ETS moved the TOEFL iBT from a 0–120 total to a 1–6 band scale on 21 January 2026. US admissions offices then had to turn their old minimums into bands, and the results did not line up.
This guide tracks TOEFL score cutoffs at top US universities after the rescale: 20 institutional minimums, section floors, ETS percentile data and the enrolment figures behind them.
TOEFL Score Cutoffs at Top US Universities
- 95Legacy total where band 5 begins; band 5.5 begins at 107 (ETS).
- +7Columbia GSAS moved from 100 to band 5.5, whose floor is 107.
- −8Illinois full status fell from 103 to band 5, floor 95.
- 86Global mean TOEFL total in 2024, the floor of band 4.5.
- −15%Change in new international graduate students in the US, 2024/25.
How Does the New TOEFL Band Scale Map to Old Scores?
ETS aligns each half band with a range on the old 0–120 scale. A band covers a range, so choosing one sets the real cutoff at that band’s floor.
The ranges are uneven. Band 4 runs from 72 to 85, while band 5.5 covers only 107 to 113.
| Band (1–6) | Legacy total starts at | CEFR level |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 114 | C2 |
| 5.5 | 107 | C1 |
| 5 | 95 | C1 |
| 4.5 | 86 | B2 |
| 4 | 72 | B2 |
| 3.5 | 58 | B1 |
Source: ETS, TOEFL Score Scale Update: A Guide for Institutions, 2026
The overall band is the average of four section bands, rounded to the nearest half band. An average of 5.125 reports as 5, and 5.25 reports as 5.5, per ETS.
ETS also published recommended conversions for common old minimums. The same CEFR logic now appears on other exams, as the HSK-to-CEFR alignment data shows.
| Old requirement (0–120) | ETS recommended band (1–6) |
|---|---|
| 100 | 5 |
| 90 | 4.5 |
| 80 | 4 |
| 70 | 3.5 |
Source: ETS, TOEFL Score Scale Update: A Guide for Institutions, 2026
TOEFL Score Cutoffs at Top US Private Universities
Five of these ten graduate cutoffs sit below the old minimum, three sit above and two match. Columbia GSAS posted the largest rise; Chicago’s Applied Data Science MS posted the largest cut.
| Institution (graduate) | Legacy minimum | New band | Band floor (legacy) | Net change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harvard Griffin GSAS | 95 | 5 | 95 | 0 |
| Columbia GSAS | 100 | 5.5 | 107 | +7 |
| Stanford, university-wide | 90 | 4.5 | 86 | −4 |
| Stanford GSB PhD | 100 | 5 | 95 | −5 |
| Duke Graduate School | 90 | 5 | 95 | +5 |
| Northwestern TGS, PhD | 90 | 4.5 | 86 | −4 |
| Northwestern TGS, master’s | 80 | 4.5 | 86 | +6 |
| UChicago Harris Public Policy | 95 | 5 | 95 | 0 |
| UChicago Applied Data Science MS | 102 | 5 | 95 | −7 |
| UChicago Physical Sciences | 90 | 4.5 | 86 | −4 |
Source: Institutional graduate admissions pages (Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, Duke, Northwestern, UChicago), read 17 September 2026
Northwestern merged two cutoffs into one. PhD applicants were held to 90 and master’s applicants to 80; both now face band 4.5.
Duke says it “generally seeks” its figure rather than enforcing it.
Which Schools Followed ETS Advice for a 100 Cutoff?
ETS advised that band 5 fits institutions that previously required 100. Stanford GSB followed that advice; Columbia GSAS chose 5.5 from the same starting point.
Columbia’s undergraduate college still lists 105 on the legacy scale with no band. MIT’s first-year page sets band 5 as a minimum and 5.5 as a recommendation, while its graduate office still recommends 100.
Source: ETS TOEFL Access guidance, 2026; Columbia and MIT admissions pages, read 17 September 2026
TOEFL Score Cutoffs at Top US Public Universities
This group splits five down and five up. Minnesota, Penn State and Texas A&M moved from 79 or 80 to band 4.5, although ETS recommends band 4 for an old 80.
| Institution (graduate) | Legacy minimum | New band | Band floor (legacy) | Net change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois Urbana-Champaign, full status | 103 | 5 | 95 | −8 |
| University of Washington | 80 | 4 | 72 | −8 |
| Ohio State | 79 | 4 | 72 | −7 |
| Georgia Tech | 90 | 4.5 | 86 | −4 |
| UCLA | 87 | 4.5 | 86 | −1 |
| Wisconsin-Madison | 92 | 5 | 95 | +3 |
| UC Berkeley | 90 | 5 | 95 | +5 |
| Penn State, standard | 80 | 4.5 | 86 | +6 |
| Texas A&M | 80 | 4.5 | 86 | +6 |
| Minnesota | 79 | 4.5 | 86 | +7 |
Source: Institutional graduate admissions pages (10 public universities listed), read 17 September 2026
Illinois kept its two tiers. Full status dropped from 103 to a band 5 floor of 95; limited status dropped from 79 to a band 4 floor of 72.
Berkeley’s +5 is the only rise in this table that comes with section floors attached.
What Section Scores Do Top US Universities Require?
Speaking shows the widest spread: 3.5 at Georgia Tech and Penn State against 5.5 for Cornell’s Tier A research applicants. One applicant can clear one school and miss the other on Speaking alone.
| Institution | Overall | Reading | Listening | Speaking | Writing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cornell, research Tier A | none | 4 | 3.5 | 5.5 | 4 |
| Cornell, professional master’s | none | 4 | 3.5 | 4 | 4 |
| UChicago Social Sciences | none | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| UChicago Economics PhD | none | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Georgia Tech | 4.5 | 4 | 4 | 3.5 | 4 |
| Texas A&M | 4.5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| UC Berkeley | 5 | none | none | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Minnesota | 4.5 | 4.5 | none | none | 4.5 |
| Penn State, standard | 4.5 | none | none | 3.5 | none |
Source: Cornell, UChicagoGRAD, Georgia Tech, Texas A&M, UC Berkeley, Minnesota and Penn State admissions pages, read 17 September 2026
Cornell publishes no overall total and labels its 2026 figures interim. Chicago’s Social Sciences division sets band 5 in each section, so a strong skill cannot offset a weak one.
Which Schools Set Speaking Cutoffs for Teaching Assistants?
Yale and Princeton publish no admission minimum, yet both use Speaking 5.5 for students who will teach. ETS maps a legacy Speaking score of 27 to 5.5 and 28–30 to 6.
| Institution | Speaking threshold | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 6 | Teaching assistants |
| Yale GSAS | 5.5 (was 26) | Doctoral teaching |
| Princeton Graduate School | 5.5 | Below this triggers assessment on enrolment |
| Illinois | 5 (was 24) | Teaching assistants |
Source: UCLA, Yale, Princeton and Illinois graduate pages, read 17 September 2026; ETS section concordance, 2026
What Percentile Is a Band 5 TOEFL Score?
ETS has not published percentiles for the 1–6 scale. Its 2024 data on the legacy scale put a total of 96 at the 65th percentile and 92 at the 56th, around the band 5 floor of 95.
Graduate-level applicants score higher, so the same total ranks lower among them. A 96 sat at the 61st percentile of that group, against the 65th for all test takers.
| Legacy total | Nearest band | Percentile, total group | Percentile, graduate applicants |
|---|---|---|---|
| 116 | 6 | 99 | 99 |
| 112 | 5.5 | 96 | 95 |
| 108 | 5.5 | 91 | 89 |
| 104 | 5 | 84 | 81 |
| 96 | 5 | 65 | 61 |
| 92 | 4.5 | 56 | 51 |
| 88 | 4.5 | 47 | 42 |
| 84 | 4 | 39 | 33 |
| 72 | 4 | 20 | 16 |
Source: ETS, TOEFL iBT Test and Score Data Summary 2024 (Tables 2 and 6), January–December 2024 test data
The 2024 global mean total was 86 with a standard deviation of 19. Graduate-level applicants, excluding business programs, averaged 88 with a standard deviation of 17.
Section means for all 2024 test takers were Reading 21.9, Listening 22.1, Speaking 20.7 and Writing 21.1. Candidates comparing tests can check IELTS fees and score data for US test takers.
Source: ETS, TOEFL iBT Test and Score Data Summary 2024, January–December 2024
Top US Universities With No Published TOEFL Cutoff
Six institutions publish no overall band minimum. Three of them still list legacy figures only, eight months after the scale changed.
| Institution | What it publishes instead |
|---|---|
| Michigan Rackham | No institutional figure; programmes set their own |
| Yale GSAS | No admission minimum; Speaking 5.5 for doctoral teaching |
| Princeton Graduate School | No minimum; Speaking below 5.5 triggers assessment |
| Carnegie Mellon SCS | Admitted range of 105–114, legacy scale, stated as data |
| NYU GSAS | Recommends 100, legacy scale only |
| Johns Hopkins Krieger | “Preferably” 100, legacy scale only |
Source: Rackham, Yale GSAS, Princeton, Carnegie Mellon SCS, NYU and Johns Hopkins admissions pages, read 17 September 2026
US applicants to European programmes face similar score conversions; German universities, for example, use the TestDaF level structure instead of a single total.
How Many International Graduate Students Face TOEFL Cutoffs?
US institutions hosted 1,177,766 international students in 2024/25, per IIE Open Doors 2025. Graduate students numbered 488,481, down 2.7% after three years of growth.
Undergraduate enrolment rose 4.2% to 357,231. New international graduate students fell 15%, while new undergraduates rose 5%.
| Academic year | Graduate | Undergraduate |
|---|---|---|
| 2020/21 | 329,272 | 359,787 |
| 2021/22 | 385,097 | 344,532 |
| 2022/23 | 467,027 | 347,602 |
| 2023/24 | 502,291 | 342,875 |
| 2024/25 | 488,481 | 357,231 |
Source: IIE Open Doors 2025 Fast Facts, academic years 2020/21–2024/25
Graduate students were the largest of the four groups in the 2024/25 census. The census also counts 294,253 students on Optional Practical Training, up 21.2%.
Source: IIE Open Doors 2025 Fast Facts, international student census, 2024/25
Graduate divisions set almost every cutoff in this guide. For country-of-origin and visa trends, see these international student figures for the US, and for the language context, this English speaker data.
FAQs
What TOEFL score do top US universities require in 2026?
Most cutoffs reviewed sit at band 4.5 or 5 on the 1–6 scale. Columbia GSAS requires 5.5, while Washington and Ohio State accept band 4, as of September 2026.
What is a 100 TOEFL score on the new scale?
A legacy 100 falls inside band 5, which covers 95 to 106. ETS recommends band 5 for schools that previously required 100.
Does Harvard require a TOEFL band 5?
Yes. Harvard Griffin GSAS lists band 5, matching its old minimum of 95 exactly, per its admissions page read in September 2026.
Is a band 4.5 TOEFL enough for top US schools, as Reddit threads often ask?
At some. Stanford, Northwestern TGS, Georgia Tech, UCLA, Penn State, Texas A&M and Minnesota list band 4.5. Columbia, Duke, Berkeley and Wisconsin-Madison require 5 or higher.
What percentile is the average TOEFL score?
The 2024 global mean total was 86, the floor of band 4.5. ETS lists 84 at the 39th percentile and 88 at the 47th.
Sources
https://www.ets.org/toefl/institutions/ibt/score-scale-update.html
https://www.br.ets.org/content/dam/ets-org/pdfs/toefl/toefl-ibt-test-score-data-summary-2024.pdf
https://opendoorsdata.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/OD25_Fast-Facts.pdf
https://www.gsas.columbia.edu/content/information-international-applicants
https://www.lingobright.com/statistics/ielts-test-taker-statistics-worldwide-and-by-country/
