Download Grade 11 Physical Sciences past papers and memos
Newest first. The memo sits on the same row as the paper it belongs to, so you do not have to go looking for it. Last updated .
2025
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
2024
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 1North West
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
- Paper 2North West
September 2024Term 3
- Question paperKwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 1North West
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2North West
2023
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
2022
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Question paperGauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
Feb/March 2022Term 1
- Question paperLimpopo
2021
November 2021Term 4
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2Gauteng
May/June 2021Term 2
- Question paperNational
- Question paperKwaZulu-Natal
- Question paperLimpopo
2020
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
September 2020Term 3
- Question paperWestern Cape
Feb/March 2020Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
2019
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
September 2019Term 3
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
- Question paperNorth West
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2019Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2018
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
September 2018Term 3
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Question paperNorth West
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2018Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2017
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2017Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2016
- Paper 1National
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 2National
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Gauteng
September 2016Term 3
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 1Gauteng
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2Gauteng
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
Feb/March 2016Term 1
- Paper 1KwaZulu-Natal
- Paper 2KwaZulu-Natal
2015
- Paper 1National
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 2National
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
2014
- Paper 1National
- Paper 2National
2013
- Paper 1Eastern Cape
- Paper 2Eastern Cape
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What is in Grade 11 Physical Sciences Paper 1 and Paper 2
What each paper should cover, and what each topic is worth.
From the CAPS curriculum document for Physical Sciences. Grade 11 papers are set by your school or your province rather than nationally, and CAPS calls these a suggested weighting, so treat it as what a paper should look like rather than a promise about the one you downloaded.
A ± means it is the weighting the examiners work towards rather than a fixed part of the paper, so a sitting lands a few marks either side of it.
Paper 1: Physics
150 marks, 3 hours
- Mechanics
- ±68 marks
- Electricity and magnetism
- ±50 marks
- Waves, sound and light
- ±32 marks
Paper 2: Chemistry
150 marks, 3 hours
- Chemical change
- ±70 marks
- Matter and materials
- ±60 marks
- Chemical systems
- ±20 marks
What comes back in matric
The matric Physical Sciences paper tests the whole Grade 12 year, plus these Grade 11 topics. The Department's exam guidelines say so. It is worth learning them properly now, because you write them again next year.
Physics
- Newton's Laws and their application, including universal gravitation
- Electrostatics: Coulomb's Law and the electric field
- Electric circuits: Ohm's Law, power and energy
Chemistry
- Intermolecular forces
- Stoichiometry
- Energy and change
Used, but not asked about directly
No question will be set on these, but you need them to answer the others.
- Equations of motion, used in momentum, vertical projectile motion, work, energy and power
- Sound waves and the properties of sound
- Electromagnetism
Learn these well. They cost matrics marks.
Every year the Department checks what matrics got wrong. In Physical Sciences the same problem comes up: matrics lost marks on Grade 11 work. You are in Grade 11 now, so you still have time.
You learn this in Grade 11
What went wrong in matric
Electrostatics and electromagnetism
In matric: This comes back in matric. Matrics could not read the circuit diagrams built on it.
A past paper shows you the topic. It cannot show you which part of it you are weak at. The app breaks each topic into small skills, shows you how well you know each one, and tells you which to fix first.
Topics from the Department of Basic Education's 2025 NSC Diagnostic Report, matched to the grade CAPS teaches them in.
Grade 11 Physical Sciences past paper questions
Where can I download Grade 11 Physical Sciences past papers and memos?
On this page. There are 86 Grade 11 Physical Sciences past papers here, from 2013 to 2025, and they come with their memos. Some people call them exam papers or previous question papers. They are the same thing. Every one is a free PDF and none of them ask you to sign up.
Do the papers come with memos?
Yes. The memo, which is the marking guideline the examiners use, sits on the same row as the paper it belongs to, so you download the two together rather than hunting for them separately.
Which provinces are these Physical Sciences papers from?
The Department of Basic Education, the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, North West and the Western Cape. Every paper here was set by an education department. Some departments put their papers online, and we take those from the department. Others do not, so we find their papers elsewhere and check each one against its cover before we add it. If you cannot find your province, a national paper is set to the same CAPS curriculum and is just as good to practise on.
Which term are these Physical Sciences papers from?
Every term the department published one for. Term 4 is the November exams, Term 3 is the September exams, Term 2 is the May/June exams, Term 1 is the Feb/March exams. Each paper in the list is labelled both ways, so it does not matter whether your school talks in terms or in months.
What topics are in Grade 11 Physical Sciences Paper 1?
Paper 1 is out of 150 marks and you get 3 hours to write it. It covers 3 areas: Mechanics; Electricity and magnetism; Waves, sound and light. The marks for each one are set out above.
Are these IEB papers?
No. These are NSC papers, set by the Department of Basic Education and the provinces for the government curriculum, CAPS. If you are at an IEB school the content overlaps a great deal, but the papers are set separately and are not on this page.
Which paper should I start with?
The newest one. Start with 2025 and work backwards. The examiners who set the most recent papers are the ones setting yours, and how they word a question matters as much as what it is about.
Verified against DBE and provincial education department papers
Published · Updated by NavyBlue Editorial Team
Had enough for now? Try today's puzzle.
Today's puzzle pulls from Physical Sciences and everything else you have covered. Four tries, about two minutes, and one group is always a trick.
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