TOEFL iBT® Test Day: What to Bring and a Checklist, at a Test Center or at Home

In short

• At a test center, bring a valid, original ID whose name matches your registration exactly, and arrive at least 30 minutes early. Pencils, scratch paper, and headphones are provided.
• At home, you also need a desktop or laptop that passes ETS's equipment check, a speaker and microphone that aren't a headset, a webcam you can move around the room, one small whiteboard or one sheet of paper in a clear sheet protector with an erasable marker, and a phone or hand-held mirror for check-in.
• The test takes about two hours with no scheduled breaks, so plan the time around it and don't count on a pause.

Your ID

This is the one thing that can stop you from testing outright. If the name on your registration and the name on your ID don't match, you can't take the test, and the fee isn't refunded.

• The first and last name must match exactly, spelling included (accents aside). Don't use a nickname or initials when you register.
• The ID must be an original, valid, government-issued document with your name, date of birth, a recent photo, and your signature. Photocopies, expired documents, and IDs shown on a phone aren't accepted.
• Accepted IDs include a passport, driver's license, national ID card, or state or province ID card. An international driver's license, a mobile driver's license, and a student ID aren't accepted as your main ID.
• If the ID isn't in English letters and the administrator can't read it, you may be turned away.
• If you test outside your country of citizenship, the ID must be your passport.
• The Home Edition needs a valid government ID too.

Rules differ by country, so check yours on ETS's ID page. At a test center, ETS suggests bringing two forms of ID in case the first one is questioned.

At a test center

Arrival and check-in

• Arrive at least 30 minutes before your start time. If you arrive after it, you can't test and the fee isn't refunded.
• You show your ID and store everything else. There may be a security check with a metal-detector wand, and you'll have your photo taken and may give a voice sample.

In the testing room

• No phones, watches, or other electronics. A phone you bring must be switched off and stored where staff tell you; they won't hold devices for you.
• Remove jewelry, hair accessories, and face masks before you go in. Wedding and engagement rings can stay on.
• The center gives you pencils and scratch paper, and you can't bring your own. To get more paper, you hand in what you have used.
• Headphones are provided; your own headphones and earbuds aren't allowed.
• No food or drink in the room unless you have an approved health accommodation.
• There are no scheduled breaks, so eat and use the restroom before you check in.

At home, with the Home Edition

Equipment

• A desktop or laptop with Windows 11 or later, or macOS 10.13 or later, with one screen and one keyboard. Tablets, phones, and hybrid devices such as the Microsoft Surface can't be used.
• The TOEFL Test App, downloaded from your My TOEFL Home dashboard. Its Equipment Check tells you whether your computer is ready.
• A built-in or external speaker, not a headset or earphones, and a microphone that isn't part of a headset.
• A webcam you can move to show the proctor the whole room, including your desk and the floor under it.
• If you're asked for a second camera: a phone or tablet with iOS 12 or Android 8 or later and working front and back cameras, charged and plugged in.

For notes and check-in

• One small desktop whiteboard with an erasable marker, or one blank sheet of paper inside a clear sheet protector with an erasable marker. The paper can't come out of the protector.
• A phone or a hand-held mirror for check-in.

Your room

• You're alone, with the door closed, and nobody may come in during the test. No public spaces.
• Cover glass walls and windows that people could see through.
• Sit at a desk or table on a standard chair, not on a bed, couch, or armchair.
• No food or drink during the test.
• Your face and ears stay visible the whole time, so no hat or hair over your ears and no face mask. Take off accessories; wedding and engagement rings are fine.

Check-in and during the test

• You can start checking in from 15 minutes before your appointment until 30 minutes after it. You wait in a virtual waiting room, connect a second camera if needed, show your ID, scan the room for the proctor (every wall and corner, under the desk, the whole workspace), and run a final equipment check. The test timer starts only after that.
• A human proctor watches the whole session, which is recorded. Stay in view of the camera, don't take a break, and don't talk or read aloud except in the Speaking section. These can cancel your scores.
• Turn off any extra phones and put them behind you. Close screen-sharing and remote-access software and writing tools such as Zoom, Teams, and Grammarly before you start.
• At the end, you erase your whiteboard or sheet and show both sides to the camera.

If something goes wrong

• If the equipment check fails on test day and you can't fix it, keep checking in and the proctor will help.
• If you have a technical problem during the test, speak and wave to get the proctor's attention. If you get disconnected and can't reconnect, start check-in again.
• If your room or equipment doesn't meet the requirements, you can't test, and you don't get a refund or a free reschedule. That's why the checks before test day matter.

Checklist for the days before

• Check that your ID is valid and the name matches your registration exactly.
• Choose your free score recipients. You can add or change them until 10 p.m. (local test center time) the day before the test.
• Test center: 24 hours before, sign in to your ETS account to check that the time and building haven't changed, and plan to arrive 30 minutes early.
• Home Edition: run the equipment check at least 48 hours before, ideally on the same weekday and at the same time of day as your test, and again on test day. If ETS asks you to verify your identity in an app, do it at least 48 hours before.
• Home Edition: set up the room, the whiteboard or sheet protector, the marker, and the phone or mirror. If you use a second camera, practice setting it up and turn on Do Not Disturb.
• Plan two hours with no break. A full-length mock test beforehand shows you how that feels; see how the 2026 test is structured.