TOEFL -- computer based test

Test structure

The listening and structure sections are computer adaptive, which means that the level of difficulty of a question is based on the test taker's response to the previous one. The listening section consists of 11-17 dialogues with 1 question each, 2-3 short conversations, up to a minute long with 2 or 3 questions each, and 4-6 mini-lectures and discussions, up to 2 minutes long with 3-6 questions each.

The reading section consists of 4-5 passages from academic texts, 250-350 words each with 11 questions per passage.

The writing section consists of an essay where test takers state, explain and support their opinion on an issue.

Scoring

Scores for each section range from 0-30. (Structure and writing are combined). The average of the 3 scores is then taken and multiplied by 10, to give a total score of between 0 and 300.

A minimum score of 137 corresponds to level B1 on the Common European Framework (CEF). A minimum score of 220 corresponds to level C1.

Related links

The internet-based TOEFL (iBT)
The paper-based TOEFL (PBT)
ETS website

Top of page