Duolingo English Test (DET)
Take it from home in about an hour — the budget-friendly option.
The Duolingo English Test is the most affordable and convenient major English test: you take it online from home, any time, in about an hour, and results arrive within two days. The fee is a fraction of IELTS or TOEFL, which makes it popular with students applying to multiple universities.
DET is adaptive — questions get harder or easier based on your answers — and mixes short tasks that test reading, writing, listening and speaking together. Scores run from 10 to 160; most universities that accept DET ask for 105–130.
The catch is acceptance: thousands of universities (especially in the USA and Canada) accept DET for admission, but it is generally NOT accepted for visa-linked routes like UK SELT requirements or Australian visa applications. Always confirm both your university and your visa route accept it before booking.
Duolingo at a glance
Types of Duolingo
One format for all purposes — adaptive, online, at home, with video-proctored security.
Who should choose Duolingo
- ✓US and Canadian university admissions on a budget
- ✓Students who need a score urgently
- ✓Applicants far from a test centre
How BandVisa helps with Duolingo
BandVisa now has AI-scored Duolingo writing practice: timed "Read, Then Write" tasks and free-form Writing Samples, scored on the 10–160 scale with feedback on task fulfilment, coherence, vocabulary and grammar — plus corrections and a model answer for every prompt. Free to start.
Create a free account →Duolingo — common questions
Is the Duolingo English Test accepted for a UK visa? ⌄
No — DET is not on the UK Home Office SELT list. Some UK universities accept it for admission where the university itself sponsors the English assessment, but check both the university and visa requirement carefully.
What DET score equals IELTS 6.5? ⌄
Roughly 110–120 on the DET corresponds to IELTS 6.5. Official concordance tables are published by Duolingo; universities set their own cut-offs.
Can I retake the DET quickly? ⌄
Yes — you can purchase and retake it quickly, subject to Duolingo’s limits per rolling window, and results still arrive within about two days.