NAPLAN 2026 National Results released
05 August 2026 Latest findings from the 2026 NAPLAN National Results released by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) show signs of improvement from 2023 in national numeracy levels for Australian students in Years 5, 7 and 9, but also highlight some other areas requiring attention.
The national average numeracy scores in Years 5, 7 and 9 are the highest since 2023 when new proficiency levels were introduced, continuing an encouraging pattern in numeracy in Years 5, 7 and 9 identified in last year’s results. However, these gains were not repeated for younger students in Year 3, where the average numeracy score was the lowest since 2023.
The 2026 NAPLAN National Results also highlighted some other areas needing attention:
- Average reading scores in Years 5, 7 and 9 are lower than in 2025
- There has been a slight increase since 2023 in students needing additional support in reading and writing.
The overall NAPLAN results in 2026 remained broadly stable at a national level, with no reportable changes in average scores between 2026 and 2025, or between 2026 and 2023. Around 2 out of 3 students achieved at the “Strong” or “Exceeding” proficiency level for their reading, numeracy and writing skills, with one in 10 students at the “Needs additional support” level across all year groups and domains.
Commenting on the latest NAPLAN National Results, ACARA CEO, Stephen Gniel, said:
“As the only national assessment that lets us see whether young Australians are developing critical literacy and numeracy skills, NAPLAN provides valuable information on how students are progressing in literacy and numeracy over time using a national, objective scale.
“What is particularly encouraging in this year’s results is the continued improvement in national numeracy with higher NAPLAN scores on average across Years 5, 7 and 9, especially among the stronger students. Around 29,000 more Australian students are performing at ‘Exceeding’ – the highest proficiency level – in 2026 compared to 2023.
“The drop in Year 3 numeracy results is clearly concerning. Education ministers are addressing this through a range of measures including the rollout of the national Year 1 numeracy check. ACARA is also playing its part by reviewing the Foundation to Year 2 Mathematics curriculum at the direction of education ministers to ensure our youngest learners get the strong grounding in mathematics and numeracy they need to succeed in their education and later in life.”
Read our media release (PDF 236 KB).
Find out more about the 2026 NAPLAN National Results.