Free TOEFL Practice Test (PDF)

Ready to download the PDF version of your complete TOEFL practice test?

Well here it is: Complete TOEFL Test #13

Or are you looking for TOEFL Reading Practice Questions ? Well, we have 100 of those for free right here. 100 TOEFL Reading Practice Questions

But wait! 

Getting a complete TOEFL practice test is only half the battle.
You also need to learn the structure of the test and how to study effectively. 

By the end of this short article, you will be able to distinguish the difference between the Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing sections of the TOEFL. You will also discover five TOEFL study tips to help organize your study schedule and improve your TOEFL score.

The TOEFL Exam Structure

The TOEFL exam is broken into 4 sections:

  1. The Reading Section
  2. The Listening Section
  3. The Speaking Section
  4. The Writing Section

Let’s take a closer look at what each of these sections involve…

1. The TOEFL Reading Section

The first part of the exam is the TOEFL Reading section. In the reading section, there are three academic passages of approximately 700 words each. The subjects will consist of texts you might find in a typical university textbook. Following each passage are 12 to 14 questions about the reading passage. You will have one hour to read the three passages and answer the 40 questions in total.

There are 10 types of questions in the Reading section of the TOEFL. The frequency of each question type varies. Here is a helpful chart of the question types with examples of the question phrasing.

There is a table here. Please rotate your phone to landscape in order to see it. (TABLE 1)
The Reading Section Question Types
Question TypeQuestion Frequency
(per section)
Question ValueQuestion Phrasing
1.vocabulary10-121"The word _______ in paragraph 2
is closest in meaning to..."
2.detail10-121"According to paragraph 4, what..."
"Which of the following"
"It is stated in paragraph 4 that..."
3.negative detail4-61"All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 3 EXCEPT..."
"Which of the following is NOT mentioned in paragraph 2"
4.inference3-51"What can be inferred from paragraph 5 about..."
"Paragraph 5 implies that..."
"Paragraph 5 suggests that..."
5.rethorical purpose3-51"In paragraph 6, the author discusses _______ in order to..."
"Why does the author mention..."
6.paraphrasing31"Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in parapgraph 4?"
7.sentence insertion31"In paragraph 2 there is a missing sentence.
Where would the sentence best fit?"
8.pronoun referent0-21"The word ______ in paragraph 1 referes to..."
9.summary1-32"An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choises that express the most important ideas in the passage"
10.organization0-12-3"Complete the table below to summarize information about _______ in the passage. Match the appropriate statements to _______"

For more information about the TOEFL Reading section, check out this post by Professional ESL Test Prep 

2. The TOEFL Listening Section

After the Reading section, you will have another hour to complete the Listening section. The Listening section is divided into two identical parts. In each part, you will have three listening passages: one conversation, between a student and campus employee, and two academic lectures. The conversations last 2-4 minutes and the academic lectures are approximately five minutes each.

You will be asked five questions after the conversation, ten in total, and six questions after each of the four academic lectures, 24 in total. The question types, like in the Reading section, vary. This chart explains the question types, with examples of phrasing, and the frequency of the question type:

There is a table here. Please rotate your phone to landscape in order to see it. (TABLE 2)
The Listening Section Question Types
Question TypeQuestion Frequency
(per section)
Question ValueQuestion Phrasing
1. gist - content61"What is the topic of the discussion?"
"What is the professor mainly discussing?"
2. gist - purpose3-51"Why does the student visit the professor?"
"Why does the professor mention...?"
3. detail10-121-2"What is stated in the passage about..."
"According to the speaker..."
4. attitude3-51"What is the professor's oppinion of...?"
"What can be inferred about the student?"
5. function3-41"What doest the speaker mean when he says..."
"Why does the professor say this..."
6. inference5-61"What can be inferred about...?"
"What does the speaker imply about..?"
7. organization41-3"How does the professor organize the information about..."

Curious what these conversations and lectures sound like?
Exam English provides some audio samples here.

Then you will get a 10 minutes break…

Use this break wisely. Stand up, stretch your legs, use the restroom, or have a small snack. When you return, you will still have two hours left in your TOEFL exam.

3. The TOEFL Speaking Section

After the break comes the TOEFL Speaking section. The Speaking section is different from the previous Listening and Reading sections. In this section, you will answer six questions. The first two questions are independent questions and the remaining four questions are integrated questions.

The independent questions focus on your opinion about a topic. The first of these two questions is an open question, such as, “What do you think about…?” The second is very similar, but asks a paired question where you have to choose a side to agree or disagree with. You have 15 seconds to prepare and 45 seconds to speak for each question. Here are a few examples: 

What advice would you give to a friend who is traveling abroad to study at a university?

Do you agree or disagree with following statement: All high school students should wear school uniforms. 

The integrated questions are all different in type, task, and time to prepare and speak. They all involve a listening passage, and questions three and four also include a reading passage. You will be expected to discuss and summarize each.  Here is a breakdown of the four integrated speaking questions:

There is a table here. Please rotate your phone to landscape in order to see it. (TABLE 3)
Integrated Speaking
Question TypeQuestion ExplanationTime
Question 3 - campus anouncement and conversationReport on the opinion of one of the speakers in the conversation and explain why he or she feels that way.50 seconds to read
60-120 seconds to listen
30 seconds to prepare
60 seconds to speak
Question 4 - academic topic and lectureExplain the academic topic introduced in the reading and describe the main points about the topic described in the lecture.50 seconds to read
60-120 seconds to listen
30 seconds to prepare
60 seconds to speak
Question 5 - campus conversationDescribe the problem of one of the speakers.
After that, decide which suggestion would be best.
120-180 seconds to listen
20 seconds to prepare
60 seconds to speak
Question 6 - academic lectureSum up the topic and main points from the lecture120-180 seconds to listen
20 seconds to prepare
60 seconds to speak

4. The TOEFL Writing Section

Finally, you have arrived at the last section, the TOEFL Writing section. The Writing section also lasts one hour. Here, you will be expected to write an essay in response to two separate writing tasks. 

The first is an integrated writing task, and the second is an independent writing task. The integrated writing is almost identical to question #4 in the Speaking Section above. You will read a passage, listen to a lecture, and then write about the two.

The last question on the exam is the independent writing task. You will be asked for your opinion about a topic, similar to Speaking questions #1 and #2 above.

Here is a breakdown of the tasks and the time allocations for the TOEFL Writing section:

There is a table here. Please rotate your phone to landscape in order to see it. (TABLE 4)
The Writing Section Question Types
Question TypeQuestion ExplanationTime
Integrated Essay
Academic reading, listening and writing
(250-300 words)
Connect the topic of the reading with the academic lecture.
Show how the main points in the reading are contrasted by the lecturer. Only report on the information you heard and read
3 minutes to read
2-3 minutes to listen
20 minutes to write
Independent Writing
Write your oppinion on a random topic
(400-500 words)
Write about your oppinion. Include supporting reasons and personal anecdotes30 minutes to write

Looking for more information on the Writing section?
Check out this link from the ETS website.

Woo hoo! The TOEFL is so exciting, right?

Excited enough to download the PDF version of a free and complete TOEFL practice test?  Download our free TOEFL Practice Test

Now that you are familiar with the structure of the TOEFL, it’s time to check out some exclusive TST Prep TOEFL Tips.

Five Tips to

Here are five actions you must take while studying for the TOEFL so you can improve your score. 

TIP 1:
Get Used to the Clock

This is a timed test! And, each section of the TOEFL lasts somewhere between 30 minutes to an hour. Therefore, it is very important to get used to working with the clock.

When studying at home, ALWAYS do practice tests under the test time constraints. This will prepare you to work under pressure and manage your time on test day. See the time breakdowns above for each section of the exam.

If you are struggling, practice without a timer first. Start to incorporate the timer with your TOEFL studies once you feel more comfortable working under the clock.

TIP 2:
Type Without Spellcheck

On the TOEFL exam, you will not have access to spellcheck. Therefore, you should be practicing with spellcheck turned off! You are going to be responsible for finding your own grammar, spelling, and punctuation mistakes on test day, so start practicing this now!

This is especially true for the Writing section, where you will be writing 300 to 400-word essays. Give yourself extra time to edit and proofread your answers since you won’t have spellcheck there to do it for you.

Want more tips for how to tackle the Writing section?
Check out our 10 Awesome TOEFL Writing Tips

TIP 3:
Take Notes Like a TOEFL pro

Throughout the test, one of the most important things to do is to take notes! You will need to give yourself a little extra time to gather your thoughts and plan your answers. So, during the exam, you need to take good notes. Therefore, you should practice taking notes on your practice tests too.

I can’t emphasize this enough.

Note taking is important for EVERY section of the exam!

Want to know more about taking notes in the Reading section?
Check out Guide to TOEFL Reading Time Management

TIP 4:
STudy like an American!

As you prepare for the TOEFL, you should do a lot of TOEFL practice tests. Grading the TOEFL Reading and Listening sections of the exam is easy, but the speaking and writing sections will require professional help from a teacher or TOEFL expert. 

Don’t make the same mistake as others. You need someone who knows about the TOEFL to listen to your speaking and read your writing responses. They will tell you your strengths, weaknesses and exactly what you need to do to improve. 

If you just download the free TOEFL practice PDF without asking someone to grade your speaking and writing, then you are NOT putting yourself in a position to improve. 

That’s why there are certified English teachers out there who are available to give you feedback on your practice exams, especially for the Speaking and Writing sections. Reach out to them to get the help you need while preparing for the TOEFL. 

TIP 5:
Prepare for a noisy TOEFL Test

Be prepared for a noisy room on test day. At the test center, you will hear the voices of other students because everyone will be responding to the speaking section questions at different times.

There will also be noise from people dropping their pencils, coughing, opening and closing doors, etc. Trust us, it is not going to be ideal for test taking.

So, in order to simulate this kind of test environment, take your complete TOEFL practice tests in a coffee shop or in another, louder area. That way, you will already know how to ignore these kinds of distractions on test day!

Look, we know the TOEFL exam is a huge undertaking, and kudos to you for taking it on!

Don’t forget your free TOEFL Practice Test PDF here:

Complete TOEFL Test #13

Did you find these TOEFL tips helpful? Is there another TOEFL tip you believe is useful? 

Let us know in the comments section below. 

And we are always here to help if you have any questions: [email protected]


  1. Maria

    Hello, I am really happy studying here and I am planning to take classes with this program the next year. I feel that my English is not good enough at this moment so I am taking advanced English classes at college first. But I have a question, how can I know if my English is good enough for taking the TOEFL test?

    • Josh MacPherson

      That’s a great question Maria. Well, you’re writing in this comment is excellent! Besides that, you could take our TOEFL Diagnostic test, which is a shortened version of the test so you can discover your current approximate level –

      Let me know if there’s any other way we can help!

  2. Corlia van der Walt

    I am feeling very anxious this morning. My test is this coming Saturday (28 September) and it feels like despite studying and reading a lot, I am not getting far! Is this normal? For instance the writing section, I have followed the tips on your website and your videos (keep it simple, don’t try to be smart) however if you read the high rated answers to the independent writing they sound very smart! This is confusing to me as I feel that a “simple” answer and sticking to facts might not be rated so high?

    • Josh MacPherson

      Hi Corlia and thank you for your question. For the speaking and writing sections, everyone performs at a different level and has their own strengths and weaknesses. It is hard for me to give specific advice to you in your situation without reading your writing. In general, when students try to “sound smart”, they tend to use vocabulary and grammar they don’t understand very well, and the graders can tell that the essay is awkward, hence my advice.

      However, if you are comfortable writing in complex lexical and grammatical then try to sound smart! If you are still confused, I would suggest meeting a teacher or submitting an essay for evaluation here.

      Hope that answers your question.


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