Reasons Why Your PTE Speaking Score is Low… and How to Fix it!
FEBRUARY 2026
You might be wondering why your PTE Speaking score is lower than expected — and you can’t quite figure out why.
You spoke clearly, followed the format, and finished on time. So what went wrong?
In this guide, we’ll walk you through a step-by-step checklist to help you diagnose the real issue — from technical setup to fluency, pronunciation, and content.
✅ Step 1: Is It Your Hardware?
Before analysing how you speak, check how your voice is being captured. Poor audio quality can affect your score no matter how strong your English is.
If the system cannot hear you clearly, fluency and pronunciation won’t matter.
Check the following:
- Is your microphone working clearly (no static or distortion)?
- Is the mic placed slightly to the side of your mouth, not directly in front?
- Is it close enough to capture your voice clearly?
- Are your headphones stable and not moving while you speak?
👉 Always rule out hardware issues first. Otherwise, you may be fixing the wrong problem.
✅ Step 2: Is It Your Fluency?
In PTE, fluency does not mean speaking fast or sounding casual.
Fluency means smooth, continuous speech without unnecessary stops, restarts, or long pauses.
Even strong speakers lose points when they hesitate too much or keep correcting themselves.
To get a good score for Fluency:
- Start your sentence only when you’re ready to finish it
- Avoid stopping to fix small grammar mistakes
- Keep your speech flowing, even if it’s not perfect
- Practise speaking in complete, uninterrupted sentences
👉 In PTE, a slightly imperfect sentence spoken smoothly scores better than a perfect sentence spoken with hesitation.
✅ Step 3: Is It Your Pronunciation?
Pronunciation in PTE does not mean copying an American, British, or Australian accent.
What matters is whether your speech is clear, natural, and easy to understand.
Pronunciation is about:
- Clear vowel and consonant sounds
- Proper word stress
- Natural intonation
To get a good score for Pronunciation:
- Slow down slightly to improve clarity
- Open your mouth more than you think you need to
- Make word endings clear (especially -s, -ed, -ing)
- Stress important words in each sentence
👉 You don’t need a native accent. You need clear, consistent speech.
✅ Step 4: Is It Your Content?
Content plays a much bigger role in PTE Speaking than many candidates realise — especially with the introduction of human assessors. This means responses are now checked not just for fluency, but for meaning, relevance, and sense.
You can no longer rely on throwing in random words or memorised lines. What you say must match what the task actually asks you to do.
To get a good score for Content…
- Address the task exactly as asked
PTE has 7 different Speaking task types, and each one has its own purpose and requirements. Be familiar with what each task requires. - Use relevant keywords to form coherent sentences
Select keywords from the prompt or audio and use them naturally to build clear ideas. Avoid templated answers that sound memorised or unrelated to the task. - Meet the target length for each task
Each Speaking task has a different ideal response length. Speaking too little or rambling too long can weaken content scores.
Clear, relevant, and task-appropriate responses are now essential. Content must make sense — and it must belong to the task.
What’s Next? Get Clear on What’s Holding Your Score Back
Diagnosing your Speaking score is only effective if your practice is accurately scored. Otherwise, it’s hard to know whether the issue is your fluency, pronunciation, content — or something else entirely.
Benchmark’s PTE mock tests use accurate scoring to show exactly which area needs work — fluency, pronunciation, or content. No guessing. No wasted effort.
If you want clear answers and targeted progress, practise with tools that show you why your score looks the way it does — not just the final number.
