TOEFL MyBest scores: how superscoring works

TOEFL MyBest scores take your highest Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing scores from any of your valid TOEFL iBT tests in the last two years and put them together on one line of your score report. If your Reading was strongest in March and your Speaking was strongest in June, MyBest shows both. You don't apply for it or pay extra; it appears automatically. Whether it helps you depends on who reads the report.

This guide covers how MyBest is built, what changed with the 1–6 scale in 2026, an example with real-looking numbers, who accepts it, and how to plan a retake around it. The rules below are from the ETS TOEFL iBT Information Bulletin and the ETS score pages as of October 2026.

What exactly is a MyBest score?

ETS describes MyBest as scores that "combine your best scores for each section from all your valid TOEFL iBT scores from the last 2 years". Three parts of that sentence matter:

• Each section separately. ETS looks at Reading on its own, then Listening, then Speaking, then Writing, and takes the highest of each.
• Valid scores only. TOEFL iBT scores are valid for two years from the test date. A test older than that drops out of your MyBest.
• No extra cost. MyBest is part of the normal TOEFL iBT test fee, and you don't have to request it.

Your score report shows two sets of numbers: the scores from the test date you're sending, and your MyBest scores. The institution sees both.

How MyBest works on the 1–6 scale

Since 21 January 2026, TOEFL iBT reports each section from 1 to 6 in half points, and the overall score is the average of the four rounded to the nearest half point. If you're not sure how that works, read the 1–6 score scale explained first.

Many people have one test on the old 0–120 scale and one on the new scale. ETS handles this in one direction only:

• If the report is for a test on the new 1–6 scale, the MyBest section converts your older 0–120 scores to 1–6 so they can be combined.
• If the report is for a test on the old 0–120 scale, the MyBest section only includes scores from the old scale.

So a new-format test can pull in an old Reading score, but an old report won't show anything from your 2026 tests.

A worked example

Here is a student, Minh, who sat the updated TOEFL iBT twice in 2026.

On each test date Minh averaged 4.5. Taking the best of each section gives 5.0, 5.0, 4.5 and 4.5, which averages 4.75. The university Minh is applying to asks for 4.5 overall with at least 4.5 in each section. Test 1 alone fails that, because Speaking was 4.0. Test 2 alone passes. MyBest also passes, and looks better on every section.

Now change one detail. Suppose the course asks for 5.0 in Reading and Listening. No single test meets both, because Minh's 5.0 in Reading and 5.0 in Listening came from different days. If the university accepts MyBest, Minh is in. If it doesn't, Minh needs another test where both reach 5.0 together.

That second case is where MyBest makes the biggest difference, and it's also where you most need to check the institution's policy before relying on it.

(We left the MyBest overall blank on purpose. Some institutions only look at the section scores in MyBest; ask how they treat the total.)

Who accepts MyBest scores?

ETS's own answer is short: each institution sets its own requirements, so check with them directly. In our experience at AIL, practice varies:

• Some universities accept MyBest outright and say so on their English requirements page.
• Some accept it only if every section score comes from a test within their own time limit, which may be shorter than two years.
• Some only accept scores from a single test date, and ignore the MyBest line.
• Scholarship panels, registration bodies and employers each have their own rules.

Search the institution's admissions page for "MyBest" or "superscore". If it isn't mentioned, email the admissions office and keep the reply. For the scores Australian universities typically ask for, see what TOEFL score you need for university.

MyBest and Australian visas

Be careful here. Home Affairs sets a minimum "in each of the 4 test components" for an approved test. As of October 2026, its English language pages mention combined results only for IELTS One Skill Retake and the Michigan test's Single Section Retake, and say nothing about TOEFL MyBest. Don't count on MyBest for a visa. Plan to reach every minimum in one sitting.

There is a second issue. The ETS bulletin notes that only tests taken before 21 January 2026, and TOEFL iBT Australia, are currently approved for Australian visa purposes. TOEFL iBT Australia keeps the older format and the 0–120 scale, and you must select "Taking TOEFL for Australia" when you register. The updated 1–6 test is not accepted for visas. See TOEFL for Australian visas for the minimum scores and the student visa rules.

If you need TOEFL for both a visa and a university, ask your university whether it accepts TOEFL iBT Australia scores for admission. One test may cover both.

Using MyBest to plan a retake

MyBest changes how you think about a second attempt. On a single test date, a weak section drags your overall down. With MyBest, your strong sections from the first test are already banked (if your institution accepts MyBest), and the second test only needs to lift the weak one.

That doesn't mean you can ignore the other sections on the retake. You still sit the whole test, and your new test-date scores also go on the report. But you can spend most of your preparation on the section that's short.

A sensible order:

1. Confirm in writing that your institution accepts MyBest.
2. List the gap: which section, and by how much. Half a point on the 1–6 scale is a real step, roughly the difference between a solid B2 and the edge of C1.
3. Spend about two thirds of your study time on that section.
4. Sit a full timed practice test before you book. If the weak section is now at the target in practice, book the real test.
5. Keep the two-year window in mind. If your best Reading came from a test 20 months ago, it will drop out of MyBest soon.

ETS lets you take the TOEFL iBT as often as you like, but not more than once in a three-day period. Scores are usually in your ETS account about three days after a test (TOEFL iBT Australia takes about four to eight days).

Common mistakes

Assuming everyone accepts MyBest. Many don't, and many don't say either way. Get the answer from the institution before you plan around it.

Using MyBest for a visa. For Home Affairs, plan on one test that meets all four minimums.

Forgetting the two-year limit. MyBest only uses valid scores. A great Reading score from more than two years ago isn't on your report any more.

Retaking without changing anything. If your Speaking was 4.0 last time and you prepare the same way, it will probably be 4.0 again. Work out why, using recordings or a marked practice test, before you rebook.

Sending scores before checking them. You can't ask for a Speaking or Writing score review once you have sent scores to an institution, and a review must be requested within 30 days of the test, for a fee.

Checklist before you rely on MyBest

• The institution has confirmed it accepts MyBest, ideally in writing.
• Every section you're counting on comes from a test in the last two years, and within the institution's own time limit if it has one.
• You know whether the institution looks at the MyBest overall or only at sections.
• You are not using it for an Australian visa.
• Your retake plan targets the weak section, with a practice test to check progress.

If you're not sure which section is holding you back, the AIL TOEFL iBT style practice site has free practice sections in all four skills with estimated 1–6 scores. Then sit a full mock test under time; our practice test guide explains how to review one. AIL is also an ETS authorised TOEFL iBT test centre in Melbourne, if you're booking the real test.

These practice tests are written by AIL teachers. TOEFL and TOEFL iBT are registered trademarks of ETS, and AIL's practice materials are not endorsed or approved by ETS.