A-Level Chemistry past papers: AQA, OCR and Edexcel papers, 2027 dates and a revision plan

Key takeaways

• →Get A-Level Chemistry past papers from your own board: AQA (7405), OCR Chemistry A (H432) or B Salters (H433), or Pearson Edexcel (9CH0). The newest papers are held back for teachers, so summer 2026 is not public yet.
• →Every course has three written papers, but the marks differ. AQA is 105, 105 and 90. OCR A is 100, 100 and 70. OCR B is 110, 100 and 60. Pearson Edexcel is 90, 90 and 120.
• →In summer 2027 all four courses sit Paper 1 on Friday 28 May, Paper 2 on Thursday 10 June and Paper 3 on Thursday 17 June, in the morning. Stay free until Wednesday 23 June.
• →The practical endorsement is marked by your teacher, not in the exam, and is reported separately from the A-Level grade. Practise with your board’s data booklet from your first paper.

1. A-Level Chemistry past papers: get the real ones from your exam board

The best A-Level Chemistry past papers are the ones your exam board publishes, with mark schemes so you can mark your own work. Check that the code on the cover matches your course: 7405, H432, H433 or 9CH0.

AQA: use its finder. You choose a subject and a qualification, and it lists the papers and mark schemes.^[10]

OCR: use its past papers finder, which covers past papers, mark schemes, examiner reports and practice materials.^[23]

Pearson Edexcel: use its Past papers page. You pick a qualification, a subject and an exam series, and it lists question papers, mark schemes and examiner reports.^[27]

The newest papers are held back for teachers. AQA lists the summer 2026 papers, mark schemes and reports for its public website on 9 July 2027. Most papers then stay online for three years.^[9]

OCR puts all the materials from a June series on its public website in early August of the following year.^[22]

Pearson’s publication policy (version 2.3, 21 August 2026) says recent papers are normally restricted for 12 months, then open to everyone.^[29]

Pearson’s student page says papers are released once they are more than nine months old. The two pages differ, so ask your teacher which applies.^[28]

So the summer 2026 papers are with teachers for now. Ask your school, and start with earlier years.

2. The A-Level Chemistry papers at a glance

Each course has three written papers. The table shows their lengths, marks and share of the A-Level.

The practical endorsement is a separate pass. Your teacher assesses your practical skills in lessons, and it is reported on its own. AQA says A-Level grades are based only on marks from written exams, and students must complete at least 12 practical activities.^[3]

OCR Chemistry A also says learners need a minimum of 12 assessed practicals, reported separately.^[11]

Pearson’s specification says students who meet the standard across all the practical criteria get a pass, and that it does not count towards the overall grade.^[24]

3. AQA A-Level Chemistry past papers (7405)

Paper 1 is Inorganic and Physical Chemistry. It is a 2-hour written exam of 105 marks, worth 35% of the A-Level, with short and long answer questions.^[2]

Its physical chemistry covers atomic structure, amount of substance, bonding, energetics, equilibria and Kc, redox, thermodynamics, Kp, electrode potentials, and acids and bases.^[4]

Its inorganic chemistry is all of section 3.2: periodicity, Group 2, the halogens, Period 3 elements and their oxides, transition metals, and reactions of ions in aqueous solution.^[5]

Paper 2 is Organic and Physical Chemistry: 2 hours, 105 marks, 35%. Its physical topics are amount of substance, bonding, energetics, kinetics, equilibria and Kc, and rate equations.^[2]

Its organic chemistry is all of section 3.3, from alkanes and halogenoalkanes to polymers, NMR and chromatography.^[6]

Paper 3 can test any content and any practical skills. It is 2 hours and 90 marks, worth 30%. Forty marks are on practical techniques and data analysis, 20 marks test across the specification, and 30 marks are multiple choice.^[2]

At least 15% of the whole A-Level assesses practical work, so practical questions are not only on Paper 3.^[1]

The June 2023 Paper 1 cover lists the Periodic Table/Data Booklet (an insert), a ruler and a scientific calculator. It has no multiple choice.^[7]

4. OCR Chemistry A and B Salters past papers (H432, H433)

OCR has two A-Level Chemistry courses, so check which one your school teaches. The papers are different.

Chemistry A (H432) Paper 1 is Periodic table, elements and physical chemistry: 2 hours 15 minutes, 100 marks, 37%. It assesses modules 1, 2, 3 and 5. Paper 2 is Synthesis and analytical techniques: 2 hours 15 minutes, 100 marks, 37%, modules 1, 2, 4 and 6.^[12]

Paper 3 is Unified chemistry: 1 hour 30 minutes, 70 marks, 26%. It can ask about all six modules, so it draws topics together.^[12]

Module 3 is Periodic table and energy, 4 is Core organic chemistry, 5 is Physical chemistry and transition elements, and 6 is Organic chemistry and analysis.^[11]

In the June 2023 H432/01 paper, Section A is 15 multiple-choice questions for 15 marks, and Section B is 85 marks. Two questions are worth 6 marks and are marked with an asterisk, which means the quality of your extended answer is assessed.^[14]

H432/02 has the same layout and also has two 6-mark questions.^[15]

H432/03 has no multiple choice and has two 6-mark questions among its 70 marks.^[16]

All three covers ask for the OCR Data Sheet for Chemistry A and allow a scientific or graphical calculator.^[14]

Chemistry B Salters (H433) has Paper 1 Fundamentals of chemistry (2 hours 15 minutes, 110 marks, 41%), Paper 2 Scientific literacy in chemistry (2 hours 15 minutes, 100 marks, 37%) and Paper 3 Practical skills in chemistry (1 hour 30 minutes, 60 marks, 22%).^[13]

OCR says chemical literacy is assessed in all three papers. That means reading a passage, pulling out information and using it in a calculation or an argument.^[13]

The June 2019 H433/01 paper has 30 multiple-choice questions for 30 marks in Section A, and 80 marks in Section B.^[17]

For H433/02 you get an advance notice article before the exam. The sample paper says you may discuss it with teachers but cannot take your copy in. The article question is worth 24 of the 100 marks.^[18]

OCR lists an advance notice article for June 2026 on its H433 page. Ask your teacher about your own year’s.^[20]

H433/03 is a practical-skills paper. The sample has 60 marks and an insert, and covers techniques, calculations from data and evaluating methods.^[19]

5. Pearson Edexcel A-Level Chemistry past papers (9CH0)

Paper 1 is Advanced Inorganic and Physical Chemistry: 1 hour 45 minutes, 90 marks, 30%. It covers topics 1 to 5, 8, and 10 to 15.^[24]

That is atomic structure, bonding, redox, inorganic chemistry, amounts of substance, energetics, equilibria, acid-base equilibria and transition metals.^[24]

Paper 2 is Advanced Organic and Physical Chemistry: 1 hour 45 minutes, 90 marks, 30%. It covers topics 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, and 16 to 19. They include kinetics, organic chemistry I to III and modern analytical techniques I and II.^[24]

Topics 2, 3 and 5 (bonding, redox I, and amounts of substance) are on both papers.^[24]

Paper 3 is General and Practical Principles in Chemistry: 2 hours 30 minutes, 120 marks, 40%. It can ask about any topic, bring topics together, or test experimental methods.^[24]

Papers 1 and 2 can include multiple-choice, short open, open-response, calculation and extended-writing questions. Paper 3 lists no multiple choice.^[24]

The June 2024 Paper 1 cover asks for a scientific calculator, the Data Booklet and a ruler. One question is marked with an asterisk, and its marks depend on how logically you structure your answer.^[25]

6. A-Level Chemistry dates: summer 2027

AQA’s timetable (version 1.2) lists 7405 Papers 1, 2 and 3 on these dates, each a 2-hour morning paper.^[8]

OCR’s final timetable has H432 and H433 on the same dates, in the morning.^[21]

Pearson’s final timetable has 9CH0 on the same dates, also in the morning.^[26]

Wednesday 23 June 2027 is a contingency day. Students must stay available until then in case papers have to be moved.^[30]

AQA also lists 15 May 2027 as the date for schools to submit the practical endorsement. That is your teacher’s job.^[8]

Dates can move: We checked the boards’ timetables on 1 November 2026. Use your school’s personal timetable nearer the time.

7. How to use past papers for A-Level Chemistry

Start with topics, not whole papers. When you finish a topic in class, do exam questions on it and mark them with the official mark scheme.

Use your board’s data booklet from your first paper. The covers we checked ask for a data booklet or data sheet. Our A-Level Chemistry data sheet guide shows what each board gives you.

Do full papers later, to time. Sit the whole length, with the calculator and booklet you will have on the day.

Practise the question types your board sets. AQA Paper 3 has 30 multiple-choice marks, and OCR A Papers 1 and 2 start with 15 multiple-choice questions. OCR and Pearson also mark some extended answers for how well they are structured.

Pearson’s student page says past papers cannot predict which questions will come up, but they help you check what you have learnt and find gaps. It also says questions from older specifications can help if the topic is on the current course.^[28]

Use papers from 2017 onwards: Pearson says its course was first certificated in 2017.^[24]

Mark strictly, write down why you lost each mark, and redo those questions a few days later.

A past paper only helps if you mark it and learn from it.

Think in marks, not minutes: AQA Paper 1 is 120 minutes for 105 marks, about 1.1 minutes a mark. OCR H432/01 is 135 minutes for 100 marks, about 1.35. Pearson Paper 1 is 105 minutes for 90 marks, about 1.2. If a 4-mark question has taken far longer than that, move on and come back to it.

8. A revision plan to Paper 1

Work back from Paper 1 on Friday 28 May 2027. This plan is our suggestion, not a board rule. In Year 12 the same steps work, but stay on topic questions for longer. Ask your teacher which board and course you are sitting before you pick papers.

9. How Brainhub can help

A tutor can spot which topics keep costing you marks and set practice at the right level. Brainhub teaches one-to-one, live online across the UK. Online A-Level lessons start from £40 an hour, and a qualified teacher with a PGCE costs £10 an hour more. Every family starts with a free 45-minute assessment.

Students who join us by Year 12 most often finish with A*/A (Brainhub student records, 2021–2026). That figure is our own data, not independent research, and every student is different.

1. 1. How long are the A-Level Chemistry papers?

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2. 2. Why can you not find the summer 2026 papers on the boards’ websites yet?

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3. 3. When are the summer 2027 A-Level Chemistry papers?

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Your next steps

• Check the paper code (7405, H432, H433 or 9CH0), then open your own board’s past papers page.
• Put 28 May, 10 June and 17 June 2027 in the calendar and work back from them.
• Book a free 45-minute assessment to see which topics to practise first.

Subject guides to go with this

Want one-to-one help? See how our online lessons work.