STEP 2024: Grade Boundaries, Papers and Practice

STEP (Sixth Term Examination Paper) 2024 was sat as two papers, STEP 2 and STEP 3, each marked out of 120, with official grade boundaries published in the 2024 Explanation of Results. It was also the first year the exam was delivered by OCR. This page brings together the official boundaries, what each grade means, topic and difficulty data from the FrontierVUE question bank, and how to practise both papers online.
STEP 2024 Boundaries at a Glance
Papers sat
STEP 2 (9470) and STEP 3 (9475), each a 3-hour written exam marked out of 120
STEP 2 official boundaries
S 93 / grade 1 69 / grade 2 51 / grade 3 26
STEP 3 official boundaries
S 93 / grade 1 70 / grade 2 57 / grade 3 34
How marks count
20 marks per question; only your best 6 answers count towards the total
Difficulty (FrontierVUE catalogue)
9 of the 12 STEP 2 questions and 10 of the 12 STEP 3 questions are rated hard

The papers, boundaries and marking rules come from the official Explanation of Results for STEP 2024 and OCR's published guidance, OCR having delivered STEP from 2024; the difficulty line reflects FrontierVUE's own catalogue ratings, not an official assessment. Boundaries are reset by the exam board every year, so movement between years is normal.

4 sections914 words5 min read4 official sources
01

STEP 2024 papers and official grade boundaries

STEP 2024 ran as two papers: STEP 2 (paper code 9470) and STEP 3 (paper code 9475), each a 3-hour written exam marked out of 120. STEP 1 was withdrawn from 2021, so the two-paper format was already the settled shape of the exam. What made 2024 distinctive was the change of delivery body.

Papers

Two: STEP 2 and STEP 3

STEP 1 was withdrawn from 2021; the two-paper format is the settled shape

Paper codes

9470 (STEP 2), 9475 (STEP 3)

Format

3-hour written exam, each paper out of 120

Delivery body

OCR, for the first time in 2024

The CAAT website closed in early 2024 and the official closure notice confirmed that STEP would be delivered from 2024 by OCR, which also sits within the Cambridge family; that year's Explanation of Results was accordingly published by OCR

SGrade 1Grade 2Grade 3
STEP 2 (9470)93695126
STEP 3 (9475)93705734

Each paper is marked out of 120. Source: the official Explanation of Results for STEP 2024.

02

How to read the grade boundaries

STEP results fall into five grades: S (Outstanding), 1 (Very Good), 2 (Good), 3 (Satisfactory) and U (Unclassified). The numbers in the table are minimum marks for each grade. On STEP 3 in 2024, for example, a total of 93 earned an S, 70 a grade 1, 57 a grade 2 and 34 a grade 3; below the grade 3 boundary the result is U.
S (Outstanding)
In 2024 the S boundary was 93 on both papers: a total of 93 was needed on STEP 2 and on STEP 3.
1 (Very Good)
In 2024, 69 was needed on STEP 2 and 70 on STEP 3.
2 (Good)
In 2024, 51 was needed on STEP 2 and 57 on STEP 3.
3 (Satisfactory)
In 2024, 26 was needed on STEP 2 and 34 on STEP 3.
U (Unclassified)
A total below that year's grade 3 boundary is reported as U.
The marking rules matter for reading these numbers. Each question is marked out of 20, each paper out of 120, and only your best 6 answers count towards the total; a fully correct answer scores full marks whatever method is used. A boundary therefore measures the combined quality of your best 6 questions, not an expectation that you attempt everything.
20232024
STEP 2 · S9093
STEP 2 · Grade 16569
STEP 2 · Grade 25051
STEP 2 · Grade 32826
STEP 3 · S8593
STEP 3 · Grade 16370
STEP 3 · Grade 25457
STEP 3 · Grade 33234

Official figures for both years. Most boundaries sat higher in 2024 than in 2023; only the STEP 2 grade 3 line came down.

Boundaries are reset every year in light of how hard the papers proved and how the cohort performed, so year-to-year movement is normal and no single year's line makes a reliable fixed target. Cambridge offer conditions vary by college and by year, so always go by the wording of the offer itself.
03

Topic emphasis and difficulty in 2024 (FrontierVUE database view)

The figures below reflect how FrontierVUE has catalogued the 2024 questions, based on the platform's own difficulty ratings and topic tags. They are not an official analysis of the papers.

12 questions

Held from STEP 2 2024: 3 rated medium, 9 rated hard

12 questions

Held from STEP 3 2024: 2 rated medium, 10 rated hard

8 / 2 / 2

Each paper breaks down as pure maths / mechanics / probability and statistics

Both papers break down as 8 pure mathematics questions, 2 mechanics and 2 probability and statistics, matching the official paper structure in place since the 2019 reform. STEP 3 carries the larger share of hard-rated questions, consistent with its positioning on the full A Level Further Mathematics syllabus.

Pure mathematics (broad tag)

16

Coordinate geometry

5

Mechanics

4

Probability

4

Induction and recursion

4

Integration techniques

4

Differential equations

3

Curve sketching

3

Inequalities

2

The grid above counts topic-tag occurrences across both 2024 papers in the FrontierVUE catalogue. The practical takeaway: coordinate geometry and induction-style questions carry real weight this year, so a focused review of those areas pays off before sitting either paper in full.
04

How to practise the 2024 papers on FrontierVUE

01Step 1

Open the past paper list

Go to the past paper list at /papers/step.
02Step 2

Find the two 2024 papers by year

Locate STEP 2 and STEP 3 under 2024.
03Step 3

Sit the paper under time

Sit either paper in full in the timed interface.
04Step 4

Review the breakdown and solutions

After submitting you get a question-by-question breakdown, and every question comes with a full worked solution.

111 papers

STEP past papers in the FrontierVUE bank, from 1987 to 2025

1,532 questions

Questions in total, including STEP 2 and STEP 3 from 2024

Latest 2 papers

Free to try in each subject; check the free labels on the site for the current line-up

For method alongside the papers, the guides under /exams/step/guides/ are built to pair with them.

STEP guides

/exams/step/guides/

step-2What STEP 2 demands and how to prepare for it
step-3What STEP 3 demands and how to prepare for it
writing-solutionsTurning correct ideas into marks on the page
choosing-questionsPicking the 6 answers that will count
gradesThe boundary and grading system as a whole

Tap a branch to unfold

The resource library also holds the official OCR specification and STEP Support Programme materials as an official reference point.
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How hard was STEP 2024?
By the official boundaries, grade 1 in 2024 required 69 on STEP 2 and 70 on STEP 3 (each out of 120), with most boundaries sitting higher than in 2023. In the FrontierVUE catalogue, 9 of the 12 STEP 2 questions and 10 of the 12 STEP 3 questions are rated hard (FrontierVUE's own classification, not an official one).
What were the STEP 2024 grade boundaries?
The official 2024 boundaries were: STEP 2, S 93, grade 1 69, grade 2 51, grade 3 26; STEP 3, S 93, grade 1 70, grade 2 57, grade 3 34. Each paper is marked out of 120, per the official Explanation of Results for STEP 2024.
Why were there only STEP 2 and STEP 3 in 2024?
STEP 1 last ran in 2019, was cancelled in 2020 during the pandemic, and was then formally discontinued from 2021. The two-paper format simply carried on into 2024; the change that year was the delivery body, with OCR taking over from 2024 while the papers and marking rules stayed the same.
Where can I practise the STEP 2024 papers?
FrontierVUE's past paper library at /papers/step covers 111 STEP papers from 1987 to 2025, 1,532 questions in total, including STEP 2 and STEP 3 from 2024, each with full worked solutions, a timed exam interface and question-by-question analysis. The latest two papers in each subject are free to try.
Sources

Official sources

By year

Other STEP years

STEP 2025STEP 2023STEP 2022STEP 2021STEP 2020STEP 2019STEP 2018STEP 2017STEP 2016

FrontierVUE is an independent practice platform. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by UAT-UK, Pearson, OCR, the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, or any official admissions-test owner.

Practise STEP 2024 online

Timed interface, worked solutions and per-question analytics. The two most recent past papers are free to try.

Practise STEP papersAll STEP past papers