Every band on the 2026 TOEFL corresponds to a level of the Common European Framework of Reference, from A1 to C2. Here is the official mapping, what each level means in terms of the tasks you actually do on the test, and how to read the CEFR line on a score report.
ETS published this alignment with the new score scale. It applies in the same way to Reading, Listening, Speaking, Writing and the overall score. The last column shows the matching range on the retired 0–120 overall scale, from the ETS concordance, for anyone comparing an older score or requirement.
The Council of Europe describes each CEFR level in general terms. The paragraphs below summarize those descriptions and then translate them into what you would typically see on the twelve 2026 TOEFL task types. They are a guide to the level, not a description of any one person’s score.
In general: Understands practically everything heard or read with little effort, can pull together information from several sources into a coherent account, and expresses fine shades of meaning spontaneously and precisely.
On the TOEFL: Near-perfect accuracy in the upper Reading and Listening modules, including the hardest Complete the Words items and inference questions on long academic talks. Speaking and Writing responses are precise and natural with essentially no slips, even with no preparation time.
In general: Understands a wide range of demanding, longer texts and recognizes meaning that is implied rather than stated. Uses the language flexibly for social, academic and professional purposes and produces clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects.
On the TOEFL: Comfortable in the upper modules: academic passages with dense vocabulary, lectures that digress or qualify their claims, and conversations where the point is in the speaker’s attitude. Interview answers are fluent and developed; Academic Discussion posts add a genuinely new, supported idea.
In general: Understands the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussion in a familiar field. Interacts with enough fluency that conversation with fluent speakers works without strain, and writes clear, detailed text giving the advantages and disadvantages of a view.
On the TOEFL: Reliable on daily-life reading and listening and on most academic items, with errors concentrated in inference and fine vocabulary. Emails cover all three points in the right tone; discussion posts take a position and support it. Interview answers hold together for a full 45-second practice window.
In general: Understands the main points of clear, standard input on familiar matters met at work, school or leisure. Copes with most situations likely to arise when traveling and produces simple connected text on familiar topics, giving brief reasons and explanations.
On the TOEFL: Solid on everyday tasks — Read in Daily Life, Listen to a Conversation, Listen to an Announcement — and on the main idea of academic material, but details and inferences in academic passages and talks are inconsistent. Writing is understandable but limited in range and accuracy.
In general: Understands sentences and frequently used expressions about immediately relevant areas such as personal information, shopping, local geography and work. Communicates in simple, routine exchanges and describes aspects of their background in simple terms.
On the TOEFL: Some success on short everyday items: notices, messages, short questions in Listen and Choose a Response. Academic passages and talks are mostly out of reach. Build a Sentence items with simple word order are manageable; written and spoken responses are short.
In general: Understands and uses familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases, can introduce themselves and answer simple personal questions, and interacts in a simple way if the other person speaks slowly and clearly.
On the TOEFL: Very few items answered correctly beyond the simplest words and phrases. Responses in Speaking and Writing are fragmentary. At this level, general English study is usually a better use of time than TOEFL preparation.
With eleven bands spread over six levels, the half bands do useful work. Within A1 to C1, the whole band (4.0, say) marks the entry point to a level and the half band above it (4.5) marks its upper part. A 4.5 is still B2 on the score report, but it tells a reader you are closer to C1 than someone at 4.0.
This matters when a requirement is stated as a CEFR level rather than a band. A program that asks for “B2” is satisfied by 4.0 or 4.5. A program that asks for “C1” needs 5.0 or above — a 4.5 does not meet it, however close it is.
During the two-year transition that started on January 21, 2026, ETS score reports carry three things: a CEFR level, the 1–6 overall and section bands, and a comparable 0–120 overall score. Because each band maps directly to a level, you can read the CEFR level for each skill straight from its section band.
Most test takers are stronger in the receptive skills (Reading, Listening) or in the productive ones (Speaking, Writing), so their section levels differ. A profile of 5.0 Reading, 5.0 Listening, 4.5 Speaking and 4.0 Writing averages 4.625 and rounds to an overall 4.5 — B2 overall, with two C1 skills and two B2 skills. If you are working towards a C1 requirement, the two B2 sections are the place to spend your time.
Some institutions, employers and agencies state requirements per skill (for example, a minimum level in Speaking). In that case your overall CEFR line is not the relevant number. The score calculator shows how changes in one section move the overall band.
CEFR levels are broad, and moving between them takes real language growth, not only test practice. As a rough guide to where effort pays off:
A TOEFL study plan can turn that into a week-by-week schedule once you know your starting level.
Most major English tests publish their own alignment to CEFR, which is why CEFR is often used as a common reference point when comparing them. Those alignments are each test owner’s own work, and they are not always built the same way. When an institution states requirements for several tests, use the number it gives for the test you are taking. For a direct comparison with IELTS, see the IELTS to TOEFL converter, which uses ETS’s published table.
Find your level, then move up one
Free lessons and practice for every 2026 TOEFL task type, from A2 basics to C1 precision.
Official pages checked for this guide. Last reviewed October 2026.