One TOEFL section short: day 30, MyBest scores and a second attempt

Sending the scores feels like finishing. For a short section, it may close a door you wanted open.

Reading the score report against the target

Take a candidate who needs 5.0 in every section and receives Reading 5.5, Listening 5.5, Writing 4.5 and Speaking 5.0. The average is 5.125, so the overall score rounds to 5.0. The overall number looks fine, but Writing is half a band below a section minimum of 5.0, and the overall score does not rescue it.

Compare the Writing score with the last two practice tests first. That comparison decides which of three routes fits.

A score review covers only Speaking and Writing. A short Reading or Listening score leaves two routes: MyBest or a new attempt.

Score review: the dates

The Bulletin sets three conditions: you request it through your ETS account within 30 days of the test, you pay a fee and you have not yet sent the scores to an institution. The fee was US$80 for Speaking or Writing and US$160 for both in October 2026, excluding taxes. You are told the outcome within three weeks, and your score can go up or down.

Suppose the test was on 4 November. Scores appear in your ETS account about three days later, around 7 November. Thirty days from the test falls on 4 December, but do not leave it to the last day: check how the Bulletin counts the days and apply early. If the score is well below practice and you ask for the review on 10 November, you hear by about 1 December. Send nothing yourself until you decide, and check whether recipients named at registration receive scores automatically.

Say the candidate above had been practising Writing at 5.5 and scored 4.5, a full band lower. That is worth questioning. A half-band gap is a weaker case, because the score can go down as well as up, and if her practice had averaged 4.5 the score is accurate and the fee would be wasted.

MyBest scores

MyBest combines your best score in each section from all valid TOEFL iBT tests in the last two years. If your first test gave your best Reading and your second your best Writing, MyBest shows both. You no longer need every section to peak on the same day.

The condition is acceptance. Check whether each institution accepts MyBest scores, and if a page is silent, ask in writing. Record each answer in a "MyBest accepted" column of your table. If one institution says no, its minimums must all come from a single test.

Older scores need care. If your report uses the 0 to 120 scale, MyBest on that report includes only 0 to 120 scores. If you test again on the new scale, MyBest converts older scores to the 1 to 6 scale.

A second attempt

There is no limit on attempts, and you cannot test more than once in any three-day period. If the score matches your practice, the issue is preparation. Two to four weeks of focused practice on that section, with Build a Sentence sets, timed emails and discussion posts with feedback, is stronger than a rushed retake. Register again only when two practice tests in a row meet every target.

Free reports and delivery

You can choose up to four free score reports, and each additional report costs US$29 per institution. Institutions receive scores by their own delivery method, so confirm receipt with each office.

How long scores stay valid

TOEFL iBT scores are valid for two years after the test date, after which ETS cannot report or verify them. Some institutions set stricter limits linked to your application date.

Mark day 30 on your calendar before you open the score report.