TOEFL

TOEFL, or Test of English as a Foreign Language, is a standardized international proficiency exam designed to assess the English language skills of individuals whose native language is not English and who wish to enroll in universities in countries where English is the language of education and communication.

Accepted by more than 13,000 educational institutions in over 160 countries, TOEFL is one of the most widely recognized English proficiency exams worldwide, alongside other exams like IELTS and Cambridge Assessment English. The TOEFL exam, developed and administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), a non-profit organization, was originally created in 1962 by a national council consisting of representatives from government and private organizations. The purpose was to address issues related to ensuring the English language proficiency of individuals who, despite not having English as their native language, sought higher education in universities located in the United States.

The TOEFL exam, which was first held in 1964, has gained international validity over time and has become a proficiency exam accepted by many educational institutions and organizations from many different countries. Although the TOEFL exam is divided into two as TOEFL iBT (computer-based exam) and TOEFL PBT (written exam), the TOEFL iBT exam, which is performed digitally via computer, is more popular today. However, it can also be done on a paper-based basis in countries where computer technology is not sufficient.

Universities in the United States, France, and Germany, as well as graduate programs in Canada, predominantly prefer the TOEFL as the English proficiency exam and in comparison to other English proficiency exams, universities in the United States, Canada, Germany, and France receive more TOEFL score reports. According to a study conducted on the TOEFL exam, which more than 35 million students around the world take to demonstrate their English language skills, 90% of the students who take the TOEFL exam can get into the 1st or 2nd university of their choice.

TOEFL iBT exam evaluates test participants' 4 language skills in English: reading, listening, speaking and writing. The TOEFL iBT exam is administered in three different formats:

• TOEFL iBT Test: It is performed through a computer located at an authorized TOEFL iBT test center.
• TOEFL iBT Home Edition: Test takers take the test in their own homes, accompanied by a proctor.
• TOEFL iBT Paper Edition: Reading, Listening and Writing tests are performed in two sessions: at an authorized testing center and the Speaking test at home on a computer.

Structure of the TOEFL iBT

TOEFL iBT measures four skills — reading, listening, speaking and writing — and you sit all four in one go. The questions themselves take about 90 minutes, but set aside roughly two hours in total once instructions and check-in are counted.

Section	Questions	Time
Reading	50	About 30 minutes
Listening	47	About 29 minutes
Writing	12	About 23 minutes
Speaking	11	About 8 minutes
Total	120	About 90 minutes

If you have seen TOEFL described somewhere as a three-hour test with 700-word reading passages and a seventeen-minute speaking section, that was an older version. Both the tasks and the scoring have changed, so check the date on any book, video or practice test before you trust it.

Reading Section

Reading is 50 questions in about 30 minutes, and it now comes in three task types: Complete the Words, Read in Daily Life, and Read an Academic Passage.

Look at what that mix tells you. Only one of the three is the long academic passage most people picture when they think of TOEFL. Read in Daily Life puts you in front of the kind of text you actually meet day to day, and Complete the Words tests your vocabulary and word-building directly. So reading widely — not only academic articles — genuinely helps here.

With 50 questions in half an hour, you have well under a minute each on average. Getting stuck on one question is more expensive than getting it wrong, so if something is not coming, move on.

Listening Section

Listening is 47 questions in about 29 minutes, across four task types: Listen and Choose a Response, Listen to a Conversation, Listen to an Announcement, and Listen to an Academic Talk.

The range here is wider than it used to be. An announcement is short and practical, and you need the key detail straight away. An academic talk asks you to follow an argument over a longer stretch and hold it in your head. Those are different skills, and it is worth practising both rather than only listening to lectures.

Speaking Section

Speaking is now the shortest section of the test: 11 questions in about 8 minutes, built from two task types — Listen and Repeat, and Take an Interview.

This is the biggest change in the whole test. The old Speaking section gave you a topic, a short window to prepare, and up to a minute of talking, four times over. Memorising a template answer and fitting your ideas into it was a real strategy. It is not any more.

What helps now is being able to respond quickly and naturally, in the moment. Speaking English out loud regularly — with a teacher, a friend, or even to yourself — will do more for this section than any script you could learn.

Writing Section

Writing is 12 questions in about 23 minutes, across three task types: Build a Sentence, Write an Email, and Write for an Academic Discussion.

The long independent essay is gone. Build a Sentence tests your control of structure directly. Write an Email is a practical task of the kind you will genuinely need at university. Write for an Academic Discussion asks you to add something of your own to a discussion, which rewards having a clear point rather than a long one.

Since none of these tasks is long, accuracy counts for more than volume. A short, correct, well-organised answer beats a longer one with mistakes in it.

The new 1 to 6 score scale

This is the part most likely to confuse you, especially if you are comparing yourself against a university requirement that was written a few years ago.

Since January 2026, TOEFL iBT is scored from 1 to 6 in half-point steps, instead of the old 0 to 120. Each section gets its own 1 to 6 score, and your overall score is the average of the four, rounded to the nearest half band.

The reason for the change is that the number now means something on its own. It lines up with CEFR, the framework your school almost certainly already uses to describe language levels — so a 5 is C1 in every section, rather than a number you have to look up in a conversion chart.

Your score	CEFR level	Equivalent on the old 0 to 120 scale
6	C2	114 and above
5.5	C1	107 and above
5	C1	95 and above
4.5	B2	86 and above
4	B2	72 and above
3.5	B1	58 and above
3	B1	44 and above
2.5	A2	34 and above
2	A2	24 and above
1.5	A1	12 and above
1	A1	0 and above

So if a university page still asks for 90, you are aiming for roughly a 4.5. If it asks for 100, that is around a 5.

What if the university still lists an old score?

You are covered. Between January 2026 and January 2028, every score report shows all three: your CEFR level, your 1 to 6 scores, and a comparable total on the old 0 to 120 scale. During that period you can meet a requirement written either way without doing anything extra.

If you are applying after that window, use the table above to translate. And if a requirement is ambiguous, just ask the admissions office which scale their published number refers to — they answer this question constantly.

Score reports and how long they last

Your scores are valid for two years from the test date, and ETS will not send them after that. So plan the test around your application deadlines rather than sitting it as early as you possibly can.

Your report also shows something called MyBest scores, or superscores: your best result in each section across every valid TOEFL you have taken in the last two years, combined into one set. If you had a strong reading day on one sitting and a strong speaking day on another, this works in your favour. Acceptance varies between institutions though, so check whether the universities on your list actually take MyBest scores before you count on them.

What changed in 2026

	Older format	Now
Reading	3 or 4 passages of about 700 words, 10 questions each	50 questions across three task types, including everyday texts
Speaking	4 tasks, about 17 minutes	11 questions, about 8 minutes
Writing	An integrated task plus a 30-minute independent essay	12 questions across three task types, about 23 minutes
Score scale	0 to 120	1 to 6, aligned to CEFR

The practical consequence is simple: preparation material made before 2026 will have you rehearsing for tasks that are no longer on the test, and comparing yourself against a scale that is being retired. Check the date on everything.

Frequently asked questions

What happened to the 0 to 120 TOEFL score?

It was replaced in January 2026 by a scale of 1 to 6, in half-point steps, aligned to CEFR levels. Between January 2026 and January 2028 every score report still shows a comparable total on the old 0 to 120 scale alongside the new one.

My university asks for TOEFL 90. What do I need now?

Roughly a 4.5, since 4.5 corresponds to 86 and above on the old scale. A requirement of 100 works out at around a 5. Until January 2028 your report shows both scales, so a requirement written either way is covered.

How does the 1 to 6 scale map to CEFR?

A score of 6 is C2, 5 and 5.5 are C1, 4 and 4.5 are B2, 3 and 3.5 are B1, 2 and 2.5 are A2, and 1 and 1.5 are A1. The same band means the same CEFR level in every section and in the overall score.

How is the overall TOEFL score calculated?

Each of the four sections gets its own score from 1 to 6, and the overall score is the average of those four, rounded to the nearest half band.

How long is the TOEFL iBT test?

The questions take about 90 minutes in total: roughly 30 minutes of Reading, 29 of Listening, 23 of Writing and 8 of Speaking. Allow around two hours once instructions and check-in are counted.

How long are TOEFL scores valid?

Two years from the test date. ETS will not send them after that, so it is worth timing the test around your application deadlines rather than sitting it as early as possible.

What are MyBest scores?

MyBest scores, sometimes called superscores, combine your best result in each section across every valid TOEFL you have taken in the last two years. Your report shows them alongside your test date scores, but acceptance varies between institutions, so check before relying on them.

Is the independent writing essay still on the test?

No. Writing is now 12 questions in about 23 minutes across three task types: Build a Sentence, Write an Email, and Write for an Academic Discussion. The long independent essay is gone.