IB Geography SL · 2019 to 2025
IB Geography SL past papers
778 past paper questions from 28 papers across 13 exam sessions. See what repeats, then practise the same skills with AI marking.
Starter set across the most-tested skills, with AI marking and model answers.
SL archive · 2019 to 2025
IB Geography SL past papers
Latest exam session: May 2025
- questions
- 778
- questions
- papers
- 28
- papers
- exam sessions
- 13
- exam sessions
- micro-topics
- 79
Units in Geography SL
In syllabus order. The ring is the share of the marks each one carries.
Unit 1
Changing population
9% of marks310 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (9%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 105 questions
- DuePopulation structure: pyramids, age and sex
- DueGender, fertility and population policies
Unit 2
Global climate - vulnerability and resilience
7% of marks240 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (7%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 66 questions
- RisingThe greenhouse effect and the global energy balance
Unit 3
Global resource consumption and security
10% of marks330 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (10%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 85 questions
- DueTrends in energy and resource consumption
- RisingFood security and the threats to it
Unit 7
Option A: Freshwater - drainage basins
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 73 questions
- DueRiver discharge and hydrographs
- DueFlooding and flood mitigation
Unit 8
Option B: Oceans and coastal margins
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 74 questions
- RisingCoral reefs and mangroves
- FadingOcean geopolitics and resource conflict
Unit 9
Option C: Extreme environments
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 73 questions
- DueHot, arid and semi-arid environments
- DueDesertification
Unit 10
Option D: Geophysical hazards
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 77 questions
- DueVolcanic and mass-movement hazards
Unit 11
Option E: Leisure, tourism and sport
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 76 questions
- RisingInternational and niche tourism
Unit 12
Option F: The geography of food and health
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 74 questions
- DueMeasuring health and disease patterns
- DueFood security and famine
Unit 13
Option G: Urban environments
11% of marks360 of the 3400 marks across the 28 Geography SL papers analysed (11%) were on this unit. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 75 questions
- DueUrbanisation, megacities and urban growth
- DueUrban social stresses and deprivation
Papers in Geography SL
Each paper across every sitting. The ring is the share of the marks it carries.
12 sittings · calculator
Paper 1
74% of marks2520 of the 3400 marks in the Geography SL archive were set in Paper 1, across 12 sittings. · 522 questions
Most tested Predicting and preparing for hazards
16 sittings · calculator
Paper 2
26% of marks880 of the 3400 marks in the Geography SL archive were set in Paper 2, across 16 sittings. · 256 questions
Most tested Resource stewardship and the circular economy
Exam pattern
How often each micro-topic has been examined, year by year. Each label is explained under the grid.
Does it repeat?
Top 4 of 79 micro-topics for the next sitting. Numbers are questions per year.
fewermore
| Micro-topic | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2019: 2 questions | 2Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2020: 2 questions | 2Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2021: 2 questions | 1Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2022: 1 question | 1Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2023: 1 question | 4Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2024: 4 questions | 3Resource stewardship and the circular economy, 2025: 3 questions | |
| 2Water and energy security, 2019: 2 questions | 1Water and energy security, 2020: 1 question | ·Water and energy security, 2021: 0 questions | 1Water and energy security, 2022: 1 question | 2Water and energy security, 2023: 2 questions | 2Water and energy security, 2024: 2 questions | 4Water and energy security, 2025: 4 questions | |
| 2Human causes of climate change, 2019: 2 questions | 2Human causes of climate change, 2020: 2 questions | ·Human causes of climate change, 2021: 0 questions | ·Human causes of climate change, 2022: 0 questions | 1Human causes of climate change, 2023: 1 question | 2Human causes of climate change, 2024: 2 questions | 6Human causes of climate change, 2025: 6 questions | |
| 3Ageing and declining populations, 2019: 3 questions | 2Ageing and declining populations, 2020: 2 questions | ·Ageing and declining populations, 2021: 0 questions | 3Ageing and declining populations, 2022: 3 questions | 2Ageing and declining populations, 2023: 2 questions | 7Ageing and declining populations, 2024: 7 questions | 2Ageing and declining populations, 2025: 2 questions |
4 more micro-topics with a free account
- DueTrends in energy and resource consumption· last May 24 P2 TZ1
- Dueusually examined, but missing from the last two exam sessions
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Every Geography SL exam session
Every session and paper we have classified. Open a paper for its full analysis.
May 2025
4 papers
November 2024
2 papers
May 2024
3 papers
November 2023
2 papers
May 2023
2 papers
November 2022
2 papers
May 2022
2 papers
November 2021
2 papers
May 2021
2 papers
November 2020
2 papers
November 2019
2 papers
May 2019
2 papers
Specimen 2019
1 paper
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Frequently asked questions
Short answers about this page.
Which Geography SL exam sessions are covered?
13 exam sessions from 2019 to 2025, the latest May 2025. Every Paper 1 and 2 in every timezone is read and classified in full, which gives 28 papers in this archive.
Which IB Geography SL topic comes up most?
Resource stewardship and the circular economy (3.3.1): in 43% of papers, last seen May 25 P2 TZ3. Usually "explain / justify", worth about 6.2 marks in a paper that includes it.
Can I see the original question and mark scheme?
No. The wording belongs to the IB. You get the citation, the marks, the command term and the skill tested, plus our own matched practice questions with worked answers and AI marking.
What do "banker", "due" and "rising" mean?
Banker: examined in at least one sitting in four and still appearing. Due: regular before, but absent for the last two exam sessions. Rising: clearly more common in the last two years. Our classification of real papers, not an IB statistic.
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Reading this page and the exam pattern is free. A free account generates three sets of ten questions and launches one practice set. Pro opens every question in any scope, sets of twenty or all, and unlimited practice.
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More Geography SL exam preparation
Every question, by paper
What each Geography SL paper tests across all its sittings: the marks by unit and the micro-topics it keeps coming back to.
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Predicted questions
The question types most likely in the next Geography SL sitting, built from this same archive.
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Formula booklet, explained
Every formula you are given in the exam, with when to use it and the traps around it.
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Mock exams
Full Geography SL papers under timed conditions, marked by AI against IB criteria.
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All IB past papers
Every subject we have classified by topic, with the same exam-pattern analysis.
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