What is a passing score on the SOL test?

SOL scores are reported on a 0–600 scale. A scaled score of 400 or above has historically meant Pass/Proficient, and 500 or above means Pass/Advanced. The Virginia Department of Education is phasing in higher cut scores for reading and math starting in the 2026–27 school year — check with your school for the exact current-year cut score in your child's subject and grade.

What does 'Pass/Advanced' mean on an SOL score report?

Pass/Advanced is the highest SOL performance level, indicating a student scored well above the minimum proficiency threshold — historically a scaled score of 500 or higher out of 600.

Is a 400 still a passing SOL score?

It depends on the school year and subject. Historically 400 was the proficient/passing threshold. Virginia is raising the bar for reading and math starting 2026–27, with an 'approaching' level bridging the transition — the Class of 2026 is exempted from the new thresholds. Confirm the current cut score with your school division or the Virginia Department of Education.

Virginia SOL Score Chart: Pass, Proficient, and Advanced Explained

Q: What is the reporting category breakdown on an SOL score report?

Alongside the overall scaled score, most SOL score reports break performance down by reporting category — the broad content strands within that subject (for example, Number and Number Sense vs. Measurement and Geometry in math). It shows which strands a student handled well and which need work, without needing to see individual questions.

SOL score reports use a scale that's unfamiliar to most parents until their child brings one home. Here's what the numbers actually mean.

Virginia SOL score chart

Every SOL test score is converted onto a common 0–600 scale, regardless of how many raw questions a student got right. That scaled score is what determines the performance level on the report:

Scaled score	Performance level	Result
0–399	Fail	Did not pass
400–499	Pass / Proficient	Passed
500–600	Pass / Advanced	Passed, highest tier

This is the historical scoring chart used across recent school years. Reading and math results in grades 3–8 sometimes report an additional "basic" tier below proficient for a more granular picture, and — as covered below — the cut scores themselves are changing starting 2026–27.

Cut scores are changing starting 2026–27

The Virginia Department of Education has been raising the academic bar for reading and math proficiency, phased in starting with the 2026–27 school year, with an "approaching" performance level acting as a bridge while schools and students adjust. Exact cut scores vary by subject and grade and are set by VDOE — your child's official score report and your school's testing coordinator are the most reliable source for the specific number that applied to their test.

The reporting category breakdown

A single scaled score doesn't tell you which standards your child struggled with — but most SOL score reports include a second layer: a reporting category breakdown, showing performance across the broad content strands within that subject (for example, Number and Number Sense vs. Computation and Estimation in a Math SOL). If your child scored well overall but weak in one category, that's the strand to focus on first.

What to actually do with a score report

The category breakdown gets you to the strand level. The more actionable view goes one level deeper: which specific standards, within that strand, need work. That's the level SOL Prep is built around, rather than stopping at a category label. Try the demo to find exactly which standards to focus on next.