The DELE registered close to 143,000 candidates in 2025. The SIELE has issued 128,364 certificates since its first exam in April 2016. This DELE vs SIELE breakdown covers candidate volume, exam centre networks, 2026 fees by country and certificate validity, using figures published by Instituto Cervantes, Gaceta UNAM and the SIELE booking portal.
DELE vs SIELE
- Close to 143,000 candidates registered for DELE exams in 2025, about 4% above 2024.
- 128,364 SIELE certificates have been issued since the first exam in April 2016.
- SIELE Global costs 155 euros. DELE C2 in Spain costs 240 euros for 2026.
- 1,876 SIELE exam centres were active across 90 countries in April 2026.
- DELE diplomas carry indefinite validity. SIELE certificates expire after five years.
How Many People Take the DELE Each Year?
Instituto Cervantes reported close to 143,000 DELE candidates across all 2025 sittings, a rise of about 4% on 2024.
Growth has slowed each year since 2023. The 2023 intake rose 11% on 2022, and the 2024 intake rose close to 9% on 2023.
| Year | Candidates, full year | Year-on-year change |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | More than 132,000 | 11% |
| 2024 | More than 137,000 | Close to 9% |
| 2025 | Close to 143,000 | Close to 4% |
Source: Instituto Cervantes press releases for the November 2023, 2024 and 2025 sittings. Figures are published as approximate by the institution.
The November sitting is the second largest of the year by volume, behind May. For November 2025, 33,944 candidates registered and 75% were graded apto.
Country coverage at that sitting fell from 107 in 2024 to 95 in 2025, while the centre count rose to 596. Demand for Spanish itself keeps climbing, a trend tracked in these figures on the most learned foreign languages by learner count.
| November sitting | Candidates | Exam centres | Cities | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | More than 31,000 | 558 | 420 | 93 |
| 2024 | More than 33,000 | 584 | 440 | 107 |
| 2025 | Close to 34,000 | 596 | 432 | 95 |
Source: Instituto Cervantes press releases for the November 2023, 2024 and 2025 sittings.
How Many SIELE Certificates Have Been Issued?
SIELE reached 128,364 certificates issued by April 2026, covering the full decade since the first exam in April 2016.
The four owner institutions administered 25,263 of those exams through 2025. Instituto Cervantes is the largest single administrator in that group at 12,248 exams.
| Owner institution | SIELE exams administered |
|---|---|
| Instituto Cervantes | 12,248 |
| UNAM | 8,830 |
| Universidad de Salamanca | 3,007 |
| Universidad de Buenos Aires | 1,178 |
| Total | 25,263 |
Source: Gaceta UNAM, Centro de Enseñanza para Extranjeros, 16 April 2026; data through 2025.
Exam volume is heavily concentrated. UNAM reports that 93% of all SIELE exams have been taken in ten countries: Brazil, Spain, China, Argentina, Mexico, France, Italy, the United States, Morocco and Germany. Those markets overlap only partly with where Spanish is spoken natively, mapped in this ranking of the world’s most common languages by speaker count.
Remote proctoring remains a minority channel. Instituto Cervantes recorded more than 5,000 remote SIELE exams during 2024-2025 and 18,000 since the format launched, with Brazil the largest market, followed by Spain, Italy and Argentina.
DELE vs SIELE Exam Centre Networks by Country
Brazil holds 1,021 active SIELE centres, the largest national network by a wide margin. Spain follows with 307.
Fourteen countries hold ten or more centres each and account for 91% of the network. Another 35 countries have a single authorised centre.
| Country | Active SIELE centres |
|---|---|
| Brazil | 1,021 |
| Spain | 307 |
| Italy | 77 |
| Mexico | 60 |
| France | 35 |
| India | 32 |
| China | 32 |
| United States | 29 |
| Argentina | 24 |
| Colombia | 19 |
| Morocco | 17 |
| Germany | 16 |
| United Kingdom | 11 |
| South Korea | 10 |
| Canada | 10 |
Source: Gaceta UNAM, Centro de Enseñanza para Extranjeros, 16 April 2026; countries with ten or more centres.
Two different SIELE network figures are in circulation. Gaceta UNAM reported 1,876 active centres in 90 countries in April 2026, while the Instituto Cervantes annual report for 2024-2025 put the SIELE network at 1,163 centres in 69 countries.
The DELE network is broader by country coverage. Instituto Cervantes reports around 1,300 DELE exam centres spread across 120 countries and more than 800 cities in its 2024-2025 report. Spain’s own schooling picture, including spending and enrolment, sits in these education in Spain statistics.
DELE vs SIELE Pricing in 2026
Instituto Cervantes sets DELE fees in local currency for each country, so the same diploma carries very different prices.
Italy prices below Spain at every level. Its C1 fee of 166 euros sits under Spain’s B1 fee of 173 euros. Germany is the most expensive euro market above B1, with C1 at 250 euros.
| Level | Spain (EUR) | Italy (EUR) | Germany (EUR) | US (USD) | UK (GBP) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | 112 | 80 | 138 | 128 | 130 |
| A2 | 138 | 90 | 150 | 130 | 170 |
| B1 | 173 | 102 | 164 | 154 | 185 |
| B2 | 204 | 145 | 235 | 176 | 205 |
| C1 | 225 | 166 | 250 | 195 | 215 |
| C2 | 240 | 175 | 255 | 210 | 245 |
Source: Instituto Cervantes, official DELE 2026 price table; fees approved in local currency.
School versions are priced off the adult ladder. A1 for school candidates matches A1, A2/B1 for schools matches B1, and the new B2/C1 for schools matches C1. That B2/C1 exam runs for the first time in the May 2026 sitting.
SIELE 2026 Prices by Exam Modality
SIELE prices by modality rather than by level, so one fee covers any result on its A1 to C1 scale. The booking portal lists six options.
| Modality | Skills covered | Price (EUR) |
|---|---|---|
| SIELE Global | All four | 155 |
| S1 | Reading and listening comprehension | 55 |
| S2 | Reading comprehension and written expression | 75 |
| S3 | Listening comprehension and oral expression | 100 |
| S4 | Oral expression only | 75 |
| S5 | Written and oral expression | 100 |
Source: SIELE booking portal (siele.org), prices shown for Spain, September 2026.
The modular menu contains one exact match and one penalty. S1 at 55 euros plus S5 at 100 euros covers all four skills and comes to the same 155 euros as SIELE Global, while S2 at 75 plus S3 at 100 covers the same four skills for 175. Speaking alone, through S4, costs 75 euros.
Against that, DELE C1 in Spain costs 225 euros and DELE C1 in Italy costs 166 euros. For learners weighing study time before paying either fee, the FSI hours-to-fluency rankings put Spanish in the fastest category for English speakers.
DELE vs SIELE Certificate Validity and Test Dates
Validity is the sharpest split. Instituto Cervantes states that DELE diplomas have official status and indefinite validity, while SIELE certificates and reports carry five-year validity.
Scheduling differs just as much. DELE runs five fixed sittings in 2026, down from seven in 2025, with the July and September dates dropped. SIELE is booked by appointment at an authorised centre, closer to the on-demand pattern seen across language learning app usage data.
| Feature | DELE | SIELE |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate validity | Indefinite | Five years |
| Levels reported | A1 to C2 | A1 to C1, scored 0 to 1000 |
| Format | Sat at a recognised exam centre | Fully electronic, in centre or remote |
| 2026 sittings | Five fixed dates | By appointment |
| Results | Digital diploma since October 2024 | Within three weeks |
Source: Instituto Cervantes, exam portal FAQs and Memoria 2024-2025.
What Drives DELE A2 Volume in Spain?
Instituto Cervantes describes A2 as the level with the highest demand, and the February and April 2026 sittings administer A2 only.
The reason sits in the nationality process. Applicants for Spanish nationality by residence must pass the CCSE test, and the institution also runs a DELE A2-NA variant for applicants who are not literate.
CCSE registrations passed 1,009,054 by the end of May 2024. Of everyone who sat the test since November 2015, 97.09%, or 871,950 candidates, were graded apto, and 96% (914,554) took it inside Spain at one of 212 centres.
Source: Instituto Cervantes press release, June 2024; cumulative data November 2015 to May 2024.
Volume has held up since. The January 2026 ordinary CCSE sitting drew 27,157 registrations with a pass rate above 96%, and the March 2026 sitting drew 26,033 on the same measure. Learners starting from zero before either exam can work through these free Spanish worksheets for beginners.
FAQs
Which is cheaper, DELE or SIELE?
SIELE Global costs 155 euros. In Spain, DELE A1 costs 112 euros and DELE A2 costs 138 euros for 2026, both below SIELE. Every DELE level from B1 upward costs more.
How long is a SIELE certificate valid?
Five years. Instituto Cervantes states that both the SIELE Global certificate and the independent modality reports carry five-year validity. DELE diplomas, by contrast, have indefinite validity with no expiry date.
How many people take the DELE each year?
Close to 143,000 candidates registered across all DELE sittings in 2025, about 4% above 2024, according to Instituto Cervantes. The November 2025 sitting alone recorded 33,944 registrations.
Does SIELE certify C2?
No. SIELE is a multilevel exam covering A1 to C1, scored from 0 to 1000. DELE runs six separate diplomas from A1 to C2, so C2 is only available through DELE.
Do Reddit users prefer DELE or SIELE?
Reddit threads on DELE vs SIELE turn on validity and price. On published figures, DELE diplomas never expire while SIELE lasts five years, and SIELE Global costs 155 euros against 225 euros for DELE C1 in Spain.
Sources
https://examenes.cervantes.es/sites/default/files/ic-tabla-precios-dele-2026.pdf
