A-level results: Key numbers and trends

Here are the main numbers and trends in this year’s A-level results:– The proportion of candidates receiving top grades has risen for the third year in a row and remains higher than before the Covid-19 pandemic.A total of 28.5% of UK entries were awarded either an A or A*, up from 28.3% in 2025 and above the 25.4% in 2019.This is the highest proportion on record outside the pandemic-affected years of 2020-22 (when the figure peaked at 44.8% in 2021).– Some 9.6% of UK entries received an A*.This is also the third increase in a row and is up from 9.4% last year.Discounting the pandemic-affected years of 2020-22 – when the figure peaked at 19.1% in 2021 – 9.6% is the highest proportion since the A* grade was first awarded in 2010.– A total of 78.4% of entries received a C or above, up from 77