GCSE physics equation sheet
In every GCSE Physics and Combined Science exam, AQA, Edexcel and OCR give you a sheet that prints every physics equation on your course. This started with the 2025 exams, runs through 2026 and 2027, and carries on from 2028. Pick your board below to see its list, or open any equation for worked examples.
What each specification says
| Equation | AQA Physics (8463) | AQA Combined Science (8464) | Edexcel Physics (1PH0) | Edexcel Combined Science (1SC0) | OCR Gateway Physics A (J249) | OCR Twenty First Century Physics B (J259) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Density formula: ρ = m/V | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Speed formula: distance = speed × time | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Acceleration formula: a = (v − u)/t | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Force formula: F = ma | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Weight formula: W = mg | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Momentum formula: p = mv | Recall · Higher tier only | Recall · Higher tier only | Recall · Higher tier only | Recall · Higher tier only | Recall · Higher tier only | Recall · Higher tier only |
| Work done formula: W = Fs | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Power formula: P = W/t | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Not in this specification |
| Power equation: P = E/t | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Not in this specification | Recall |
| Efficiency formula | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Efficiency formula | Recall | Recall | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification |
| Wave speed equation: v = fλ | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Wave speed equation: v = fλ | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Recall | Recall | Not in this specification | Not in this specification |
| Charge equation: Q = It | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Potential difference equation: V = IR | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Energy transferred = charge × potential difference (E = QV) | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Recall |
| Electrical power equation: P = VI | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Power equation: P = I²R | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Energy transferred equation: E = Pt | Recall | Recall | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Recall | Recall |
| Energy transferred = charge × potential difference (E = QV) | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Spring force equation: F = k e | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Gravitational potential energy formula: E = m g h | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Kinetic energy formula: E = ½mv² | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall | Recall |
| Pressure formula: p = F ÷ A | Recall | Not in this specification | Recall | Not in this specification | Recall | Recall |
| Moment of a force: M = F d | Recall | Not in this specification | Recall | Not in this specification | Recall | Recall |
| Elastic potential energy formula: E = ½ k e² | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet |
| Specific heat capacity equation: ΔE = m c Δθ | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet |
| Specific latent heat equation: E = m L | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet |
| The equation v² − u² = 2as | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet |
| Force and change in momentum: F = mΔv/Δt | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Not in this specification | Not in this specification |
| Force and change in momentum: F = mΔv/Δt | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only |
| Wave speed equation: v = fλ | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification |
| magnification = image height ÷ object height | Given on the sheet | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Not in this specification |
| Force on a current in a magnetic field: F = BIl | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only |
| Transformer turns equation: Vp/Vs = Np/Ns | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only |
| Transformer power equation: Vp Ip = Vs Is | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet |
| Pressure and volume of a gas: pV = constant | Given on the sheet | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet |
| Pressure in a liquid: p = hρg | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only | Given on the sheet · Higher tier only |
| E = I V t | Not in this specification | Not in this specification | Given on the sheet | Given on the sheet | Not in this specification | Not in this specification |
Why you get every equation in the exam
In November 2024 the Department for Education and Ofqual, the exam regulator for England, agreed that GCSE physics students would get the equations in the exam. Each board now puts an equation sheet inside every physics paper. It lists all the equations in its specification, the official document that says what the course covers.
At first this was for exams in 2025, 2026 and 2027. In September 2026 AQA published Ofqual's decision for later years. From 2028 the boards must publish each year's sheet by 1 September of the year before, and give a clean copy with every paper. They must also avoid questions you could answer only by copying an equation off the sheet. Ofqual expects this to last for current GCSE students up to 2030 or 2031. You can read AQA's news item on the sheets.
So the exam tests whether you can choose the right equation and use it. You still need to know what each symbol stands for, which unit goes with it, and how to rearrange it.
Recall and given: what the labels mean now
Every specification splits its equations into two lists. One list is headed as equations to recall and apply. The other holds equations you select from a sheet and apply. You will see both labels in textbooks and revision guides.
Those labels come from the specifications, and the boards still print them. In the exam hall they no longer change anything, because both lists appear on the sheet. The recall list still shows which equations the course expects you to use fluently, so it is a good place to start your revision.
How the boards differ
Most of the physics is the same across the three boards. The number of equations is different, and so are some of the letters.
- AQA GCSE Physics (8463) has 35 equations and AQA Combined Science: Trilogy (8464) has 28.
- Edexcel GCSE Physics (1PH0) has 31 and Edexcel Combined Science (1SC0) has 27.
- OCR Gateway Physics A (J249) has 30. OCR Twenty First Century Physics B (J259) has 32.
Some equations appear on one board only. Edexcel Physics (1PH0) gives pressure in a liquid as a Higher tier equation. Edexcel Combined Science (1SC0) leaves it out. AQA's separate Physics course is the only one here with magnification, and both AQA courses are the only ones with period = 1 ÷ frequency. OCR Gateway Physics A has no magnification equation at all.
Force and momentum show how the printed forms can differ. AQA prints force = change in momentum ÷ time as F = m Δv/Δt. Edexcel prints F = (mv − mu)/t. OCR Physics B prints it the other way round, as change in momentum = force × time, Δp = F t. OCR Gateway Physics A leaves it out. The force and momentum page shows each version side by side.
Letters change too. AQA writes extension as e in F = k e, while Edexcel and OCR write x. Edexcel also uses x for distance in v² − u² = 2 a x, where the others write s. We always show each board's equation the way that board prints it, so what you see here matches your own sheet.
Higher tier equations
Some equations appear only in Higher tier papers. Momentum = mass × velocity and the force on a wire in a magnetic field, F = B I l, are Higher tier on every course. The transformer turns equation is Higher tier wherever it appears. The transformer power equation, Vp Ip = Vs Is, is Higher tier for AQA only; Edexcel and OCR include it for both tiers. Each board page lists its own Higher tier set.
How to use the board pages
Check which board and course you are taking. Your teacher can tell you the board and the course code. Then open your board's page:
- AQA physics equations for 8463 and 8464
- Edexcel physics equations for 1PH0 and 1SC0
- OCR Gateway physics equations for J249
- OCR Twenty First Century physics equations for J259
Each board page shows which equations your course includes, which ones are Higher tier only, and where Physics and Combined Science part ways. It also links to the board's own documents. Every equation then has its own page. There you will find what each symbol means, its unit, the rearranged forms, worked examples and common slips to avoid.
Common mistakes
- Reading the wrong board's sheet. The letters differ, so a revision guide written for another board can show a form your paper does not use.
- Treating the sheet as the answer. It tells you the relationship, but you still pick the right one, convert the units and rearrange.
- Using a Physics list for Combined Science. At AQA and Edexcel, the separate Physics course has extra equations, such as the gas law, that Combined Science does not include.
To get quick at making any letter the subject, play Equation Rearranger.
Questions people ask
Do I get an equation sheet in my GCSE physics exam?
Yes. Since 2025, every GCSE Physics and Combined Science paper from AQA, Edexcel and OCR comes with a sheet of the physics equations for that course.
Will the equation sheet stop after 2027?
No. Ofqual's decision, published by AQA in September 2026, keeps the sheets for exams from 2028 onwards. It is expected to cover current GCSE students up to 2030 or 2031.
Is the sheet the same for every board?
No. Each board makes its own sheet for its own course, and the number of equations runs from 27 to 35. The letters in some equations differ between boards as well.
Do Combined Science students get the same sheet as Physics students?
Not always. AQA prints a separate Combined Science sheet with 28 equations. Edexcel uses one list for both courses, with a last page of extra equations that only Physics students need.