Taking CEPT, step by step
What the screens look like on test day, in order. Everything is in English, so button names are left exactly as they appear.
- How long
- About 30 minutes · no time limit
- What is tested
- Listening and Reading
- Device
- Computer only (no phone or tablet)
- Marking
- Marked automatically
Four things to know before you start
Miss any of these and you may not be able to sit the test, or you may not get a result.
Your username is the email address you registered with
The centre emails you the three things you need to sign in (Username, Password and Institution ID) once your payment is confirmed. The username is the email address you registered with, and it stays the same if you are cut off and have to sign back in.
The test is only submitted if you finish it
Closing the window before the last screen does not submit anything: the test stays Incomplete and no result is produced. Sign back in and finish it.
Too few answers means no result
The instructions say to answer as many questions as you can. If you do not answer enough questions you get an asterisk (*) instead of a score, so pick an answer even when you are unsure.
Five wrong sign-ins lock the account for 30 minutes
The username and password are case-sensitive. If you paste them, make sure no stray space comes along.
What to prepare before test day
Only a computer will work
Phones, tablets (iPad and Android) and Linux will not open the test. Use Windows 11, or macOS 13 (Ventura) or later.
Browser
Windows takes Chrome, Firefox or Edge (93 or later). Mac and Chromebook take Chrome only.
Internet speed
5 Mbps upload and 5 Mbps download per candidate. If several people test on the same line at once, you need that much for each of them.
Headphones
Closed-back, over-ear headphones work best. If they are USB headphones, check the day before that the driver works.
You only need the first three steps of the technical check
Use the Cambridge Technical Check for step 1 (operating system and browser), step 2 (internet speed) and step 3 (audio). Step 4, the microphone check, is not needed for CEPT, because there is no speaking test.
Open the Technical CheckThe screens, in order
From signing in to reading your result, in the order the screens appear.
Sign in
Open the Cambridge test portal and enter Username, Password and Institution ID.
You cannot get in without the Institution ID. View full size Accept the terms
Tick the box and click Continue.
Continue does nothing until the box is ticked. View full size Fill in your details
Enter your name, date of birth and so on, then click Submit.
Fields with a red asterisk (*) have to be filled in. View full size Click Open to start the test
On the Test Day Timeline, Open starts the test. It is the same Open if you have to come back part-way through.
Open is the small button beside the orange play symbol. View full size Check the sound
Put your headphones on and click Play Sound. If you cannot hear it, adjust the volume and click again.
When it is clear, use the arrow at the bottom right. View full size Read the instructions, then click Start
An instruction screen appears. The arrow takes you through a few more questions, and Start begins the test.
Start is at the bottom right of the screen. View full size Work through the questions
Choose an answer and use the arrow at the bottom right for the next question.
Progress is shown along the bottom. A greyed-out left arrow means you cannot go back from here. View full size Finish and check
The last screen returns you to the Test Day Timeline.
Check it now says Completed before you close the window. View full size Read your result
Once you have finished, the result is on the Results tab of the same screen, where you can view it yourself. It is marked automatically, so it appears straight away.
The exam name, the date you sat it, and the result for each skill. View full size
What to expect during the test
There is no timer
No time limit can be set and nothing counts down on screen. Most people take about 30 minutes.
There is a progress indicator
Progress and a percentage appear along the bottom of the screen. It does not tell you how many questions are left.
The number of questions differs from person to person
The test adapts: each answer decides how hard the next question is, so both the length and the time vary.
You can only go back within the current task
The left arrow takes you to earlier questions in the same task. When the task changes, that arrow greys out.
Every recording is played twice
You get time to read the question first, then the same recording plays twice.
The end does not come abruptly
The test ends once your level is settled. You always finish the task you are on; it stops when you click the arrow to move to the next one.
If something goes wrong
- The internet dropped during the test
- Sign back in with your username (your email address), password and Institution ID, then click the same Open on the Test Day Timeline. It resumes rather than starting over.
- The login email never arrived
- That email comes from the centre. Once your payment is confirmed we send the Username, Password and Institution ID automatically. Check your junk and promotions folders first, and if it is still not there tell us and we will send it again.
- You have forgotten your password
- You reset this yourself on the Cambridge screen. Click Forgotten your password? on the sign-in screen, enter your Username and Institution ID, and click Continue. A reset link arrives by email; follow it, set a new password, and sign in with the new one.
- Your account is locked
- Five wrong sign-in attempts in a row lock the account for 30 minutes. Try again once the 30 minutes have passed, and while you wait check the case and any stray spaces in your username and password. If it still will not open, ask Cambridge support directly. Only Cambridge can unlock it.
- You sat the test but there is no result
- It may have stayed Incomplete because it was not finished. Sign back in and work through to the last screen. If it says Completed and there is still no result, contact the centre.
Password resets and locked accounts are handled by Cambridge
Neither of these can be done by the centre. Reset your password with Forgotten your password? on the sign-in screen, and if the account is still locked after 30 minutes ask Cambridge support directly. Only a login email that never arrived is ours to resend.
The test is unavailable on scheduled maintenance days
The Cambridge test platform (Metrica) is taken down for scheduled maintenance from 08:00 to 12:00 UK time (roughly 16:00–21:00 in Korea), with minor updates for the rest of the UK working day after that. Do not book a test on these dates.
2026 maintenance days
25 February · 29 April · 15 July · 30 September · 25 November (all Wednesdays)
Try it out first
This is Cambridge's public CEPT sample. It uses the same screens as the real test, so you can see the question types and where the buttons are.
Open the official CEPT sampleThe sample is for practice and produces no result. It simply ends with “This is the end of the sample test. Please click Close.”
Still have a question?
The centre can help with test dates, resending the login email, and results.
Based on Cambridge's own documentation (CEPT Candidate Test Experience · FAQs · Technical and Hardware Requirements) and the official CEPT sample. Screen images are copyright Cambridge University Press & Assessment.