Free study guide
How to prepare for the CELPIP
What every part tests, how to spend your time, the mistakes that cost levels — and original model answers for writing and speaking. Read a section, then practise that part straight away.
Section guides
One guide for each skill
Each guide follows the real part order, with tips for every part and the habits that lift your level.
- Free practice
Listening
6 parts · about 55 min
Six parts of everyday English that you hear only once.
- Listening to Problem Solving
- Listening to a Daily Life Conversation
- Listening for Information
- Listening to a News Item
- Listening to a Discussion
- Listening to Viewpoints
TipIn the first section, find out what the problem is and who has to solve it. Later questions build on this.
Read the listening guide → - Free practice
Reading
4 parts · about 56 min
Messages, a diagram, an information text and an opinion article.
- Reading Correspondence
- Reading to Apply a Diagram
- Reading for Information
- Reading for Viewpoints
TipRead the whole first message before the questions — it usually explains a request and the reason for it.
Read the reading guide → - AI-rated
Writing
2 tasks · about 53 min
An email for a real situation, then a survey response with your opinion.
- Writing an Email
- Responding to Survey Questions
TipCover every bullet point, in a sensible order. Missing one point lowers your score more than a small grammar error.
Read the writing guide → - AI-rated
Speaking
8 tasks · about 15 min
Eight short tasks: advise, tell, describe, predict, persuade, handle, argue, explain.
- Giving Advice
- Talking about a Personal Experience
- Describing a Scene
- Making Predictions
- Comparing and Persuading
- Dealing with a Difficult Situation
- Expressing Opinions
- Describing an Unusual Situation
TipSay your main advice in the first sentence, then give two reasons.
Read the speaking guide →
Model answers
See what a strong answer looks like
Written for this site, with notes on why each one works. Read for structure — don’t memorise.
- 2 writing
- 8 speaking
“I know you’re really busy at the moment, but I think you can still get fitter without finding a lot of extra time. First of all, try to build exercise into things you already do.”
- The main advice comes in the first sentence, then three concrete suggestions.
- Advice language is varied: you could, if I were you, I’d, ask a friend.
- It ends with an encouraging sentence, which suits a friend.
Strong answer (around level 9)
Official samples vs our mocks
Official free practice: see the real screens
The official CELPIP website offers free practice material that runs in an interface like the real test — the screens, buttons and timers. Try it before test day so nothing on screen surprises you. It opens on the official site; we do not copy its questions.
No score, no rating. It shows you the questions, but there is no score for your speaking and writing — they are not rated. To find out what level you would get, take one of our mock tests: listening and reading are scored automatically, and speaking and writing are rated by AI.
Take a scored mock test| What you get | Official sample tests | Our mock tests |
|---|---|---|
| Questions in the official format | Yes | Yes |
| The real computer screens | Yes | Close to it |
| Timed sections in the official order | Yes | Yes |
| A score at the end | No | Yes |
| Speaking and writing rated against the criteria | No | Yes |
Test day
The week before, and on the day
The week before
- Take one full mock test in the official order to practise keeping focus for about three hours.
- Stop learning new material in the last two days — review your notes and mistakes instead.
- Check your booking: time, test centre address, and the ID you must bring.
On the day
- Sleep well and arrive early so you are not rushing.
- Keep an eye on the timer in each part and leave no question unanswered — guessing is not penalised.
- In Listening, each recording plays only once: focus from the first second.
- In Speaking, use the preparation time to plan and keep talking until the time ends.
Free official resources
The official CELPIP website publishes free preparation material. Our guides are written in our own words and our questions and model answers are original — for the official versions, use these links.
- CELPIP official website ↗Test dates, booking, fees, ID rules and official preparation materials.
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Full CELPIP mock tests · real timing · AI-rated speaking & writing · scored 1–12
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