AQA A level History specification
The specification (7042) is AQA's own description of the History course: what you can be examined on, how the exams are set out and how they are marked. The link below opens the board's PDF on aqa.org.uk, so you always get its current version.
Open the 7042 specification (PDF) (opens aqa.org.uk in a new tab)Everything for AQA A level History, with the past papers, grade boundaries and the notes and flashcards people have shared.
How AQA A level History is examined
From AQA's grade boundaries for June 2026. Some boards list every optional paper or time-zone variant, so you sit only the ones for your route; the specification says which.
- History Paper 1 Option A80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option B80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option C80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option D80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option E80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option G80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option J80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option K80 marks
- History Paper 1 Option L80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option A80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option B80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option D80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option E80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option G80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option J80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option K80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option L80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option M80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option N80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option O80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option P80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option Q80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option R80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option S80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option T80 marks
- History NEA40 marks
Foundation tier
- History Paper 1 Option F80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option F80 marks
Higher tier
- History Paper 1 Option H80 marks
- History Paper 2 Option H80 marks
Turn a mark into a grade · AQA A level exam dates · Extra time and access arrangements
Revising from the History specification
Work through the specification's content list and mark what you are unsure of, then practise those parts with AQA's past papers and read your marks against the same year’s grade boundaries.
Common questions
Where can I find the AQA A level History specification?
The link on this page opens AQA's own copy of the History specification (7042), a PDF on its website, so you always get the current version. We link to it rather than keep a copy.
What is in the History specification?
A specification is the board's own description of the course: the content you can be examined on, how the exams are set out and how they are marked. It is the most useful single document to revise from, because every exam question has to come from it.
Can I make practice questions from the specification?
Yes. cookie can make exam-style questions from a specification and mark your answers, so you can practise the parts you are least sure of once you run out of past papers.
More specifications: every A level specification we link.
cookie is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any exam board. Every paper here is a link to the board's own copy on its own website, and the papers belong to the boards that set them. If a link has stopped working, the board's own past paper page is linked on each course.