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TOEFL score guide
The short answer: 100+ is competitive at top universities, 90–99 is strong, and around 80 is a common minimum. The honest answer is that a good TOEFL score is whatever youruniversities require — here’s how the 0–120 scale works.
The TOEFL iBT is scored from 0 to 120. It has four sections — Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing — each scored 0 to 30, which add together for your total.
Academic passages with comprehension questions. Scored 0–30.
Lectures and conversations with questions. Scored 0–30.
Independent and integrated spoken tasks, scored by raters. 0–30.
Integrated and writing-for-an-academic-discussion tasks. 0–30.
Approximate overall-score guidance — your exact requirement is set by each university, so always confirm with them and with ETS.
| Total (of 120) | Roughly | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 100–120 | Excellent | Competitive at top and highly selective universities. |
| 90–99 | Strong | Meets the requirement at many competitive universities and graduate programs. |
| 80–89 | Good | Accepted by a large share of universities; a common minimum. |
| 60–79 | Fair | Enough for some programs and many community colleges; check each school. |
| Below 60 | Developing | More preparation usually needed for degree admission. |
Approximate guidance for illustration; universities set their own minimums (and sometimes per-section minimums), and requirements change.
The honest answer
Each university publishes a minimum TOEFL score — and sometimes minimum section scores. Look those up for the schools on your list and target the higher end. An 88 can be perfect for one school and short for another; chase your number, not a generic “good” one.
It depends on where you apply, but as a rough guide: 100+ is competitive at top universities, 90–99 is strong, and around 80 is a common minimum at many schools. The best target is whatever your specific universities require — always check their stated minimum.
The TOEFL iBT is scored from 0 to 120. It has four sections — Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing — each scored from 0 to 30, which add together for your total.
Yes. A total of 100 (out of 120) is a strong score that meets or exceeds the requirement at most universities, including many competitive ones. Some top programs ask for a bit higher or set per-section minimums.
There's no universal cutoff — each university (and sometimes each department) sets its own minimum, often between about 80 and 100, and may require minimum section scores. Look up the exact requirement for your target schools.
No — they're general guidance to show the shape of the scale. ETS publishes the official scoring and score-level information, and each university sets its own requirement. Always confirm the exact score you need with ETS and your university.
Koydo is an independent study aid and is not affiliated with or endorsed by ETS. Score ranges are approximate; confirm current scoring and requirements on the official ETS sources, listed on our sources page.