Why do TOEIC and IELTS scores differ for the same person?

They measure different skills. TOEIC Listening & Reading does not include speaking or writing, while IELTS assesses productive skills as well. Both results can accurately measure different abilities.

CEFR Score Converter: IELTS, TOEFL 1–6 & TOEIC

How to Use This Tool

Every English test comparison chart online shows you a tidy grid of numbers. Almost none of them tell you that the columns and the rows have completely different levels of authority.

What is actually published

Each test owner publishes how its own test maps to the CEFR, the Common European Framework of Reference. The current TOEFL iBT score report uses a 1–6 scale in half-point steps for tests taken on or after January 21, 2026. ETS publishes the CEFR alignment for that scale. Earlier test results use the 0–120 scale; the legacy bands in this tool are derived by grouping ETS’s official crosswalk ranges into those same CEFR bands.

What nobody publishes is a direct conversion from one owner's test to another's. There is no official IELTS-to-TOEIC number, and there never has been. ETS does not certify what an IELTS 6.5 is worth, and IELTS does not certify what a TOEIC 800 is worth. They are competitors measuring different things with different formats.

Why the derived conversion loses so much

Any cross-test comparison has to route through CEFR, and CEFR levels are wide. B2 covers IELTS 5.5 to 6.5 — three half bands. It also covers TOEIC 785 to 944 — a 159-point span. So converting IELTS 6.5 to TOEIC honestly produces “somewhere in 785–944”, not a single number.

This is why the tool gives you a range. A single converted number would be inventing precision that the underlying mappings do not contain.

How to use this responsibly

Use the CEFR level as the real answer. It is the only claim supported by the test owner, and it is what employers and European institutions increasingly ask for directly.

Use the derived equivalents only to answer “roughly, am I in the right region?” before deciding which test to sit. Never quote one to an institution. If a university asks for TOEFL 90 and you have IELTS 6.5, the answer is not “that is about the same” — the answer is that you need to check that specific university's own accepted-tests list, because many accept only certain tests and set their own thresholds regardless of CEFR.

The tests are not measuring the same thing

Beyond the arithmetic, the comparison is shakier than it looks. TOEIC Listening & Reading contains no speaking or writing at all, so aligning it to IELTS — which is half productive skills — compares two different constructs. A candidate strong at reading and weak at speaking can score very differently on the two, and both scores are correct measurements of different things.

Nothing is stored

The lookup runs in your browser and nothing is transmitted. Test scores are personal, and a conversion table has no business collecting them.

Official TOEFL score-scale sources

ETS states that the 1–6 scale took effect for tests on or after January 21, 2026, and publishes its CEFR bands and a comparison with the prior 0–120 scale. The current scale’s overall score averages the four section scores and rounds to the nearest half band. ETS also cautions that institutions set their own score requirements, so confirm the accepted test and threshold directly with each school.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there an official IELTS to TOEIC conversion?

No, and there never has been. Each test owner publishes how their own test aligns to the CEFR, but nobody publishes a direct conversion to a competitor's test. Any IELTS-to-TOEIC figure you see was derived by routing through CEFR, which is a wide framework — B2 alone spans IELTS 5.5 to 6.5 and TOEIC 785 to 944.

What CEFR level is IELTS 6.5?

B2, according to the alignment published by IELTS itself. B2 covers IELTS 5.5 through 6.5, so 6.5 sits at the top of that band. C1 begins at IELTS 7.0.

What TOEIC score equals IELTS 6.5?

Honestly, a range rather than a number: IELTS 6.5 is CEFR B2, and ETS places B2 at TOEIC 785 to 944. Any chart that gives you a single TOEIC figure has invented precision that the underlying mappings do not contain.

Which mapping should I trust?

The one from each test to CEFR, because the organisation that built and validates the test is the one making the claim. Reading across a row from one test to another is the derived step, and this tool marks it as such rather than presenting everything with equal confidence.

Can I give a university my converted score?

No. Institutions specify which tests they accept and what score they require in each, and those requirements do not follow CEFR consistently. If a university asks for TOEFL 90, an IELTS score of any level does not satisfy it unless that university separately lists IELTS. Always check the accepted-tests list rather than converting.

Why do TOEIC and IELTS scores differ so much for the same person?

Because they measure different things. TOEIC Listening & Reading contains no speaking or writing at all, while roughly half of IELTS is productive skills. Someone who reads well and speaks hesitantly will look much stronger on TOEIC, and both results are accurate measurements of what each test actually assesses.

How long is a score valid?

Two years for IELTS, TOEFL and TOEIC from the test date. Cambridge qualifications do not formally expire, though many institutions apply their own recency rules and will ask for a recent result regardless of what the certificate says.

Which TOEFL scale should I choose?

Use TOEFL iBT (1–6) for tests taken on or after January 21, 2026. Choose TOEFL iBT legacy (0–120) for earlier tests. During the transition, ETS score reports include a comparable 0–120 overall score for two years.

How are legacy TOEFL 0–120 CEFR ranges calculated?

They are derived by grouping ETS’s published 0–120 to 1–6 score crosswalk with its current 1–6 CEFR bands. The tool shows ranges because different legacy total scores can fall within the same CEFR band; the ranges are not a direct conversion to IELTS, TOEIC or another test.

CEFR Score Conversion: IELTS, TOEFL, TOEIC & Cambridge

How the calculation works