The online exam and your time
The exam at a glance
The Grade 1 exam is taken online, on a computer with a webcam, at home or anywhere suitable. Here is how it is marked, and how booking works:
- 1½ hours
- at most, online
- 75
- marks
- 7
- sections
- 50
- pass (marks)
- 60
- merit (marks)
- 65
- distinction (marks)
- 15Section 1: Rhythm
- 15Section 2: Pitch
- 15Section 3: Keys and scales
- 10Section 4: Intervals
- 10Section 5: Tonic triads
- 5Section 6: Terms and signs
- 5Section 7: Music in context
An online exam on a computer with a webcam, taken at home or at any suitable place. It is filmed and checked afterwards, then marked automatically. You may use your own blank paper (plain or manuscript) for working, shown to the camera at the start and destroyed at the end.
Booking: any time
Online exams are available on demand: you can book at any time, and then have 28 days to take the exam, on any date and at any time in that period. The result is available 28 days after the exam, after quality checks. The mark form shows the marks for each section. The fee for Grade 1 is 43.00 GBP (UK fees for 2026. A digital certificate is included; a paper certificate costs 3.50 GBP.) ABRSM exam dates and fees.
Checked against the ABRSM syllabus and exam pages, 9 October 2026. Source: ABRSM Music Theory qualification specification.
Plan your time
You have up to an hour and a half for 75 marks: plenty, if you work steadily.
- Keep about 10 minutes at the end to check every answer.
- The first three sections (rhythm, pitch, keys and scales) carry the most marks, 15 each: give each about 15 minutes.
- Intervals and tonic triads have 10 marks each: about 10 minutes each.
- Terms and signs, and music in context, have 5 marks each: about 5 minutes each.
If a question is taking too long, move on and come back to it.
Careful answers
The exam is marked automatically, so each answer is exactly right or not.
- Read every word of the question.
- Check the clef and the key signature before naming any note, and look back along the bar for accidentals.
- Count: letter names for intervals, beats for bars.
Tip: when you check, use a different method from the first time. If you counted an interval up from the lower note, check it by counting down from the upper one.
This question is in Brainlag Plus