Level 1
Elementary band, first level: everyday greetings and basic personal information.
- words
- 500
- characters
- 300
- hours
- 150
Three-band, nine-level standardFigures not yet verified
First band: levels Level 1 to Level 3
The opening stretch of the nine-level standard. Levels here take you from your first greetings to handling ordinary practical situations on your own.
Most learners start here, whether or not they intend to sit an examination at all.
Levels
What band 1 contains
Each level below is a separate record in HSK Guide’s curriculum data, with its own word and character target and its own source.
Level 2
Elementary band: routine conversations about study, work and daily life.
- words
- 1,272772 new at this level
- characters
- 600
- hours
- 300
Level 3
Completes the elementary band: manage most practical situations independently.
- words
- 2,245973 new at this level
- characters
- 900
- hours
- 480
Running totals from the standard — each level includes every level below it.
Source and verification
Chinese Proficiency Grading Standards for International Chinese Language EducationMinistry of Education of the PRC / Chinese Language Standards Committee
Not yet verified. The word and character figures on this page were transcribed from the published standard; no editor has confirmed them against the primary document. They are a study guide, not a rule.
Band numbers are not the classic HSK numbers
Level 3 in this standard and HSK 3 in the classic six-level ladder are different word lists published by different bodies. HSK Guide stores them as separate inventories and labels every entry with the standard it came from, so the two never blur together.
How the inventories are kept apartVocabulary explorer
Vocabulary where band 1 begins
A sample from the Level 1 list — 66 published words carry this label in HSK Guide today.
- 的de (neutral tone)
possessive and modifying particle: ’s, of
- 了le (neutral tone)
marks a completed action (after the verb)
- 是shì (fourth tone, falling)
to be (A is B)
- 不bù (fourth tone, falling)
not (negates verbs, adjectives and modal verbs)
- 个個ge (neutral tone)
general measure word
- 人rén (second tone, rising)
person, people
- 我wǒ (third tone, dipping)
I, me
- 他tā (first tone, high and level)
he, him
- 一yī (first tone, high and level)
one
- 在zài (fourth tone, falling)
to be at, to be in (a place)
- 这這zhè (fourth tone, falling)
this, these
- 有yǒu (third tone, dipping)
to have, to possess
- 和hé (second tone, rising)
and (joining nouns)
- 上shàng (fourth tone, falling)
on, on top of, above
- 大dà (fourth tone, falling)
big, large
- 说說shuō (first tone, high and level)
to say, to speak
- 我们我們wǒmen (third tone, dipping)
we, us
- 们們men (neutral tone)
plural suffix for pronouns and words for people
Mock examinations
Practice material for band 1
Timed practice written for HSK Guide. The length, the timing and the scoring are our own practice settings rather than an official paper — every attempt ends with a gap analysis.
No practice examination is published for this band yet. See the full catalogue
This is unofficial practice material written for HSK Guide. It is not a past paper and is not endorsed by any examination authority.
Which level of band 1 are you on?
The record for this band puts the top of it at roughly 480 cumulative study hours. The placement test replaces that estimate with one built from what you actually recall.