IDP Education, the largest IELTS distributor, ran 1,293,800 English language tests in the year to June 2025, 18% fewer than the 1,584,100 it ran a year earlier, and its India IELTS volumes fell 50% (IDP Education FY25 Results). The slowdown is not limited to one brand: Pearson says PTE volumes fell 3% in the first half of 2026, and Duolingo English Test revenue dropped 6% year on year in Q1 2026 before going flat in Q2. Scores are drifting too, with the average TOEFL iBT total slipping from 87 in 2023 to 86 in 2024, while IELTS disclosed that 63,216 results had to be corrected after a two-year marking error. English tests now track visa policy more closely than learning demand, which our international students statistics cover from the enrollment side. We aggregated data from IDP Education’s results filings, ETS’s TOEFL Test and Score Data Summaries, Duolingo’s SEC filings, Pearson’s interim results, IELTS research and statements, GOV.UK and IRCC test rules, IIE Open Doors, and the other primary sources listed in the methodology.
TL;DR
- IDP English language testing volumes: 1,293,800 in FY25, down 18% from 1,584,100 (IDP Education FY25 Results).
- IDP’s India IELTS volumes fell 50%; ex-India IELTS volumes rose 2% (IDP Education FY25 Results).
- Indian study visa applications for Australia, the UK and Canada fell 49% (IDP Education FY25 Results, citing government data).
- Pearson PTE volumes fell 3% in H1 2026 (Pearson Interim Results 2026).
- Duolingo English Test revenue: 11.3 million dollars in Q1 2026, down 6% (Duolingo Q1 2026 shareholder letter).
- IELTS processed 7,786,614 test instances from August 2023 to September 2025 (IELTS statement, 2026).
- 63,216 IELTS results were changed after a marking error, and 26,246 refunds were issued (IELTS statement, 2026).
- Mean TOEFL iBT total score: 86 in 2024, down from 87 in 2023 (ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024).
- TOEFL iBT moved to a 1 to 6 score scale on January 21, 2026 (ETS score user guidance).
- Over 6,100 programs accept the Duolingo English Test (Duolingo Form 10-K, 2025).
- 82% of test takers prioritize the most widely recognized test (IELTS Voices 2026, n = 8,395).
- 78% of prospective students now weigh multiple destination countries, up from 66% in October 2024 (IDP Emerging Futures 9, 2026).
1. Test Volumes: The English Testing Market Is Shrinking With Visas
The volume figures read like a visa map, not a learning map. IDP Education’s English language testing volumes fell 18%, from 1,584,100 to 1,293,800 tests in the 12 months to 30 June 2025, with India IELTS volumes down 50% (IDP Education FY25 Results Presentation). The same deck explains why: Indian study visa applications for Australia, the UK and Canada fell 49%, and IDP’s student placements to Canada fell 58%. Outside India, IELTS volumes actually rose 2%, led by Australia, Canada, Vietnam, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The test did not lose its appeal; its biggest feeder market lost its destinations.
Prices partly cushioned the drop. IDP’s average revenue per test rose to 317 Australian dollars from 306 (+5% in constant currency), so testing revenue fell less than volumes: 410.7 million Australian dollars versus 485.1 million. IDP planned for FY26 market volumes 20% to 30% below FY25. Competitors are not escaping the cycle: Pearson said PTE volumes fell 3% in the first half of 2026 as “tight migration policies and geopolitical disruption” made conditions harder, and its English Language Learning revenue slipped to 166 million pounds from 171 million (Pearson Interim Results 2026).
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| IDP English language testing volumes, FY25 vs FY24 | 1,293,800 vs 1,584,100 (-18%) | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| IDP India IELTS volumes | -50% | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| IDP IELTS volumes excluding India | +2% | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| Indian study visa applications (Australia, UK, Canada) | -49% vs FY24 | IDP Education FY25 Results, citing government data |
| IDP English Language Testing revenue | 410.7m vs 485.1m Australian dollars (-14% constant currency) | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| IDP average English test price | 317 vs 306 Australian dollars (+5% constant currency) | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| IDP planning assumption for FY26 market volumes | Down 20% to 30% vs FY25 | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| Pearson PTE volumes, H1 2026 | -3% | Pearson Interim Results 2026 |
Context note: IDP’s testing volume counts every test type it delivers, not only IELTS, and its fiscal year ends on 30 June. Its IELTS app passed 2.9 million downloads in FY25 (+141%), and it opened six new IELTS test centres, a sign it is still investing through the downturn. Pearson expects PTE to keep declining in 2026 but its English Language Learning unit to return to growth in Q4.
2. IELTS at Scale: Volume, Reliability and the Marking Incident
IELTS rarely publishes global volumes, so its own incident statement is one of the best size indicators available. IELTS processed 7,786,614 test instances between 24 August 2023 and 4 September 2025, and 63,216 of them had results changed after a marking error, affecting 62,794 learners (IELTS statement on Ofqual enforcement action). That is 0.81% of instances (63,216 / 7,786,614). Most corrections favored candidates: of 21,717 qualification-level changes, 20,602 went up and 1,115 went down, all by half a band.
The visa exposure was small but real. 1,108 affected tests were UK visa tests, 279 of them changed CEFR level, and 4 incorrect results affected visa eligibility (all four candidates later resat and met the requirement). IELTS issued 26,246 refunds and 1,145 resits, and upheld 24 of 270 complaints. For a high-stakes test, the remedy cost matters less than the signal: score users now ask how errors are caught, not only how tests are scored. IELTS says confirmed malpractice can bring a five-year ban, and candidates with withheld results learn the outcome within eight weeks (IELTS, Maintaining trust in English test scores).
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| IELTS test instances processed, Aug 2023 to Sep 2025 | 7,786,614 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| Test instances with changed results / learners affected | 63,216 / 62,794 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| Qualification-level changes (up / down) | 21,717 (20,602 up, 1,115 down) | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| UK visa tests affected / CEFR level changes | 1,108 / 279 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| Cases where visa eligibility was affected | 4 (all later resat and met requirements) | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| Refunds / resits issued | 26,246 / 1,145 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| Complaints received / upheld | 270 / 24 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
Context note: the statement does not list a fine. IELTS publishes reliability data separately: in 2024-2025 its Listening section averaged a Cronbach alpha of 0.90, Academic Reading 0.92 and General Training Reading 0.91, with inter-rater reliability of 0.90 for Speaking and 0.92 for Writing (IELTS test statistics).
3. TOEFL iBT Scores: What the 2024 Data Shows
ETS publishes the most detailed public score data of the three big tests, and the 2024 summary shows a slight softening. The mean TOEFL iBT total fell to 86 in 2024 from 87 in 2023, with every section mean slightly lower (ETS TOEFL iBT Test and Score Data Summary 2024). Reading dropped the most, from 22.3 to 21.9. The percentile table is the practical takeaway for applicants: a total of 100 sat at the 75th percentile in 2024, and a total of 80 at the 32nd, so the common 100-point admissions bar excludes three in four test takers.
Purpose matters more than gender. Graduate applicants averaged 88, undergraduate applicants 85, high school applicants 81 and two-year college applicants 77, while men (85.7) and women (85.6) were statistically level. Speaking is consistently the lowest-scoring skill. Applicants who compare tests by headline scores alone miss that each test measures a slightly different construct, a point our language learning statistics explore from the learner side.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Mean total score, 2024 vs 2023 | 86 vs 87 (out of 120) | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 and 2023 |
| Section means 2024 (Reading / Listening / Speaking / Writing) | 21.9 / 22.1 / 20.7 / 21.1 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Section means 2023 (Reading / Listening / Speaking / Writing) | 22.3 / 22.3 / 20.8 / 21.2 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2023 |
| Percentile rank of a 100 / an 80 total, 2024 | 75th / 32nd | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Mean total by purpose: graduate / undergraduate / high school / two-year college | 88 / 85 / 81 / 77 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Mean total, immigration applicants | 85 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Mean total, men vs women | 85.7 vs 85.6 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
Context note: ETS states TOEFL scores are accepted by more than 12,500 institutions in its data summary, more than 13,000 on its score users page and 13,500+ institutions in 160+ countries on its main page (ETS TOEFL), which also cites 40M+ test takers globally. The 2024 data is the most recent available annual summary.
4. TOEFL by Country and the Shift to a 1 to 6 Scale
Country tables are popular and widely misused. ETS itself says ranking countries by TOEFL score is “a misuse of data”, because who sits the test differs sharply by country. With that caveat, the 2024 spread is wide: Austria’s mean was 102, Germany’s 100 and Switzerland’s 100, against 72 for Japan and 58 for Laos (ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024). The two largest source markets for US campuses sit apart: India averaged 94 and China 85.
The most striking pattern sits inside the section scores. Test takers from Viet Nam averaged 23 in Reading but 12 in Speaking, and Uzbekistan 25 in Reading against 12 in Speaking, so their total (74 and 86) hides a 10+ point skill gap. For many candidates, speaking is the section to prepare for, not reading. ETS also changed the reporting itself: on January 21, 2026, TOEFL iBT introduced a 1 to 6 scale in half-band steps tied to CEFR levels (ETS score requirement guidance).
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Highest country means, 2024 | Austria 102, Slovenia 101, Germany 100, Switzerland 100 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| India / China / United States mean totals, 2024 | 94 / 85 / 91 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Japan / South Korea / Brazil mean totals, 2024 | 72 / 86 / 88 | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Viet Nam Reading vs Speaking means, 2024 | 23 vs 12 (total 74) | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Uzbekistan Reading vs Speaking means, 2024 | 25 vs 12 (total 86) | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| New TOEFL scale launch | January 21, 2026 (1 to 6, half-band increments) | ETS score user guidance, 2026 |
| Old-scale concordance for bands 6 / 5 / 4 / 3 | About 114+ / 95+ / 72+ / 44+ | ETS score user guidance, 2026 |
| CEFR mapping | C2 = 6; C1 = 5 to 5.5; B2 = 4 to 4.5; B1 = 3 to 3.5 | ETS score user guidance, 2026 |
Context note: ETS does not report means for groups under 30 test takers. Some 2024 country rows changed notably from 2023 (Laos went from 69 to 58, Turkey from 84 to 79), which may reflect who tested rather than proficiency.
5. Duolingo English Test: Wide Acceptance, Flat Revenue
The Duolingo English Test (DET) is the clearest example of a newer, at-home test winning acceptance without winning growth. Over 6,100 education programs accept the DET, including over 5,300 higher education programs, 24 of the top 25 US undergraduate programs by international enrollment, all of the Ivy League, MIT and Stanford (Duolingo Form 10-K for fiscal 2025). The filing describes it as an online, on-demand, computer-adaptive test completed in under an hour.
Revenue tells a quieter story. DET brought in 11.3 million dollars in Q1 2026, down 6% from 12.0 million (Duolingo Q1 2026 shareholder letter), and 10.1 million in Q2 2026, flat on a year earlier (Duolingo Q2 2026 shareholder letter). Combined first-half DET revenue was 21.4 million dollars versus 22.1 million (11,317 + 10,109 thousand vs 11,986 + 10,088 thousand), a 2.9% decline. Because the app subscription business grew fast, DET shrank to 3.4% of Duolingo’s Q2 revenue (10,109 / 298,454) from 4.0% a year earlier (10,088 / 252,265). Our Duolingo statistics cover the consumer side of the company.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Programs accepting DET / higher education programs | Over 6,100 / over 5,300 | Duolingo Form 10-K, fiscal 2025 |
| Top 25 US undergraduate programs by international enrollment accepting DET | 24 of 25 | Duolingo Form 10-K, fiscal 2025 |
| DET revenue Q1 2026 vs Q1 2025 | 11.3m vs 12.0m dollars (-6%) | Duolingo Q1 2026 shareholder letter |
| DET revenue Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025 | 10.1m vs 10.1m dollars (flat) | Duolingo Q2 2026 shareholder letter |
| DET revenue H1 2026 vs H1 2025 (our sum of quarters) | 21.4m vs 22.1m dollars (-2.9%) | Duolingo Q1 and Q2 2026 shareholder letters |
| DET share of Duolingo total revenue, Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025 (our calculation) | 3.4% vs 4.0% | Duolingo Q2 2026 shareholder letter |
Context note: Duolingo does not disclose DET test counts or price in these filings, so revenue is the only public volume proxy. The DET is not an approved UK SELT, which limits it to admissions rather than UK visa use (see section 6).
6. Who Accepts What: Government Test Rules and Score Bars
Governments, not universities, decide which tests can carry a visa, and their lists are short. The UK’s Secure English Language Test list names just four providers inside the UK (Trinity College London, the IELTS SELT Consortium, LanguageCert and Pearson), with PSI Services replacing Trinity on the list outside the UK (GOV.UK, Secure English Language Test guidance). Neither TOEFL nor the DET appears. On 6 July 2025, LanguageCert’s ESOL SELT 4-skills test was replaced by separate Academic and General SELT tests. Canada is narrower still: for Express Entry it accepts three English tests, CELPIP-General, IELTS General Training and PTE Core, plus TEF Canada and TCF Canada for French (IRCC, Express Entry language testing).
Required scores are rising. From 23 March 2024 Australia lifted the student visa bar from IELTS 5.5 to 6.0 and the graduate visa bar from 6.0 to 6.5 (ICEF Monitor, 2024). Professional bodies already ask more than universities: a Flinders University study funded by the three IELTS partners found professional bodies set an average minimum of IELTS 7.0 versus 6.6 at universities (ICEF Monitor, July 2025). For learners who later work across languages, our machine translation statistics show where software already fills gaps.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| UK SELT providers in the UK / outside the UK | 4 / 4 (PSI Services outside the UK only) | GOV.UK SELT guidance |
| LanguageCert ESOL SELT 4-skills test replaced | 6 July 2025 | GOV.UK SELT guidance |
| Canada Express Entry approved tests (English / French) | 3 / 2 | IRCC language testing page |
| Australia student visa IELTS minimum, from 23 March 2024 | 6.0 (was 5.5) | ICEF Monitor, April 2024 |
| Australia graduate visa IELTS minimum, from 23 March 2024 | 6.5 (was 6.0) | ICEF Monitor, April 2024 |
| Average minimum IELTS: professional bodies vs universities | 7.0 vs 6.6 | Benchmarking study (Flinders University) via ICEF Monitor, 2025 |
| UK Graduate Route length proposed in May 2025 White Paper | 18 months (from 24) | IDP Education FY25 Results |
Context note: the Australian score change is cited through ICEF Monitor because the Department of Home Affairs page blocked automated access. IDP’s FY25 deck also notes Canada’s 10% reduction in the 2025 student cap and that IELTS was re-recognised by Australia’s Department of Home Affairs.
7. Test-Taker Demand: What Candidates and Destinations Look Like
Candidates increasingly buy optionality. 82% of 8,395 surveyed test takers in 165 countries prioritize a test “recognised as broadly as possible”, and 42% of those testing for study would consider more than one destination (IELTS Voices 2026). Price is secondary: 89% said a successful outcome was equally or more important than picking the cheapest test. On regulation, 43% prefer an official list of government-approved providers, while only 20% want a single government-mandated test.
IDP’s own survey of more than 5,800 students across 118 countries shows the same hedging. 78% now weigh multiple countries before committing, up from 66% in October 2024, while 27% of those abandoning study abroad cited visa costs and 26% said a visa was too hard to get (ICEF Monitor on IDP Emerging Futures 9, May 2026). The US remains the largest single destination by stock: 1,177,766 international students in 2024/25, up 5%, even as new enrollment fell 7% to 277,118 (IIE Open Doors 2025). Those new arrivals are the future test-taker pipeline, and the ESL side of that pipeline is tracked in our ESL enrollment statistics.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Test takers prioritizing broad recognition | 82% (n = 8,395, 165 countries) | IELTS Voices 2026 |
| Prefer approved-provider list vs single mandated test | 43% vs 20% | IELTS Voices 2026 |
| Say a successful outcome matters as much or more than lowest price | 89% | IELTS Voices 2026 |
| Students weighing multiple destination countries | 78% (66% in October 2024) | IDP Emerging Futures 9 via ICEF Monitor, 2026 |
| Top preferred destinations | Australia 21%, UK 19%, US 14%, Canada 14% | IDP Emerging Futures 9 via ICEF Monitor, 2026 |
| International students in the US, 2024/25 | 1,177,766 (+5%) | IIE Open Doors 2025 |
| New international students in the US, 2024/25 | 277,118 (-7%) | IIE Open Doors 2025 |
| Students from India / China in the US, 2024/25 | 363,019 (+10%) / 265,919 (-4%) | IIE Open Doors 2025 |
Context note: both surveys were run by test or placement providers with a commercial interest in multi-destination study, so treat preference shares as directional. IIE also counts 66,033 intensive English program students in the US.
Summary: IELTS, TOEFL & Duolingo English Test by the Numbers
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| IDP English testing volumes, FY25 | 1,293,800 (-18%) | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| IDP India IELTS volumes | -50% | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| Indian study visa applications to Australia, UK, Canada | -49% | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| IDP English Language Testing revenue | 410.7m Australian dollars | IDP Education FY25 Results |
| Pearson PTE volumes, H1 2026 | -3% | Pearson Interim Results 2026 |
| IELTS test instances, Aug 2023 to Sep 2025 | 7,786,614 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| IELTS results changed after marking error | 63,216 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| IELTS refunds issued | 26,246 | IELTS statement, 2026 |
| TOEFL iBT mean total, 2024 | 86 (87 in 2023) | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| Percentile rank of a TOEFL 100 | 75th | ETS Test and Score Data Summary 2024 |
| TOEFL 1 to 6 scale launch | January 21, 2026 | ETS score user guidance |
| Programs accepting DET | Over 6,100 | Duolingo Form 10-K, fiscal 2025 |
| DET revenue Q1 2026 | 11.3m dollars (-6%) | Duolingo Q1 2026 shareholder letter |
| DET revenue Q2 2026 | 10.1m dollars (flat) | Duolingo Q2 2026 shareholder letter |
| UK SELT providers in the UK | 4 | GOV.UK SELT guidance |
| Canada Express Entry English tests | 3 | IRCC language testing page |
| Australia student visa IELTS minimum | 6.0 (from 5.5) | ICEF Monitor, 2024 |
| Test takers prioritizing broad recognition | 82% | IELTS Voices 2026 |
| Students weighing multiple destinations | 78% | IDP Emerging Futures 9, 2026 |
| International students in the US, 2024/25 | 1,177,766 | IIE Open Doors 2025 |
Methodology and Sources
Every figure above was read in a primary document during research for this article: company results presentations and SEC filings, ETS score data PDFs, IELTS statements and research pages, and government test lists. The web search tool was unavailable for this session, so sources were reached by fetching investor-relations, regulator and publisher pages directly. Percentages marked “our calculation” show the arithmetic inline. Vendor-blog claims about test popularity without a primary document were excluded.
- IDP Education: FY25 Full Year Financial Results presentation (28 August 2025)
- Pearson: Interim Results for the six months to 30 June 2026
- IELTS: Ofqual enforcement action, marking incident statement, test statistics 2024-2025, IELTS Voices 2026 research, Maintaining trust in English test scores
- ETS: TOEFL iBT Test and Score Data Summary 2024, Test and Score Data Summary 2023, TOEFL main page, TOEFL score users page, Updated TOEFL scale 1-6 guidance
- Duolingo (SEC EDGAR): Form 10-K for fiscal 2025, Q1 2026 shareholder letter, Q2 2026 shareholder letter
- Governments: GOV.UK, Prove your English language abilities with a SELT, IRCC, Express Entry language testing
- Institute of International Education: Open Doors 2025, International Students
- Reporting on primary studies: ICEF Monitor on Australia’s 2024 English requirements, ICEF Monitor on the English standards benchmarking study (2025), ICEF Monitor on IDP Emerging Futures 9 (May 2026)
- Data watch: IDP’s FY26 results (August 2026) and HY26 presentation could not be retrieved from its investor site, so FY25 (to June 2025) is the most recent IDP volume data used here. No public source gives total global IELTS, TOEFL or DET test counts for 2025 or 2026; the 7,786,614 IELTS figure covers a 25-month window and should not be annualized. ETS’s institution count differs by page (12,500+, 13,000+ and 13,500+), and its 2024 score summary is the latest annual edition we could read; it predates the 1 to 6 scale. ETS warns against ranking countries by TOEFL score. IELTS 2024-2025 demographic and performance spreadsheets could not be parsed, so country-level IELTS bands are not included. The Australian Department of Home Affairs and Cambridge University Press and Assessment pages blocked automated access; the Australian score change is cited via ICEF Monitor. Duolingo did not separately disclose DET revenue in its Q3 and Q4 2025 shareholder letters as read for this article, and no DET test counts are public. The two preference surveys (IELTS Voices, IDP Emerging Futures) were run by interested providers.
Last updated: October 3, 2026. We update this roundup quarterly, and the next refresh is expected when Pearson publishes its 2026 nine-month trading update on 22 October 2026 and Duolingo files its Q3 2026 shareholder letter.