Free Aptis ESOL Practice Test
32 questions in the style of the British Council Aptis test. The Core component of grammar and vocabulary, plus reading and vocabulary. Find out your CEFR level in 15 minutes.
15 minutes, 32 questions
Core grammar and vocabulary plus two skill components.
Your CEFR level
See where you sit from A2 up to C.
Full component breakdown
Aptis reports each skill separately — find your weakest one.
What is Aptis?
Aptis is the British Council’s English test for organisations — used by employers, ministries of education, universities and companies to assess staff or candidates at scale. It is not a visa test like IELTS: it is designed for institutions that need to place, recruit or benchmark people quickly.
Its defining feature is that it is modular. Every candidate takes the Core component (grammar and vocabulary), and then whichever skills the organisation needs: reading, listening, writing, speaking, or any combination. Results usually arrive within 48 hours, and each skill is reported separately with its own CEFR level.
What this practice test covers
Thirty-two questions across four areas: Core grammar, Core vocabulary, reading and vocabulary. That covers the Core component in full plus the two receptive skills, which is the most commonly requested Aptis combination.
Listening needs audio, and speaking and writing need an examiner, so they are not included. Note that Aptis grades each skill independently, so there is no single overall score to chase — the breakdown matters more here than in most tests.
How your level is reported
Aptis reports a CEFR level per skill rather than a single band:
Why the Core component matters more than people expect
Candidates often skim past Core as “just grammar and vocabulary”, but the British Council uses it to calibrate the whole test. A weak Core result can pull down how your other skills are interpreted, and it is also the most improvable part — grammar and collocation respond quickly to focused study in a way that listening comprehension does not. If you have limited preparation time, Core is where to spend it.
Aptis variants
There are several versions. Aptis General is the standard test. Aptis for Teachers uses classroom contexts and is common in education ministries. Aptis for Teens targets 13–17 year olds. Aptis Advanced distinguishes more finely at C1 and C2. The underlying skills are the same, so this practice test is useful preparation for any of them — but check which version your organisation has booked, because the contexts differ.
Frequently asked questions
No. This is an independent practice test built by Quizinq for study purposes. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the British Council. Official Aptis tests are arranged through the British Council, usually by an employer or institution rather than by individuals.
Usually not. Aptis is sold to organisations — employers, universities, ministries — who then test their staff or candidates. If you have been asked to take Aptis, whoever asked you will arrange it.
No. Aptis is not a UKVI-approved SELT. If you need a test for a UK visa, you need IELTS for UKVI, LanguageCert SELT or another approved provider. Aptis is for employment and institutional assessment.
Grammar and vocabulary, taken by every candidate regardless of which skills are being assessed. It calibrates the rest of the test, which is why it deserves more preparation time than most candidates give it. See all our quizzes.
Usually within 48 hours, which is one of the main reasons organisations choose Aptis over slower alternatives.