What TOEFL and IELTS Scores Do You Need? Admitted Students' Score Distribution

What TOEFL score do you need? In data reported on OfferLand, admitted students have a median TOEFL of 99 and a median IELTS of 7. Scores rise with school ranking: admitted students at QS top-20 schools have a median TOEFL of 103, versus 99 at schools ranked below 100. But within the same ranking tier, the median TOEFL of admitted and rejected applicants usually differs by only 1 to 2 points. Language scores act more like a threshold; once you clear it, they rarely decide the outcome.

Key takeaways

• 787 admitted students reported a TOEFL score, with a median total of 99 and the middle 50% between 92 and 103.

• 355 admitted students reported an IELTS score, with a median overall band of 7.0 and the middle 50% between 6.5 and 7.5; the median is 7.0 in every tier, from the top 20 to below 100.

• Among TOEFL takers admitted to QS top-20 schools, 75% scored 100 or above; at schools ranked below 100, only 44% did.

• Comparing admits and rejections in the same tier: at top-20 schools, admitted students' median TOEFL is 103 and rejected applicants' is 102, almost no difference.

• Among admitted students who reported section scores, the median TOEFL Speaking score at top-50 schools is 23, and 66% scored 23 or higher.

TOEFL: the higher the ranking, the higher the score range

Overall, the score range shifts up with ranking, but not by much: the medians for the top 20 and for 51–100 differ by only 2 points. The gap is mainly at the lower end (25th percentile), which rises from 92 to 100.

Schools with the most admits on our site in each tier: top 20, UCL, Cornell and Johns Hopkins; 21–50, Columbia, KCL and Manchester; 51–100, CMU and UIUC; below 100, USC. QS is an overall university ranking and doesn't reflect how competitive any single program is.

Master's and PhD admits differ little. At top-50 schools, admitted PhD students have a median TOEFL of 103, the same as master's students; at schools ranked 51 and below, both are 99.

There are only 25 PhD admits at top-50 schools, so treat that row as a rough reference.

IELTS: the median is 7.0 in every tier

IELTS is scored in 0.5-band steps, so medians tend to land on the same value. What matters is the share at each band: the higher the school's ranking, the larger the share at 7.5 and above.

Fewer than 5 top-20 admits scored 6.0 or below, so no share is shown. The median IELTS Speaking score is 6.5 in every tier.

In our data, most students admitted in the UK submitted IELTS and most admitted in the US submitted TOEFL, but plenty on both sides submitted the other test.

The 41 UK admits who submitted TOEFL have a median of 103, higher than the US overall; most of the schools they were admitted to are in the QS top 100, such as UCL and Edinburgh. UK master's programs are covered in a separate analysis.

TOEFL Speaking: most admits at top schools score 23 or higher

Only 158 users reported TOEFL section scores, so the Speaking sample is much smaller than the total-score sample. The table below therefore merges the top 20 and 21–50 into "Top 50."

About two-thirds of admits at top-100 schools scored 23 or higher on Speaking. Admits with a Speaking score of 20 or below number fewer than 5 at top-50 schools and make up about 15% at schools ranked below 100.

Admitted vs. rejected: only a 1–2 point gap

Within the same school tier, the median TOEFL of admitted and rejected applicants differs by only 1–2 points: 103 vs. 102 in the top 20, 102 vs. 101 at 21–50, 102 vs. 100 at 51–100, and 99 vs. 100 below 100. Once your TOEFL clears a tier's threshold, a few extra points help little; what sets applicants apart is their application essays, experience and GPA.

How to use this data

1. Find the threshold first, then decide whether to retake. For QS top-50 schools, a TOEFL of 100 or IELTS of 7.0 is where most admits sit. If you already have 103+ or 7.5, retaking gains little; your time is better spent on your application documents.

2. Below 95, raising your score comes first. Only 25% of admits at top-20 schools scored below 100, and even schools ranked below 100 have a median of 99. A low score can leave you right at the threshold for many schools.

3. Look at Speaking on its own. Most admits at top-100 schools scored 23 or higher on Speaking. If your total is fine but Speaking is low, check whether your target programs set a minimum section score.

4. Pick either TOEFL or IELTS and do well on it. Plenty of students admitted in both the UK and the US on our site submitted the other test.

5. Compare your profile using admission results. Go to OfferLand admission results and look up admits in the same field at schools in the same tier. That's more accurate than the overall median.

These are distributions of admitted students on our site, not a guarantee of admission; language scores are only one part of an application.

FAQ

Is a TOEFL of 100 enough for top US schools?Based on our data, 75% of TOEFL takers admitted to QS top-20 schools scored 100 or above, with a median of 103. At top schools, 100 sits a bit below the middle but is very common; as long as you meet the program's minimum, other factors matter more.

Can I apply to top UK universities with an IELTS of 6.5?Yes, but it depends on the program's overall and section requirements. Among IELTS takers admitted to QS top-20 schools on our site, 25% had 6.5, 38% had 7.0 and 35% had 7.5 or above.

What TOEFL Speaking score is enough?Admits at top-50 schools on our site have a median Speaking score of 23, and two-thirds scored 23 or higher. Some programs set a separate Speaking minimum, so check it separately.

About the data

• "Taiwanese students" means OfferLand users: most users on our site are students from Taiwan. The data is self-reported by users, there is no nationality field, and it is not official school data.

• Source: statistics from OfferLand's own sample, self-reported by users, not official school data. Data as of 2026-10-12; most application results are from 2023 and 2024 (about 70% combined).

• Language scores: one total score per user. TOEFL includes only scores of 60–120 (excluding the 1–6 scale and obvious outliers); IELTS includes 4.0–9.0. The data records only the reported total and no test date, so it can't separate the new TOEFL format introduced in 2026; this article doesn't convert between the old and new formats.

• Admitted students: users whose result is "admitted" or "admitted and chose to enroll"; admit rate = (admitted + admitted and enrolled) ÷ (admitted + admitted and enrolled + rejected). Waitlisted and pending results are excluded.

• School tiers follow the QS World University Rankings 2027; some schools on our site have no QS ranking and are listed as "unranked."

• Tier statistics count people; someone admitted in several tiers is counted once in each. Only 158 people reported TOEFL section scores. No figure is shown for any cell with fewer than 5 people.