Japanese speaking level test: talk for 3 minutes, get your level
A spoken placement chat with an AI teacher, in Japanese. The questions change with your answers, and at the end you get a level on the CEFR scale, from A1 to B2. It is free, and you need only your email address.
What happens
- 1Press startThere are no questions to answer first: you sign in, and the chat starts.
- 2Sign in with your emailWe send you a code, and you type it in. There is no password and no card.
- 3Talk for about 3 minutesHold the talk button while you speak, or tap it to start and stop. The teacher starts with easy questions (your name, where you are from), then asks about your daily life, then about what you did last weekend, then what you think and what you would do. The questions get harder while you can answer them and stop getting harder when you struggle. The teacher never corrects you during the test.
- 4Get your levelA few seconds later you have a CEFR level, a short note from the teacher about what you showed, and the place on the path where your scenes start.
Why a conversation places you better than a quiz
It tests the skill you will practice
Every lesson on Linguino is a spoken scene. The test listens to the same thing: whether you understand a question, answer it out loud, and keep going.
You find the words yourself
A multiple-choice quiz asks you to recognize the right answer among four. A conversation asks you to find the words in the moment. Many learners can read much more than they can say, so a quiz can place them too high for speaking practice.
There is nothing to guess from
With four options on the screen, you can guess or rule out the wrong ones. In a conversation there are no options: what you say is what the teacher hears.
It adapts to you
A quiz asks everyone the same questions. The chat starts easy, asks harder questions while you can answer them, and stays where you are when it gets hard, so it spends its 3 minutes near your level.
What A1, A2 and B1 sound like in Japanese
Most scenes on the Japanese path happen in Tokyo. The test is spoken only, so you do not need to read Japanese script.
A1
Path track: FoundationsYou use set phrases: はじめまして and your name with です, or what you want with ください. You need people to speak slowly, and you answer in a word or two.
コーヒーをください
kōhī o kudasai
“A coffee, please.”
From the scene Order at a café
A1 scenes to try
A2
Path track: Out in the worldYou join two ideas in one sentence with the て-form, give a reason with ので before a request, and say what you did with ました.
頭が痛くて、少し熱もあります。
atama ga itakute, sukoshi netsu mo arimasu.
“I have a headache, and a bit of a fever too.”
From the scene At the pharmacy
A2 scenes to try
B1
Path track: Real conversationsYou explain and tell stories in polite Japanese: what you are in charge of at work (担当しています), what you do in a day with 〜たり〜たり, and a story that sets the scene with 〜ていたら before what happened.
駅で電車を待っていたら、急に停電になったんです。
eki de densha o matte itara, kyū ni teiden ni natta n desu.
“I was waiting for a train at the station when suddenly the power went out.”
From the scene A story from your past
B1 scenes to try
The test can also place you at B2. The path goes up to B1, so you then start at its B1 track.
What you get
- A level on the CEFR scale: A1, A2, B1 or B2. If you are between two levels, you get the lower one, so the first scenes feel easy rather than too hard.
- A short note from the teacher: what you showed in the chat, and why this starting point fits you.
- Your starting point on the Japanese path: Foundations for A1, Out in the world for A2, Real conversations for B1 and B2. The teacher also uses your level in every scene after the test.
- If you say too little for the teacher to judge, you start at A1, at the beginning of the path.
Questions
Is the speaking level test free?
Yes, and you need no plan and no card. Without a plan, the chat does not count toward your free practice (Free: 3 sessions a day, 3 minutes each): it does not use up one of your free scenes for the day. If you already have a plan, the minutes of the chat come from your practice time.
How long does it take?
About 3 minutes of conversation. Before it, you only sign in. After it, your level is ready in a few seconds.
What do I need?
An email address and a microphone. You sign in with a code we send to your email: there is no password and no card. In the chat, you hold the talk button while you speak, or tap it to start and stop.
What do I get at the end?
A level on the CEFR scale (A1, A2, B1 or B2) and a short note from the teacher about what you showed. If you are between two levels, you get the lower one, so the first scenes feel easy rather than too hard. Your Japanese path then starts at the matching track: Foundations for A1, Out in the world for A2, Real conversations for B1 and B2.
What if I get stuck?
Say “I don’t know”, or ask the teacher to say it again. The teacher stays at that step with an easier question, and switches to English only if you are completely lost.
Do I need to read Japanese?
No. The test is a spoken conversation: you listen and answer out loud. Kana and kanji play no part in your result.
Can I change my level later?
Yes. Every unit on the path ends with a checkpoint scene, and passing a checkpoint moves you ahead.