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Photon Academy Research · 2021–2025 Data

IB Past Paper Analysis 2026

Marks-weighted breakdown of every IB exam from 2021 to 2025, year-over-year topic shifts, official grade boundaries — and Photon Academy's predicted papers for May 2026. Built by IBO-certified tutors who teach this stuff every week.

New · Live 12 Predicted Paper Sets for May 2026 · IB Math AA HL & AA SL Open Now
735Questions analysed
6,769Total marks
35Exam sittings
5Years of data

Choose Your Subject

Detailed past-paper analysis is live for IB Math AA HL and AA SL. The remaining subjects are being built — your enrolled tutor at Photon Academy can share the same kind of breakdown in lessons until each public page goes live.

Live

IB Math AA HL

Analysis & Approaches · Higher Level

405 questions across 17 sittings. Topic weightage, P1/P2/P3 breakdown, May 2026 prediction and 6 Photon predicted papers (2 free).

Open Analysis
Live

IB Math AA SL

Analysis & Approaches · Standard Level

330 questions across 18 sittings. Sub-topic breakdown, calculus deep-dive, grade boundaries and 6 Photon predicted papers (2 free).

Open Analysis
Coming Soon

IB Math AI HL

Applications & Interpretation · HL

Coming soon. In the meantime see IB Math AI tuition or what AI HL covers.

Coming Soon

IB Math AI SL

Applications & Interpretation · SL

Coming soon. See IB Math AI SL tuition for live coverage.

Coming Soon

IB Physics HL/SL

New 2025 Syllabus

2025 syllabus analysis launching soon. Until then — free Physics HL cheatsheets covering all 24 topics.

Coming Soon

IB Chemistry HL/SL

New 2025 Syllabus

Topic weightage analysis underway. See IB Chemistry tuition for the full programme.

Coming Soon

IB Biology HL/SL

New 2025 Syllabus

Coming soon. See IB Biology tuition for the live programme.

Coming Soon

IB Economics HL/SL

Higher & Standard Level

Coming soon. See IB Economics tuition for live coverage.

Coming Soon

IB English A/B

Lang & Lit · HL/SL

Coming soon. See IB English tuition with an active IB examiner.

Coming Soon

IB TOK

IB Core · Bonus Points

Coming soon. See IB TOK tuition for essay & exhibition support.

Coming Soon

IB Chinese A/B

Mandarin · HL/SL

Coming soon. See IB Chinese tuition.

Coming Soon

IB Business Management

HL & SL

Coming soon. See IB Business Management tuition.

Coming Soon

IB Computer Science

2027 Syllabus · HL/SL

Coming soon. See IB CS tuition.

Photon Predicted Papers — May 2026

Six full predicted paper sets per subject in IB exam style with full markschemes. Sets 1 and 2 are free for everyone. Sets 3–6 unlock with Math Resources lifetime access — one purchase covers AA HL + AA SL.

Set 1Free
Set 2Free
Set 3Lifetime
Set 4Lifetime
Set 5Lifetime
Set 6Lifetime

IB Math AA HL

3 papers per set · P1 (no calc) · P2 (calc) · P3 (extended investigation) · full markschemes.

Open AA HL analysis

IB Math AA SL

2 papers per set · P1 (no calc) · P2 (calc) · full markschemes.

Open AA SL analysis
Open Predicted Papers Get Lifetime Access Sign in with Google to unlock free sets.

What's Inside Each Analysis Page

Every subject page follows the same data-driven structure — so once you know how to read one, you know them all.

Marks-weighted topic breakdown

Every question tagged, every mark counted. Multi-tag questions are split fairly across topics to prevent double-counting.

Paper 1 vs Paper 2 split

See exactly which topics live on the calculator paper vs the no-calculator paper — the difference is bigger than most students realise.

Year-over-year trends

Five years of marks-share trends. Spot what's rising, what's falling, and what's brand new in the last sitting.

Official grade boundaries

Full Grade 1–7 boundary tables for every session 2021–2025, plotted across time. See what % you actually need for a 7.

May 2026 predictions

Question-by-question predictions for Paper 1 and Paper 2 Section B, plus stylistic shifts to expect post-Nov 2024.

Predicted papers + markscheme

6 full Photon predicted paper sets per subject. Sets 1–2 are free. Sets 3–6 unlock with paid library access.

IB Past Paper Analysis — FAQ

Common questions about how we built this and how to use it.

What does "marks-weighted" mean?
Instead of counting how often a topic appears, we count how many exam marks it actually carries. When a question covers two topics (say, Functions + Differentiation), its marks are split evenly so neither topic is double-counted. This gives a true picture of what the IB really tests.
Where do the grade boundaries come from?
Official IB Grade Boundary documents from the Programme Resource Centre. We track every May and November session from 2021 onwards. Some 2023–2024 values are estimated where IBO data was not yet released — verify with your IB coordinator for exact figures if needed.
How accurate are your May 2026 predictions?
Predictions are based on five years of marks data, the post-November 2024 stylistic shift, and our own results from teaching every IB Math sitting since 2021. They aren't crystal-ball accurate — IB does sometimes break pattern — but they reliably tell you which topics deserve the most revision time.
What's a Photon predicted paper?
A full 2-paper or 3-paper set written by Photon Academy in IB exam style, with full markscheme. They mirror the format, difficulty curve, and Section B structure of recent sittings — useful as timed mock exams in the final 4–6 weeks before May 2026.
What's free and what's paid?
Predicted Paper Sets 1 and 2 are free (just sign in with Google). Sets 3–6 are part of the paid Math Resources lifetime access — that's a one-time SGD 99 unlock that also includes every Notes, Tutorial and Solutions PDF in the PDF Library.
Do I need to be a Photon Academy student?
No. Sets 1–2 and the free cheatsheet library are open to anyone. Photon Academy enrolled students get every paid resource included in their tuition fees.

Want every Photon predicted paper plus the full PDF library?

One-time SGD 99 per subject for lifetime access — every Notes, Tutorial, Solutions PDF and all 6 predicted paper sets. Or enrol at Photon Academy and get it all included.

Predicted Paper · Side-by-Side

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