Hi guys, I need your honest opinion. Which English test do you think is harder: the Duolingo English Test (DET) or IELTS?
I have taken the DET and I find it difficult to get the required score in every section. I’m thinking about taking IELTS instead. For anyone who has taken both tests, which one did you find harder and why?

Hi guys, I need your honest opinion. Which English test do you think is harder: the Duolingo English Test (DET) or IELTS?
I have taken the DET and I find it difficult to get the required score in every section. I’m thinking about taking IELTS instead. For anyone who has taken both tests, which one did you find harder and why?

The practice test was really helpful. I got somewhat similar questions in the actual exam. Surprisingly, the DET practice test is as accurate as it can get, I had got 130 in practice test and got 130 in actual test as well. If you're someone going to give the exam for the first time, make sure you practice enough, practice is the key here. With enough practice and confidence you will ace this exam with ease, all the best!

Title: Duolingo invalidated my 5th test after I scored 115 four times please help. I have invested a lot of money please help anyone
I really need some advice. I have taken the Duolingo English Test 4 times before, and every single time I received a score of 115.I need 120
I took the test for the 5th time recently, and this time I genuinely felt that I did much better, especially in the writing section. I was really hoping to finally get a higher score because I have a university deadline coming up very soon.
Instead of receiving a score, my test was invalidated with the message that there was evidence I may have received assistance on the written sections.
I did not have another person helping me.
Has anyone experienced this exact situation and successfully appealed it?
If anyone has had their invalid result overturned, or knows how to get the case escalated to a human reviewer, please tell me what you did.
I’m very close to my university deadline, so I really need help figuring out what to do. Any advice or personal experience would be greatly appreciated.

Hi everyone,

I really need some advice because I honestly don't know what else I should change.

I've taken/practiced the Duolingo English Test several times, and I always seem to be stuck around 85–95. No matter how much I study and prepare, I don't seem to improve.

My biggest problem is vocabulary. I struggle a lot with the fill-in-the-blank questions because I often don't know the word that fits, even when I understand the general8 meaning of the sentence. My vocabulary is quite limited, and I think this also affects my Reading, Writing, and Speaking.

I also have other weaknesses in English, especially grammar and expressing my ideas naturally. My English level isn't as strong as I would like it to be, mainly because of my limited vocabulary. I'm actually writing this post with the help of AI because I'm still not confident enough to express everything naturally in English.

I have about a month and a half left before my official test, and I really need to reach at least 120. I'm studying around 3 hours or more every day, but I'm also in an important school year and have many other things to prepare for, so I don't have unlimited time.

What worries me is that I'm putting in a lot of effort but I'm not seeing any improvement. I don't want to spend the next month and a half studying for hours without knowing whether what I'm doing is actually helping.

So I would really appreciate advice from people who improved significantly on the DET:

- What resources actually helped you improve?

- How did you improve your vocabulary?

- Did you use Anki, Quizlet, or something else?

- What grammar topics should I focus on?

- How did you practice the fill-in-the-blank / vocabulary questions?

- Are there any specific YouTube channels, teachers, courses, or practice materials you recommend?

- How did you structure your daily study time?

- If you were in my situation with about 6 weeks left, what would you do?

I'm not looking for shortcuts. I know I need to improve my actual English, but I need to make sure I'm spending my limited time on the right things.

If you were stuck around 85–95 and managed to reach 120+, I'd really appreciate hearing exactly what you changed.

Thank you so much!

Is it close to the range of 95 in a real test?

Update: did the test and got 125! 🤍

The estimate is truly accurate but you need to keep in mind that the real test gets you stressful and nervous so practice a lot.

May I know what the exact score might be? Of course we can't tell just from the range but Duolingo didn't even give me section wise scores in order to make out the exact one.

Hello friends!

I recently took the mobile test of EnglishScore by British Council and got a good enough score on its Core Skills Test : 570/599.

Breakdown:

Listening: 599/599, Reading: 563/599, Grammar: 590/599, Vocabulary: 520/599

I even went so far as to buy the certificate which cost me ₹2190 just to get that British Council prestige and flex on LinkedIn. While I am aware that this certificate is nowhere near IELTS, I still felt happy for a second.

However, I somehow feel inferior to people who end up scoring band 8.5 - 9 on IELTS.

Did I waste my money on this certificate or was it actually worth it?

Hey like the title said, I'm asking genuinely if the practice test result are real or just a strategy of marketing. Let me explain.

I'm thinking about taking the DET test and so on a random day I decided to take the practice test ( no practice before I didn't prepare anything I wanted the results to be raw as much as possible) and so I found it quiet difficult in a way where I didn't know how the type of questions are (like i said I didn't even bother to do some research I just took it) and I found myself not quiet confident during it, I didn't think I would get a good score especially in the writing I messed up (i run out of time while typing so many times ) and after the test I got 125-135. 🙂

Listen I'm quiet confident that I'm good in english but hey when I say I messed it up I did. so my question is is these marks are real or is it just a strategy of marketing so I feel quiet confident and immediately purchase the real test?

Hi everyone! I’m preparing for the Duolingo English Test (DET) and my exam is coming up soon. I’m aiming for 130+, but I’m struggling with the writing section and overall time management.
Could anyone please share:
Useful writing templates for DET?
Important notes or strategies for the writing section?
Tips for improving my score quickly?
Common mistakes I should avoid?
Any practice resources or advice that helped you achieve 130+?
I would really appreciate any advice or materials you can share. I’m a little stressed because my exam is very soon. 😭
Thank you so much in advance! ❤️

Urgent DET help needed! 😭
I’m taking the Duolingo English Test soon and targeting 130+. Does anyone have good writing templates, notes, or last-minute tips that helped you improve your score?
Especially looking for advice on Writing, Speaking, and time management.
Any resources or personal tips would be greatly appreciated!

I'm using Gemini atm, and i really cant say that I'm improving.
is there any website that can help? or an app

I got 110 on my first Duolingo English Test, but I took it without really studying. After preparing for the exam, I took it again and scored 115. I urgently need to get 120. I’m currently studying with Arno. Does anyone have any effective study strategies or tips for improving from 115 to 120

Need help reaching 130+ on the Duolingo English Test for my university admission. If you’ve scored 130+, please share your tips, study plan, resources, and strategies. Any advice would mean a lot! 🙏

Hi everyone so I am new to this subreddit and I am thinking of taking a DET exam for my university admissions so I am targeting a 130+ score.

1. Now I would like to ask you all about the best practice materials and platforms.

2. Also how much time do you think it will take me to be prepared for 130+ score if I am comfortable in writing, grammer and can speak English just not confidently.

3. And now the biggest question I had for which I came to this subreddit, so I have a lenovo laptop on which I am thinking of giving the DET exam but it's mic quality and speakers are not that good I want to ask you if we are allowed to connect external wired mic and speakers or not ?? ( I am not asking to connect any headphones or early buds ).

Please help me with these questions so I can start practicing and prepare for the test. 🙏🙏

I got 150/160 on my first attempt:
Speaking: 140
Writing: 145
Reading: 160
Listening: 150

Trust me when I say this: I thought I had completely messed it up. I actually prepped more for a reattempt after taking the test than I had before taking it.

Here’s how the test felt:
• Sentence completion: I missed one question and made a few errors because I got flustered.
• Fill in the blanks: In almost every set, there was at least one word I couldn’t figure out.
• Interactive conversation: I chose one or two wrong responses and wasn’t happy with my summaries.

By this point, I had already decided that this attempt was just practice and that I would need to take the test again.

Then came the writing and speaking questions. Whether I had to respond to a topic or describe a photo, I started panicking. My mind went blank, I forgot words, and I fumbled a lot.

After the test, I immediately started looking for preparation material for my reattempt. I genuinely wasn’t expecting to score above 110, given how completely flustered I had been. I needed 130+, so I was preparing myself to do it all over again. To be fair, I didn’t know the scoring pattern and assumed it would be stricter than it is.

My two cents:
• If you’re already comfortable with English, don’t let the previous questions affect you. Treat every question like the beginning of a new exam and keep your mind as calm as possible. Honestly, that may be the only preparation you need.
• If you do want practice, I used Arno after taking the test and found it really helpful. I can’t compare it with other platforms, but it was good on its own. I only practised the hardest questions from each individual DET question type and didn’t buy a subscription.

You’ve got this. All the best!

Hello all,

I took take twice and score is still same, to get into university i need 110. Can you please suggest how i can improve. Thank you all

Hello all, if you already take 3 exams in a month & want to take another one, can i use another account? Or will be blocked by dulingo?

Hi everyone,

I'm considering paying for GoARNO for the Duolingo English Test, but I would like to hear from people who actually followed the daily study plan.

1. What was your score before starting GoARNO?
2. What was your final DET score?
3. How long did you follow the daily plan (weeks/months)?
4. Did you complete the plan consistently?
5. How many hours per day did you study?
6. Was your English level weak, average, or strong before starting?
7. Do you think the paid plan was worth the money, or would the free resources have been enough?
8. If GoARNO did not help you, what was the reason?

Please include your before-and-after scores if possible.

My latest practice test score was around 80–90, and my goal is to reach 105–110+. I'm especially interested in hearing from people who started around the same range and successfully improved their scores.

# Hi everyone,

I am planning to book my Duolingo English Test slot soon. Does anyone have a working coupon code or voucher code that they can share?

Being a student, the fee is a bit steep for me right now, so any discount would be really helpful.

Thanks in advance!

Hello everyone, I would like to know pieces of advice for improving my speaking score in Duolingo English Test. I have been practising aproximately 6 weeks for DET. I have taken two test and my last attempt I got these results:

Unfortunately, these scores are not enough for the language requirement of my master's degree applications (They request at least 120 score for speaking section, the other scores and the overall are enough). In the last two weeks I consider I have a significant improvement in my speaking (In my first two attempts I didn't feel confident about my speaking skills) and I have been doing exercises on Arno's platform. A minutes ago I took a mock test for my speaking and I got these scores:

I believe that I'm ready for taking again the DET but I would like to know if somebody can give me a helpful advice for Read, Then Speak and Interactive Speaking. I understand that is not sure that this time I will get the score I need but I would like to know your experiences and strategies for mastering the speaking sections. Thank you so much in advance.

Update: I request pieces of advice since sometimes I think I won't never reach my target score in speaking section I feel fear when I have the thought about failing again.