Free Online HSK 2 Practice Tests (100% Authentic Questions from Past Exams)

FAQs about HSK Level 2 Prep and Practice

If you’re not yet familiar with the HSK 2 test structure, we’d suggest you read this section before taking the practice test to learn how the HSK 2 test is structured and scored, among other things.

Who Should Take the HSK 2 Practice Test(s)?

Taking practice tests is one of the best ways to get ready for the HSK 2 test. We hence developed these HSK 2 practice tests to help learners to build up the Chinese listening and reading skills needed for test day. But anyone who wants to measure their improvements on the Mandarin learning journey is welcome to take these free practice tests for self-assessment.

Comprising all real past questions, you can be sure that these HSK 2 practice tests are similar to the real exam. Feel free to use these materials as you prepare for test day or plan for your future studies!

What Do I Need to Know to Pass HSK 2?

The HSK 2 test is designed for basic Chinese learners. The test paper involves both Pinyin and Chinese characters for all questions, and there is no writing section, meaning you don’t actually need any knowledge of characters to pass the test.

You do, however, need to be able to understand simple conversations on daily topics constructed with 300 required words, and some basic Chinese grammar to pass HSK Level 2.

You’ll find the below resources useful as you prepare for HSK 2:

• HSK 2 Characters (300 optional characters)
• HSK 2 Vocabulary List (300 words and phrases)
• Basic Chinese Grammar (everything beginners need to know)

What Is the Overall HSK 2 Test Structure?

Technically, there are two different forms of the HSK available: internet-based HSK (HSK iBT) and paper-based HSK (HSK PBT). The HSK 2 iBT is a 52-minute online test, whereas the HSK 2 PBT is a 55-minute paper-and-pencil test. The test splits into two sections: Listening and Reading. The overall test time of the paper-based HSK 2 is slightly longer for you to transfer your answers from the test paper to the answer sheet in the Listening section.  

Though each version of the HSK 2 test is administered in a different format, both tests have the same questions and timing for each section and are graded in the same way. You’ll always have 25 minutes on Listening, and 22 minutes on Reading.

The overall HSK 2 test structure is detailed in the table below. You can see the order of the sections, how long each section is, and how many questions each section contains.

Section	HSK 2 iBT	HSK 2 PBT	Number of Questions
Added Time	/	5 min (fill in personal info)	/
Listening	25 mins	25 min	35
Added Time	5 mins (break)	3 mins (fill out answer sheet)	/
Reading	22 mins	22 mins	25
Total	52 mins	55 mins	60

Note: you’ll have a 5-minute break in the middle of the internet-based HSK 2, between the Listening and Reading sections. This break is mandatory, meaning you must take it. You may take other breaks during the test, but you will not be able to pause the timer for these.

In order to keep you on track with real section time limits, time yourself when you take the HSK 2 practice test.

What’s on the HSK 2 Test Exactly?

The HSK 2 tests your basic Chinese listening and reading skills. In total, it will have 60 questions. Below, we take a closer look at the type of questions and content that you’ll encounter in each section to better understand the HSK 2 test pattern.

1. Listening Section

The first section on the HSK 2 test is Listening. You’ll hear 35 short audio clips, each coming with 1 question. The audio clips will be played twice. This section takes 25 minutes to complete.

There are 3 question types on the HSK 2 Listening: true or false, choosing the matching picture, and multiple choice. We explain each of them below.

• True or False
  
  You’ll hear 10 audio clips, each containing one sentence. After each audio clip, you need to determine whether the picture presented on the screen or test paper is consistent with what you hear.

• Choose the Matching Picture
  
  You’ll listen to 10 short dialogues (2 sentences each). Several pictures will be shown on the screen/test paper, and you need to select the picture that best matches the content of each dialogue.

• Multiple Choice
  
  You’ll listen to 10 short dialogues (2 sentences each), and 5 longer dialogues (4-5 sentences each). At the end of each dialogue, a third person will raise a question (the question won’t appear on the screen/test paper), and you need to select the best answer from the three available answer options presented on the screen/test paper.

2. Reading Section

The second section you’ll face on the HSK 2 test is Reading. This section lasts 22 minutes and contains 25 questions in total. There are 4 question types: choose the matching picture, fill in the blanks, true or false, pair up sentences. We explain how they work below.

• Choose the Matching Picture
  
  You’ll see 5 pictures and 5 sentences in jumbled order. You need to pinpoint each picture to the corresponding sentence that correctly describes it.

• Fill in the Blanks
  
  There are 5 test items. Each item consists of one or two sentences with one word missing. You’ll be given a list of word options and need to select the best word to fill in the blank.

• True or False
  
  There are 5 test items. Each item contains two sentences. You need to determine whether the two sentences are consistent with each other.

• Pair up Sentences
  
  You’ll encounter 10 items containing 20 sentences in jumbled order. You need to find the correlation among the sentences and pair them up.

How Is the HSK 2 Score Calculated?

Each of the two sections of the HSK 2 test is scored out of 100 points and then combined for a score out of 200.

You’ll find your overall scores along with the section scores in your score report on the HSK website about 2 weeks after you take the official test (or one month if you take the paper-based test). Depending on the overall score, you either pass or fail the test.

The maximum score you can get on the HSK 2 is 200. To pass the HSK 2, you need to reach the overall passing score: 120.

How Much Does It Cost to Take the Official HSK 2 Test?

The HSK 2 test fees will depend on the location of your testing center. That said, you can generally expect to pay around 36 USD for taking the test. (The price for taking the HSK 2 in China is 250 CNY.) Make time to take our HSK 2 sample practice tests to be sure you’re ready for the official exam!