TOEFL: TOEFL iBT Guide: Fee, Format, Dates and Minimum Scores

TOEFL iBT is a computer based English test built for university admission. It has four sections: Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. Reading and Listening are multistage adaptive, which means the questions a test taker sees next depend on how earlier questions were answered. Reading runs about 30 minutes with roughly 50 items across three task types, including short academic passages. Listening runs about 29 minutes with about 47 items covering conversations, announcements and academic lectures. Writing runs about 23 minutes and includes tasks such as writing an email and writing for an academic discussion. Speaking runs about 8 minutes and includes a listen and repeat task and a short interview. ETS advises allowing about two hours in total for check in and instructions, though the timed sections themselves add up to about 90 minutes.

TOEFL iBT can be taken at an authorised test centre on computer, or from home through TOEFL iBT Home Edition with a live human proctor; both versions use the same content, structure and scoring, and are accepted equally by nearly all universities that use TOEFL. The registration fee is set by testing location rather than fixed worldwide, and excludes VAT or similar local tax except in the EU, so a test taker should look up the exact fee for their own country when registering.

From 21 January 2026, ETS changed how it reports TOEFL iBT scores. Each of the four sections and the overall score are now reported on a 1 to 6 scale in half point steps, lined up with the CEFR levels used across Europe and elsewhere, so that a section score of 5 lines up with CEFR C1. For a two year transition period, until January 2028, the score report also shows a comparable estimate on the older 0 to 120 scale that TOEFL used before, so an institution that still asks for a number out of 120 can still be shown one. Scores usually appear in the test taker's ETS account 3 days after the test date, with a downloadable PDF report ready 24 to 48 hours after that; a mailed paper copy takes 11 to 15 days, or 2 to 5 business days with paid expedited shipping in about 75 countries. Scores stay valid for two years from the test date.

A test taker can retake TOEFL iBT as often as they want, but ETS will not schedule two sittings less than 3 days apart, even if an earlier score was cancelled. At registration, a test taker can choose up to four institutions to receive an official score report at no extra charge; further reports cost US$25 each and go out electronically in 4 to 8 business days, through an institution's own data feed in 8 to 10 business days, or by mail in 10 to 12 business days plus shipping time.

Every university sets its own TOEFL requirement for each programme, and postgraduate programmes generally ask for a higher score than undergraduate programmes at the same institution, especially in writing and speaking. Because the number varies by institution and by programme, a candidate should check the exact score the programme itself asks for rather than assume a single figure applies everywhere.