taking the difficulty of the tasks into account. That difference matters. A mark of 60 is not automatically a 5 or a 6. It depends on how demanding the papers were that session.

If you are used to the US system, it helps to think of a grade as a standard rather than a percentage. How GPA differs between school and college is a good example of how the same letter or number can mean different things depending on the system measuring it.

The IB also sets out how the boundaries are decided. According to the IB’s assessment page, senior examiners review candidate work against grade descriptors, and statistical indicators and teachers’ expectations are considered too. Course results run from 1 (lowest) to 7 (highest), and the full Diploma needs at least 24 points, subject to the programme’s other conditions.

What an IB grade boundary actually is

Why boundaries move

The IB can lower a boundary when a paper was very hard and raise it when a paper was very easy. This is the IB’s way of keeping the standard the same from year to year. The IB’s guide to assessment also says that overall subject boundaries are derived from component boundaries, so a tough Paper 2 can shift the picture without Paper 1 changing at all.

In practice this means three things:

  1. Boundaries differ by subject. A 7 in Biology HL does not need the same percentage as a 7 in Physics SL.
  2. Boundaries differ by level. HL and SL are graded separately.
  3. Boundaries differ by session and, for some subjects, by time zone paper.

This is why last year’s table is a guide to the shape of the exam, not a promise. Treat any list of “2026 boundaries” with care unless it is clearly tied to the subject, level, session and time zone you sat.

Where to find the 2026 boundaries

The IB publishes a grade boundaries document for each session, covering overall and component boundaries for courses with more than 100 candidates. Schools with registered students can see fuller data through IBIS and IB Insights, including smaller courses. That is why your coordinator is often the best first contact.

The IB Assessment FAQ adds that candidates can see their subject grades, total points and EE/TOK bonus points. At the coordinator’s discretion, detailed results can also show a scaled total mark, the lower and upper boundaries and the marks needed to move up a grade. If you want to know how close you were, ask your school whether it releases that view.

A note on timing. The IB’s June 2026 notice confirmed that more than 209,000 May-session students worldwide received results on 6 July 2026. The FAQ says November-session results are issued to schools on 16 December from 21:00 GMT, staggered by time zone. The IB examiner calendar shows boundaries for May being set by senior examiners in June, and for November in late November or early December, close to release. Check the IB’s assessment pages for the current year’s schedule.

Where to find the 2026 boundaries

Do not mix up subject grades and the Diploma total

A common worry is a score like 38 out of 45. Remember the Diploma total is made of six subject grades (up to 42) plus up to 3 bonus points from Theory of Knowledge and the Extended Essay. Those two components are graded A to E and then combined into the bonus points, which is separate from the 1 to 7 subject grade. The 24-point minimum belongs to the Diploma as a whole, and it is not a subject boundary.

So when you ask whether a score is good, ask two questions. First, which subject grades make up the total? Second, what do your target universities ask for in the specific subjects? Our guide to what an IB score means walks through this.

How to use boundaries in your revision

Boundaries are most useful before the exam, as a way to set a margin. Here is a method that works well for Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Maths students.

Set a target with a buffer

Pick the grade you need. Then aim for a few marks above where you think a typical boundary sits, because you cannot know the session’s boundary until later. A buffer protects you if the paper turns out harder or easier than you expected.

Practise against real mark schemes

Marks are won by matching the wording of the mark scheme. Our guides to how to use IB mark schemes and the IB science mark scheme show how examiners award marks, and why a correct idea in the wrong form can still lose credit.

Do not forget the internal assessment

The IA counts towards your total, so every mark you secure there lowers the pressure on the papers. See our IB internal assessment overview, the Biology data analysis checks and the Maths IA criteria checklist.

Predict before results day

Track your scores across topic tests and mocks, convert them to a likely grade band and look at the trend, not a single paper. Our article on how to predict your IB score shows how. For the bigger picture of how science papers are graded, read our IB science grading guide for students and parents.

Where Tiber Tutor fits

Students often ask what an IB revision platform costs and what they get for it. Our two plans are published on the pricing page: the All-Access Plan is $19 per month, and the Per-Subject Plan is $9 per month. Memberships can also be taken for 6 months, a year or the full 24-month course, and every plan starts with a free 7-day trial.

We built Tiber Tutor around the way boundaries really work. Exam-style questions, examiner mark schemes, animated videos, notes, flashcards, cram sheets, topic tests and mock exams all connect to each other. Your results feed progress tracking and syllabus monitoring, so you can see which topics sit below your target grade and what to practise next.

The content is written by actual IB examiners, which is why we believe it gives the best value for money for IB Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Maths students.

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Start with a subject you want to improve: IB Biology resources, IB Chemistry resources or the IB Maths AI mock exams. Students can begin on the student page, and parents can see how it works on the parent page.

Perspective

Every year, we hear the same worry: “What will the boundary be?” It is an understandable question, but it points your energy at something you cannot control.

What you can control is how well your answers match the mark scheme, and how clearly you know your weak topics. That is why we built Tiber Tutor as one connected system. Questions, mark schemes written by IB examiners, tests, mocks and analytics all talk to each other, so each practice session tells you something real.

We believe no other IB STEM platform joins these pieces so tightly, or shows your progress and performance with the same level of detail. Confidence comes from seeing your own evidence, and that is what we want every student to have.

Oliver

FAQ

Are the 2026 IB grade boundaries published?

Yes, the IB issues a grade boundaries document after each session. Overall and component boundaries are given for courses with more than 100 candidates, and schools can see fuller data through IBIS and IB Insights. Ask your coordinator for anything not in the public document.

What grade boundary do I need for a 7 in IB Biology, Chemistry or Physics?

There is no fixed number. The boundary depends on the subject, level, session and sometimes the time zone, and it is set after marking. Aim to be comfortably above the level you think a 7 needs, and practise with full mock exams to find out how stable your scores are.

When are IB results released?

For the May session, results were released to candidates on 6 July in 2026. For the November session, results go to schools on 16 December from 21:00 GMT, staggered by time zone. Always check the IB’s assessment FAQ for the current year.

Is 38 out of 42 a good IB score?

Six subjects at 7 give 42, so 38 points from subject grades is a strong result, and bonus points from TOK and the Extended Essay can add up to 3 more. What matters most is whether your subject grades meet the requirements of the universities you are applying to.

How much does Tiber Tutor cost?

The All-Access Plan is $19 per month and the Per-Subject Plan is $9 per month, with a free 7-day trial first. You can see the current options, including longer memberships, on our pricing page.

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