Wondering what taking the GMAT going to cost you when you register? We are here to put you through the cost of taking a GMAT test. We will tell you the hidden GMAT costs you may need to pay for and teach you ways you can reduce the amount of money you need to spend.
Below is a chart showing the registration fees:
| Fee | Cost | Description |
| Registration | $250 | Includes test-taking, up to 5 free score reports and online official score |
Below is a chart showing the optional add-on fees:
| Add-on Fees | Cost | Description |
| Phone Service | $10 | U.S. phone service charge per phone call |
| Test Cancellation | $80 | Fee refund if more than seven days before test date; no refund within seven days of test |
| Rescheduling fee | $50/$250 | $50 fee more than seven days before test date; $250 within seven days of test date |
Score Report & Analysis Costs for the GMAT (Updated for 2017)
You’ll need to receive, analyze, and send out your scores to your various schools after the completion of your GRE test.
Below is a chart giving an outline of all possible post-test services and their costs.
| Service | Cost | Description |
| Viewing scores & score report online | free | Your online score report can be checked free of charge, but you still need to send official score reports to schools. |
| Score report (first five reports) | $0 | Enter up to five school score report requests at no cost. You can enter this info when you register or when you test. |
| Score report (each additional report) | $28 | After your initial four reports, you’re charged this fee per additional score report. |
| Score Cancellation | $0/$25 | $0 immediately after test; $25 within first 72 hours |
| Re-scoring of Essay | $45 | If you believe your essays were scored incorrectly, you can request a re-score |
| Reinstatement of Cancelled Scores | $50 | For those that cancel their scores and want it reinstated back. |
How Much does the GMAT Cost?
The Fee for Just Signing Up: $250
The GMAT exam fee will cost you $250 from your country; the cost is the same all over the world. Registration can be done in three ways:
- Online registration which can be done using both credit card and debit card. You can register online at the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) website at mba.com.
- Registration through the mail which requires sending fee through money order, a cashier’s check, or personal check that’s allowed in U.S. dollars and draws on a U.S. bank, alongside with the GMAT Appointment Scheduling Form. You would have to send a Your check must arrive at minimal ten days before your selected test date, so it has time to be cleared.
- Registration through phone call which will cost you additional$10for each phone call. So take your time to compel all your requests, so as to address them all in one call.
Extra GMAT Costs You Should Know
Aside from the fee for just signing up, there is some cost you may find yourself paying for even when you don’t want to. These fees are not mandatory but are compulsory if you want some extra request or due to your attitude towards the test.
There are fees due to actions you took before you take the exam (Pre- Exam Requests) and also fees you will have to pay for requests after taking the exam (Post- Exam Request). We will discuss each fee so that you can know what you are paying for.
Test Cancelling: $80/$250
Have you thought of a situation where you have to cancel your test for reasons best know to yourself, and you have thought what will happen if you have to cancel your test? Don’t stress yourself; it is possible for you to cancel your test date. But like every other test out there it goes for a price.
Once you cancel your test more than seven days in advance of your test date, you will get an $80 refund from your original $250 registration fee. But If you cancel seven or lesser days out or you completely miss your test, you won’t get any refund at all from your original $250 registration fee back
Rescheduling the GMAT: $50
Just as discussed above, rescheduling another test date also comes with a price. If you decide to choose a new test date which is more than seven days before the test, you will only be asked to pay an additional fee of $50.
If you wait to reschedule until your test is only some days away, though, then you won’t get any discount or refund. You’ll have to pay the full $250 registration fee again.
Make sure you plan well so as to avoid the extra fee for cancelling or rescheduling the GMAT. And if you will have to, take the best shot that fit you well financially, or you get no refund at all.
Post- Exam Services Request.
Viewing Scores & Score Report Online/ Score Report (First Five Reports): $0
After taking the test, you can check your score right at the end of your test at no cost. At this stage, you can decide to keep your scores or cancel them and take the test again another time. But you need to send your official score reports to schools which are also at no cost for the five schools you included during your registration. You are giving the privilege to enter up to five school score report requests at no cost. This info can be entered when you register or when you are taking the test.
Additional Score Reports: $28 Each
As mentioned above, your GMAT registration fee includes five free score reports. If you decide to send an additional report to more schools After your first five reports, you will be charged this fee per additional score report requested by you.
For instance, if you decide to add a 6th and 7th report, you will be charged additional$56 for both reports. Also, note that you are to request online for the additional reports after you taking the test. This fee is refundable on written request if you do not take the test.
Your five recipients you registered on test day will receive your official report in about 20 days after you take the GMAT. While any additional schools you requested for later after the test may have to wait for an additional five to seven days to get your scores.
Cancelling Your GMAT Scores: $25
After taking the test, you will be given 2 minutes to think through if you want to cancel your scores or not. Within this short time frame, you need to be careful of what you wish for. If you don’t take a decision after the two-minute time frame given to you, the system is being programmed to cancel your result automatically.
By cancelling your scores, this scores will be removed from your records, and it will appear like you never took the test that day.
If you decide to cancel your score immediately after you take the test, you won’t pay any additional GMAT fees.But if after 72 hours of taking the exam, you decided to cancel your scores, you will be charged extra fee of $25
Reinstatement of Cancelled Scores: $50
By cancelling your scores accidentally or because you felt didn’t do well, this scores will be removed from your records, and it will appear like you never took the test that day. You have four years and 11 months from the day of your exam to reinstate your score.
According to GMAC, all cancelled scores of exams taken from January 1, 2014, till date can only be reinstated for an additional fee of $50 (additional $10 fee will apply if reinstated by phone), and by so doing, this cancelled scores will once again appear on your records.
Re-scoring of Essay: $45
If you think your essays were scored wrongly, you can request a remark for a GMAT fee of $45, at maximum six months after you took the exam.
It will require up to four weeks for the score remark and, during this period, you can’t send any score reports. If you are lucky and your score is changed (either it goes up or down), updated score reports will be sent to schools you provided, free of charge. Have in mind that your remarked essay will be the final score after re-scoring.
Tips for Keeping GMAT Costs Down
As you can see from the breakdown above, that the cost for GMAT registration and score reports can add up if you’re pressed for time, but if you plan ahead, you can avoid many unnecessary fees, such as the fee for sending additional score reports to schools. Here are some tips that can help you reduce your cost.
Are there GMAT Fee Waivers Available?
There are no GMAT Fee Waivers provided by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) like some other tests out there. Just like the GRE, vouchers are provided by some organizations for international students, GMAC also does not provide vouchers for students.
Vouchers are made available for students by many organizations and Business schools, who want to help students through to business school. Many organizations and Business schools purchase vouchers from GMAC and give them out to qualifying candidates. As such, each school and organizations set its eligibility requirements for giving out the vouchers. These vouchers only cover the cost of GMAT registration. You can’t use the money toward any other additional fees.
The final price you’ll have to pay to take the GMAT is getting good prep materials. From experience, we understand that Students who score high tend to study the greatest number of hours.
Plan Your Test Date Carefully
When you make a plan, you don’t waste unnecessary time nor additional money. Try to use your calendar here, try to know your schedule, when you will be free from other things that can distract you, things that can make you forget your test date.
If you can afford all this and sit to make a plan for yourself before you take to fix a date to take the test, you won’t have to pay for fees like cancellation or rescheduling.
Make any Changes More than 7 Days out
If at all you need to cancel or reschedule the GMAT, try the best you can to make sure it is more than seven days before your chosen test date. If you do, you would still get a refund at least compare to losing the entire registration fee. If after your registration your plan changes and you won’t be available for the test, try to change your registration more than seven days ahead of time.
Make use of the 5 Free Score Reports
The $250 you pay out for writing the GMAT which includes sending your score to 5 schools. The usual attitude of students is to finish the GMAT exam before starting to research for school. To you, it might seem like it is too early to choose schools before your GMAT, particularly if you take the test early in the year.
But bearing in mind the hefty cost of applying to each school, it gives a lot of financial advantage to decide on the schools you intend to apply to (at least 5 of them) before writing the GMAT. By so doing you save some cost of sending additional score reports.
Know Your Target Scores
Before going in for the test have a targeted score in mind, try to conduct research on scores needed to get admission into your dream schools. By this, you will know which score to keep and which scores you will cancel.
Once you see a particular score, you can conclude with the little time frame given to you if to cancel or accept the score.
Summary: Total GMAT Test Cost and how to keep it Down
This test can be an expensive test to take for many individuals, and there are additional costs associated with it as well if care is not taken. The GMAT exam fee COST $250. But if this is a hefty fee for you, why not contact scholarship organizations or business schools to find out if you can get a voucher that will cover all or part of your GMAT registration cost.
Additional costs are required if you decide to cancel or reschedule another date or if you desire to receive extra scoring services after you complete the exam.
Only register for the test when you’re sure of the date that best fit you, do your homework about schools you want to send your five free score reports in other to reduce cost. Also, you can make use of the free prep materials provided for you. Finally, the procedure of research, registering, and studying should start several months before your first test date as this will help achieve a lot.
Let’s put everything into practice. Try this GMAT practice question:
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