What is the TOEIC test? Complete 2026 guide (format, scores, registration)

The TOEIC Listening and Reading test is a 2-hour, 200-question multiple-choice exam from ETS that measures everyday workplace English on a scale of 10 to 990. Employers worldwide and French engineering schools (785 minimum) accept it as proof of level. A 2026 session in France costs 179 EUR, and scores stay valid for 2 years.

What does TOEIC stand for and who runs it?

TOEIC stands for Test of English for International Communication. The test is designed and scored by ETS and distributed in France by ETS Global, which handles all public registrations. Unlike academic exams such as the TOEFL, the TOEIC measures the English actually used at work: emails, meetings, phone calls, travel arrangements, contracts and reports.

Two versions exist in 2026:

Version	Skills tested	Score scale	Price in France (2026)
TOEIC Listening & Reading (L&R)	Listening and reading comprehension	10-990	179 EUR
TOEIC 4-Skills	Listening, reading, speaking, writing	Four section scores	216 EUR

This guide covers the Listening & Reading test, by far the most widely taken version. Its format has not changed since June 2018, so every score since then is directly comparable and all recent practice material remains valid.

Who requires a TOEIC score?

Three main audiences ask for TOEIC results:

• French engineering schools. The CTI, the national accreditation body for engineering degrees, requires a certified B2 level to graduate, which by convention means a TOEIC score of 785. Selective schools raise their own bar to 800-870.
• Employers and recruiters. HR departments use score bands to shortlist candidates for international roles. The French national average was 705 in 2022, so anything above that already stands out on a CV.
• Business schools and universities, which use the score both for admission and as a graduation requirement.

What is the exact format of the TOEIC Listening and Reading test?

The test contains 200 multiple-choice questions in seven parts, completed in about 2 hours:

Section	Part	Content	Questions
Listening (~45 min)	1	Photographs	6
Listening	2	Question-response	25
Listening	3	Conversations	39
Listening	4	Short talks	30
Reading (75 min)	5	Incomplete sentences	30
Reading	6	Text completion	16
Reading	7	Reading comprehension	54

Practical consequences of this structure:

• The audio plays once only, at natural speed, with a mix of American, British, Australian and Canadian accents. There is no rewind, so accent exposure matters as much as vocabulary.
• Reading is self-paced: 100 questions in 75 minutes leaves 45 seconds per question. Most candidates lose their points in Part 7 (54 questions) by running out of time, not by lacking English.
• Part 5 tests grammar and vocabulary in isolation — 30 questions you can train mechanically; see the dedicated Part 5 strategy guide.

How is the TOEIC scored?

You get one raw point per correct answer, out of 100 per section. ETS then converts each raw score to a scaled score from 5 to 495 through statistical equating, which neutralises difficulty differences between test forms. The two scaled sections add up to a total between 10 and 990 — the scale starts at 10, not 0.

Two scoring rules to exploit:

• No penalty for wrong answers. Never leave a blank: a blind guess has a 25% success rate on most questions and 33% in Part 2, which has only three answer options.
• No pass or fail. Institutions set their own thresholds, so your target depends on who is asking. The full breakdown is in our TOEIC score guide.

What TOEIC score matches each CEFR level?

The conventional total-score equivalences used in France:

CEFR level	Minimum TOEIC total
A1	120
A2	225
B1	550
B2	785
C1	945

The TOEIC does not certify C2. ETS also publishes per-section minima that some institutions check instead of the total: for B2, at least 400 in Listening and 385 in Reading; for C1, 490 in Listening and 455 in Reading.

Should you take the TOEIC or the TOEFL?

Choose by destination. The TOEFL certifies academic English for university admissions (lectures, essays, campus life); the TOEIC certifies workplace English and is the standard demanded by French engineering schools and employers. If your goal is a job, an internship, an apprenticeship or a French engineering degree, take the TOEIC. Full comparison: TOEIC vs TOEFL.

How much does the TOEIC cost in France in 2026?

Item	Price (2026)
Public L&R session (standard rate)	179 EUR
Students, job seekers, military (-17 EUR)	162 EUR
L&R via the digiSchool partnership	159 EUR
TOEIC 4-Skills	216 EUR
Digital score report	Free
Paper certificate with photo	16 EUR

About French public funding: only the TOEIC 4-Skills, when bundled inside a training course, is eligible for the CPF (Compte Personnel de Formation), and since 2 April 2026 every CPF purchase carries a mandatory 150 EUR co-payment — waived for job seekers or when an employer tops up the account. The L&R test alone cannot be paid with CPF credits.

How do you register for a TOEIC session?

1. Book online on the ETS Global website (etsglobal.org), up to about 10 days before the test date.
2. Pick a public session: they run mostly on Saturday mornings in major French cities.
3. On test day, bring a valid photo ID. Your digital score report follows a few days later, free of charge; the paper certificate with photo costs 16 EUR extra.

One restriction to know: the remote-proctored version (ProctorExam) is reserved for partner institutions. Individuals cannot take the TOEIC from home and must attend an in-person public session.

Is the TOEIC changing in 2026?

Partly. The TOEIC 4-Skills moves to a new format on 3 August 2026. The Listening & Reading test does not change: same seven parts, same 200 questions, same 10-990 scale in place since June 2018. If your target is the L&R — the version schools and most employers ask for — your preparation material stays fully valid.

How should you prepare for the TOEIC?

A four-step plan that works for most candidates:

1. Measure your baseline with a free full-length TOEIC practice test under real timing — 200 questions, 2 hours, estimated score at the end.
2. Learn the core vocabulary: the 600 essential TOEIC words cover the recurring business themes (contracts, marketing, banking, travel) and come with spaced-repetition flashcards.
3. Drill part by part with targeted exercises, starting with Part 5, where mechanical grammar rules convert directly into points.
4. Retake a timed mock every week and track the gap to your target score (785 for B2, 945 for C1).

Count your margin: with sessions bookable until about 10 days before the date and results arriving a few days after, a realistic preparation cycle is 4 to 8 weeks.

Put it into practice

The fastest way to know where you stand is to sit the real thing in exam conditions: take our free TOEIC practice test — 200 questions, official timing, instant score estimate with your CEFR level — then build your revision plan around the parts that cost you the most points.