CELPIP Score Chart: Levels, CLB and Correct Answers out of 38
The CELPIP score chart in one place. How CELPIP levels map to CLB and CRS points, roughly how many Listening and Reading answers each level takes, and what M means.
The Celpip Plus team
Written and reviewed against the official CELPIP scoring criteria
CELPIP gives you a level for each skill, not one overall score, and immigration programs read those levels through the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB). This page puts the charts people search for in one place: CELPIP level to CLB, CLB to Express Entry points, and roughly how many Listening and Reading answers each level takes.
To check your own four scores against program minimums, use the CELPIP to CLB calculator.
CELPIP level to CLB
IRCC's official equivalency chart treats CELPIP-General scores as one-to-one with CLB from 4 to 9. Anything from 10 up counts as CLB 10+, and anything below 4 counts as below CLB 4.
| CELPIP score | CLB level |
|---|---|
| 10, 11 or 12 | CLB 10+ |
| 9 | CLB 9 |
| 8 | CLB 8 |
| 7 | CLB 7 |
| 6 | CLB 6 |
| 5 | CLB 5 |
| 4 | CLB 4 |
| Below 4, or M | Below CLB 4 |
This applies skill by skill. A result of Listening 9, Reading 8, Writing 7, Speaking 9 is CLB 9, 8, 7 and 9, and a program that asks for CLB 7 in all four looks at each of those four numbers on its own.
CLB to Express Entry (CRS) points
In Express Entry, your first official language earns Comprehensive Ranking System points per skill. The points depend on the CLB level and on whether a spouse or partner is coming with you.
| CLB per skill | Points without spouse | Points with spouse |
|---|---|---|
| Below CLB 4 | 0 | 0 |
| CLB 4 or 5 | 6 | 6 |
| CLB 6 | 9 | 8 |
| CLB 7 | 17 | 16 |
| CLB 8 | 23 | 22 |
| CLB 9 | 31 | 29 |
| CLB 10+ | 34 | 32 |
The biggest single jumps are from CLB 6 to 7 and from CLB 8 to 9. CLB 9 in all four skills is 124 points without a spouse, and the maximum is 136.
Listening and Reading: correct answers out of 38
Listening and Reading each have 38 scored questions, and every correct answer counts once. CELPIP's own study materials publish an approximate chart of how raw scores line up with levels. It is approximate because each test form is equated separately: a harder set of questions can need fewer correct answers for the same level.
| CELPIP level | Listening (correct out of 38) | Reading (correct out of 38) |
|---|---|---|
| 10–12 | 35–38 | 33–38 |
| 9 | 33–35 | 31–33 |
| 8 | 30–33 | 28–31 |
| 7 | 27–31 | 24–28 |
| 6 | 22–28 | 19–25 |
| 5 | 17–23 | 15–20 |
| 4 | 11–18 | 10–16 |
| 3 | 7–12 | 8–11 |
| M | 0–7 | 0–7 |
Two things follow from the overlapping ranges. First, a single raw count can sit on the edge of two levels, so 31 in Listening might be level 7 or 8. Second, aiming for the bottom of a range is risky; for CLB 7 in Listening, plan for at least 31 correct rather than 27.
Your score report doesn't show the raw count, only the level. These numbers are useful for practice: if you mark a full practice test, they tell you roughly where you are.
Writing and Speaking
Writing and Speaking have no correct-answer count. Each response is scored against four criteria:
- Writing: Content/Coherence, Vocabulary, Readability and Task Fulfillment.
- Speaking: Content/Coherence, Vocabulary, Listenability and Task Fulfillment.
The result is reported as a level on the same scale and converts to CLB in the same way as Listening and Reading. Our Writing samples and Speaking samples show what answers at different levels look like.
M, and why there's no overall score
M is the result for a skill below the lowest numbered level. For immigration it counts as below CLB 4, which earns no CRS points and misses every program minimum for that skill.
Your report also shows an Average Score across the four skills. Immigration doesn't use it: IRCC converts each skill separately, and programs set their minimums per skill. One weak skill can therefore block an application even when the average looks comfortable.
For what to do when one skill falls short, see CELPIP results. For the scores each immigration program asks for, see CELPIP scores for Canadian immigration and, for a work permit after graduating, CELPIP score for PGWP.
Frequently asked questions
Usually around level 8 or 9. On CELPIP's approximate chart, 30–33 correct is level 8 and 33–35 is level 9. The ranges overlap because each test form is equated separately, so the exact level for 32 depends on the questions you had.
Roughly 27–31 out of 38 in Listening and 24–28 out of 38 in Reading, on CELPIP's approximate chart. Treat these as a guide: the raw count for a level varies a little from one test form to the next.
For CELPIP-General, yes in practice. IRCC's chart treats a CELPIP score of 4 to 9 as the same CLB level, and a score of 10 or more as CLB 10+. Scores below 4, and M, are below CLB 4.
M is the result for a skill that falls below the lowest numbered level CELPIP reports. For immigration it counts as below CLB 4, so it won't meet any program minimum for that skill.
No. IRCC converts each skill's score to a CLB level separately, and programs set minimums per skill. The Average Score on your report isn't used for that.
Not one based on correct answers. Writing and Speaking have no right-or-wrong questions; responses are scored against four criteria, such as Content/Coherence and Vocabulary, and the result is reported as a level on the same 1–12 scale.