The free HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample paper is in CTI’s “Sample Questions” pack on chinesetest.cn (paper, recording and answer key; no transcript). It has 40 questions — 20 listening, 20 reading — and takes about 40 minutes. As of 13 November 2026, CTI’s HSK 3.0 notices, syllabus and sample paper do not state a Level 1 pass mark.
Start with the Level 1 sample paper that CTI and CLEC have published, then add timed mocks that follow the same format.
On the Chinese Tests Service Website, open the HSK3.0 menu and choose Sample Questions (样题包下载). CTI hosts the pack at:
https://hsk-sample-1409982902.cos.ap-beijing.myqcloud.com/HSK3.0.zip
Headers checked on 13 November 2026 (Asia/Shanghai): 395,322,335 bytes (about 377 MiB / 395 MB) and Last-Modified 09 September 2026, 15:25 (Asia/Shanghai). The pack covers every written level, not just Level 1, so it is a large download.
The Level 1 set is a paper, a listening recording and an answer key, with no listening transcript. The paper is titled 《HSK（一级）样卷》, compiled by CLEC in Beijing. Its cover states:
一、HSK（一级）分两部分，共 40 题：
1．听力（20 题，约 12 分钟）
2．阅读（20 题，20 分钟）
二、听力结束后，有 3 分钟填写答题卡。
三、全部考试约 40 分钟（含考生填写个人信息时间 5 分钟）。
Pinyin is printed over the Chinese text. Yuloy does not rehost the pack. Download it from CTI, or from a test centre that hosts the same files.
If you only want Level 1, some test centres host the files separately. Link out; do not rehost. Prefer CTI’s pack if a centre’s files look unclear.
CTI also offers a free online trial of the computer-based HSK 3.0:
?p=9999903)These trial pages load. We did not complete the trial flow, so we cannot confirm whether it asks for a name or email. If it does, that is CTI’s process, not ours.
Older HSK 1 papers are still useful for short listening and reading drills, but not for timing or task types.
| Source | Format | Audio | Answers | Transcript | Cost / sign-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CTI “Sample Questions” pack (HSK3.0.zip) | HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample | Yes (in the pack) | Yes (answer key) | No | Free download; pack is very large (~395 MB) |
| Barcelona / Groningen test-centre pages | HSK 3.0 files they host (check the label) | Yes, where a listening file is listed | Yes, where an answer file is listed | Usually no | Free; link out, don’t rehost |
| CTI online trial | Computer-based HSK 3.0 trial | On screen | Trial only | n/a | Free; may collect details (not verified here) |
| Older HSK 2.0 sample papers | HSK 2.0 (150-word Level 1) | Often yes | Often yes | Sometimes | Free on various CTI/centre pages; use for drills only |
| Yuloy HSK 1 Practice Tests | Original papers aligned to the HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample format | Yes (TTS, timed) | Yes | Yes (Chinese, pinyin, English) plus short English explanations | $9 on Payhip; personal-use download |
These figures come from the HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample paper (CLEC; pack last modified 9 September 2026). They are the numbers we follow on this site and in our practice papers.
| Section | Questions | Time (from the sample paper) |
|---|---|---|
| Listening, Parts 1–4 | 20 (5 + 5 + 5 + 5) | About 12 minutes |
| Transfer listening answers onto the answer sheet (paper test) | — | 3 minutes |
| Reading, Parts 1–4 | 20 (5 + 5 + 5 + 5) | 20 minutes |
| Personal details | — | About 5 minutes (included in the overall total) |
| Total | 40 | About 40 minutes (including the 5 minutes for personal details) |
Do not mix this table with CTI’s general HSK (Level 1) introduction. On 13 November 2026 that page still listed listening as “about 15” minutes, reading as 17 minutes, a total of “about 35” plus 5 minutes for personal details, and a start time of 13:30. Those times match older HSK 2.0 Level 1 descriptions, not the 2026 sample paper.
A trial notice for 20 September 2026 listed Level 1 as about 40 minutes, starting at 14:00 local time. CTI’s launch notice for 13 December 2026 gives the date and registration windows, but not a start time in the text we checked. Confirm the start time with your test centre.
Each listening part begins with a worked example. Every item is played twice.
The Level 1 sample paper prints pinyin over the Chinese text. It tests listening and reading only — no writing. In the same sample pack, speaking papers begin at Level 3. Level 1 has no speaking paper there.
The 3-minute transfer is time to fill the answer sheet after listening — a paper-based step. A computer-based sitting is answered on screen, so do not assume the same transfer applies. Use CTI’s online trial to see the computer interface, and follow your test centre on the day.
These five items come from Test 1 of Yuloy’s HSK 1 practice pack (Listening Parts 2 and 4, Reading Parts 2, 3 and 4). We chose parts that work as text on a web page; picture-based parts are only in the full papers.
They are independent practice items, not real exam questions. Yuloy wrote them. They are not published by CTI or CLEC, and they are not past papers. The two listening clips are short excerpts from our own Test 1 recording (synthetic speech): the announcement and both plays only, not the full test audio.
Yuloy HSK is an independent study site. It is not affiliated with Chinese Testing International (CTI), the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC) or Hanban. These practice items and papers are original work by Yuloy. They are not real HSK exam questions and not past papers. HSK is a trademark of its owner.
Play the clip, then choose the best reply. The question itself is not printed.
Answer: A.
Transcript: 女：你喜欢吃什么？ (Nǐ xǐhuan chī shénme) — “What do you like to eat?”
什么 asks “what”. With 吃 (eat), the answer must be food: 米饭和鸡蛋. B answers “where” and C answers “how many people”.
Play the clip, then choose the answer. Only the options are printed, as on the paper.
Answer: B.
Transcript: 男：我是中学生，我姐姐是大学生。 问：谁是大学生？
The speaker is a 中学生 (middle-school student). It is his 姐姐 (older sister) who is a 大学生 (university student). 弟弟 (younger brother) is not mentioned.
对不起！我来晚了。
Duìbuqǐ! Wǒ lái wǎn le. — Sorry! I’m late.
Match the sentence to one of the six replies. In the full paper, five questions share this bank; this sample uses one of them.
Answer: F.
The natural reply to 对不起 (sorry) is 没关系 (it doesn’t matter / that’s okay).
你想（ ）茶吗？
Nǐ xiǎng（ ）chá ma? — Would you like to drink some tea?
Choose the word that fills the gap.
Answer: A.
茶 (tea) is something you drink, so the verb is 喝: 喝茶.
我家有四口人：爸爸、妈妈、哥哥和我。
Wǒ jiā yǒu sì kǒu rén: bàba, māma, gēge hé wǒ. — There are four people in my family: dad, mum, my older brother and me.
★ 他家有几口人？
Tā jiā yǒu jǐ kǒu rén? — How many people are in his family?
Read the short text and answer the starred question.
Answer: B.
四口人 means four people (口 is the measure word for family members). Count them: 爸爸, 妈妈, 哥哥, 我.
Yuloy HSK is an independent study site. It is not affiliated with Chinese Testing International (CTI), the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC) or Hanban. These practice items and papers are original work by Yuloy. They are not real HSK exam questions and not past papers. HSK is a trademark of its owner.
What’s in the download (verified from the buyer zip, 29 files, 13 November 2026): 3 complete tests, 40 scored items each (20 listening and 20 reading), a timed listening MP3 for each test (11:49, 11:38 and 11:49), answer sheets and keys, transcripts in Chinese, pinyin and English with short explanations, and every PDF in US Letter and A4, plus README and licence notices. The audio uses a synthetic (text-to-speech) voice. Practice scores are not HSK scores.
A sitting checklist — this is ours, not advice from the test provider:
A suggestion only, not a CTI timetable: sit the CTI sample about three weeks before your date, then further mocks in the last two weeks, with a few days between sittings.
Count correct answers in listening (out of 20) and reading (out of 20), and look at the percentage in each section. That is a practice score only.
Do not treat 120 out of 200 as a confirmed HSK 3.0 Level 1 pass mark.
What we found on 13 November 2026 (Asia/Shanghai):
CTI’s general Level 1 introduction page, https://www.chinesetest.cn/HSK/1, does currently say, in English: “Achieving a full score entails earning 200 points, while a cumulative score of 120 or above qualifies as a passing mark.” The Chinese text on the same page is: “满分200分，总分120分为合格。” That page, however, still lists listening as about 15 minutes, reading as 17 minutes, and a start time of 13:30 — the older HSK 2.0 Level 1 timing, not the HSK 3.0 sample paper. For that reason we do not present 120/200 as an HSK 3.0 Level 1 fact.
CTI’s older HSK 2.0 Level 1 introduction did use 120/200, with a 150-word list. Some test centres, including Liverpool Confucius Institute, now show 120/200 in a table labelled HSK 3.0. That is a third-party claim, not something we can confirm from CTI’s HSK 3.0 notices or sample paper.
Until CTI publishes an HSK 3.0 Level 1 score scale that matches the new paper, treat mock results as a skills check, not a pass/fail prediction.
A mark on a Yuloy paper, or on the CTI sample, is not an HSK score and cannot predict the result of a real sitting.
CTI’s launch notice says HSK 3.0 is to be launched worldwide on 13 December 2026. Registration windows in that notice (Beijing time) are:
Register only on www.chinesetest.cn or through your test centre. If a deadline has passed, check those sources; do not assume a late entry is possible. CTI also publishes 2026 and 2027 calendars; we are not listing 2027 dates here until they are rechecked at publish time.
Yuloy HSK is an independent study site. It is not affiliated with Chinese Testing International (CTI), the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC) or Hanban. These practice items and papers are original work by Yuloy. They are not real HSK exam questions and not past papers. HSK is a trademark of its owner.
Not included: real HSK exam papers or past papers, a vocabulary workbook or flashcards (those tools are free on this site), an HSK score conversion or a published HSK 3.0 Level 1 pass mark, or a live or online test platform. Recordings use a synthetic voice. Practice scores are not HSK scores. These are original papers written by Yuloy, aligned to the public HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample format, for personal study.
Yes. CTI’s “Sample Questions” pack on chinesetest.cn includes one HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample paper, its recording and an answer key. It has no listening transcript.
40: 20 listening and 20 reading, according to the HSK 3.0 Level 1 sample paper published by CLEC.
About 40 minutes, including about 5 minutes for personal details. The sample paper gives about 12 minutes for listening, 3 minutes to transfer answers, and 20 minutes for reading.
Yes. The Level 1 sample paper prints pinyin over the Chinese text.
No. The Level 1 sample tests listening and reading only. In the same sample pack, speaking papers start at Level 3.
As of 13 November 2026, we have not found an HSK 3.0-specific Level 1 pass mark in CTI’s launch notice, syllabus or sample paper. Do not assume the older 120/200 mark applies.
300 words in the 2025 HSK syllabus. See the HSK 1 word list (300 words).
Yes for drilling short listening and reading skills; not for timing or task types. The old Level 1 list had 150 words; the new list has 300.
CTI offers a free online trial of computer-based HSK 3.0 at hsk3demo-intl.chinesetest.cn. For a full printable mock with audio and answers, use a paper that follows the new sample format.
The first HSK 3.0 sitting is 13 December 2026. In CTI’s notice, paper-based registration closes at 24:00 on 16 November and computer-based at 24:00 on 3 December 2026 (Beijing time).
Last verified: 2026-11-13 (Asia/Shanghai).
HSK3.0.zip (pack Last-Modified 2026-09-09 15:25 Asia/Shanghai; paper file creation date 15 July 2026). Cover timing quoted above. Pack URL./news/51336724; the article body did not render in our 13 November 2026 fetch, so we cite the older announcement URL, which did display the full text.yuloy-hsk1-practice-tests-v1.zip (29 files; 3 tests × 40 scored items) and Payhip listing https://payhip.com/b/PbMYA, $9.