What is the TOEFL iBT exam pattern in 2026?

Reading: complete partially missing words in a short text, answer questions on short everyday texts such as notices and messages, and read a short academic passage (ETS). Listening: choose the best reply to a spoken prompt, then answer questions on a campus conversation, an announcement and a short academic talk; you may hear North American, UK, New Zealand or Australian accents (ETS).

Writing: arrange words into a correct sentence or question, write an email for an academic or social situation, and post a supported opinion to an online class discussion, all typed (ETS). Speaking: listen to short sentences and repeat them exactly, then answer questions in a simulated interview about academic or campus situations, recorded through a microphone (ETS).

Reading and Listening are two-stage adaptive tests: everyone takes a first module, then a lower or upper module. Writing and Speaking are linear, with the same tasks for everyone on a given form (specifications).

You receive four section scores and an overall score on the 1–6 scale. The overall score is the average of the four sections rounded to the nearest half band: an average of 5.125 becomes 5. For a two-year transition after January 2026 you also receive a comparable overall score on the 0–120 scale (ETS). See how the 1–6 scale works or convert a score with the TOEFL to IELTS converter.

There are no scheduled breaks. You can take notes: scratch paper and pencils at a test centre, or a small whiteboard or a sheet in a transparent sleeve with an erasable marker at home. Writing-assistance software and mobile devices are not permitted (ETS).

Your test is scored only if you answer at least one Reading question, one Listening question, one Speaking task and one Writing task, so skipping a whole section means no section is scored (ETS). ETS offers a free 40-minute, self-paced sample test with questions from all four sections (ETS).