Pakistan outscores India on the newest global English Proficiency Index, placing seven positions ahead of its neighbor according to findings published recently. When queried about whether the Pakistani accent sounds superior to the Indian one, the AI tool Grok declined to select a winner based purely on pronunciation.
What Grok Said About the Accent
Responding to a different user previously, Grok stated that accents are subjective and lack quality rankings. The AI explained that Pakistani English incorporates the rising-falling intonation of Urdu alongside Persian and Arabic phonetic elements. Conversely, Indian English exhibits greater variation due to influence from hundreds of regional languages, featuring stronger syllable timing. Grok concluded that listener preference dictates everything. Several Pakistani commenters offered a different view, suggesting India formed a distinct local accent while Pakistan maintained English largely among the educated elite, raising both barriers and quality.
The Data: Pakistan Beats India in English
While Grok steered clear of judging accents, proficiency figures reveal a distinct difference. The EF English Proficiency Index 2025 places Pakistan 67th among 123 countries and regions with 493 points, whereas India ranks 74th with 484 points. Pakistan surpasses the global average of 488, while India sits below it. India dropped 6 points from the prior year, while Pakistan remained steady. Both nations fall within the low proficiency category. Pakistan exceeded India across all measured competencies: speaking at 517 versus 500, reading at 512 versus 494, writing at 515 versus 504, and listening at 470 versus 457. The largest variance appears in speaking at 17 points, closely linked to accent perception. Regionally, Pakistan also ranks above Sri Lanka at 486 and Bhutan at 473, though behind Nepal at 514 and Bangladesh at 506.
What This Means for You
The index tracks language utilization rather than pronunciation quality, showing Pakistani participants perform slightly better in reading, writing, listening, and speaking than Indian participants. This impacts employment, as English remains vital for freelance work, call centers, information technology exports, and international jobs where both nations vie for identical clients. Index data shows Pakistani IT professionals score 504, operations staff score 515, and customer service employees score 486. Regional performance varies within Pakistan, with Punjab leading at 554, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 501, Sindh at 491, and Balochistan at 489. Islamabad leads cities at 529, followed by Rawalpindi at 524, Lahore at 498, and Karachi at 496. Professional initiatives are addressing language skills, such as a partnership between the British Council and ICAP to enhance English capabilities for future chartered accountants, while Google Translate offers pronunciation correction features.
How the Ranking Works
The EF EPI 2025 relies on scores from 2.2 million adults completing the free EF Standard English Test throughout 2024. This version incorporated optional speaking and writing tests alongside standard reading and listening assessments. Because participants complete the online assessment voluntarily, findings represent self-selected test takers rather than a random population sample, though it remains the largest global ranking of adult English abilities.
