CELPIP vs IELTS vs PTE Core for Express Entry: IRCC's own comparison
IRCC accepts three English tests for Express Entry and treats a CLB level from any of them as the same level. So the choice is not which test IRCC likes; it is what each CLB step costs on each test's scale, how each test is run, and how soon the result arrives. This page puts IRCC's equivalency charts for all three side by side, adds the programme minimums and CRS points they feed, and takes the practical facts from each provider's own site. Where a number is not published officially, this page says so instead of guessing.
The three tests IRCC accepts, and the versions it does not
IRCC's operational manual names the designated organisations and the exact test each one may deliver for immigration. The version matters as much as the brand.
| Accepted for Express Entry | Designated organisation | IRCC's note on versions |
|---|---|---|
| CELPIP-General | Paragon Testing Enterprises, a Prometric company | Accepted for immigration and citizenship. The CELPIP-General Listening and Speaking test is accepted for citizenship only. |
| IELTS General Training | Cambridge University Press & Assessment, IDP Australia, British Council | Accepted for immigration and citizenship. The IELTS One Skill Retake is accepted only under the Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot. IELTS Academic is not listed. |
| PTE Core | Pearson Canada Inc. | Accepted for immigration and citizenship. Pearson's own page directs university applicants to PTE Academic instead, which IRCC does not list. |
| Not accepted | ETS | IRCC's manual lists TOEFL Essentials as not currently accepted. The TOEFL iBT is not on the list at all; it is an admissions test, which is why this site runs it separately. |
Source: IRCC, Language requirements (operational manual), designated language testing organisations, checked 6 September 2026.
IRCC's equivalency chart, all three tests on one grid
This is the table IRCC applies when it reads a score report. CELPIP-General reports on the CLB scale itself, so its column is the level. IELTS is the minimum band per ability; PTE Core is the score range per ability on its 10–90 scale. Abilities are in IRCC's order.
| CLB | CELPIP-General | IELTS General Training (band) | PTE Core (score) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking | Reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking | ||
| 10 | 10 in each ability | 8.0 | 7.5 | 8.5 | 7.5 | 88–90 | 90 | 89–90 | 89–90 |
| 9 | 9 in each ability | 7.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 | 78–87 | 88–89 | 82–88 | 84–88 |
| 8 | 8 in each ability | 6.5 | 6.5 | 7.5 | 6.5 | 69–77 | 79–87 | 71–81 | 76–83 |
| 7 | 7 in each ability | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 60–68 | 69–78 | 60–70 | 68–75 |
| 6 | 6 in each ability | 5.0 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 51–59 | 60–68 | 50–59 | 59–67 |
| 5 | 5 in each ability | 4.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 42–50 | 51–59 | 39–49 | 51–58 |
| 4 | 4 in each ability | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 33–41 | 41–50 | 28–38 | 42–50 |
Source: IRCC, Language test equivalency charts, reproduced as published, checked 6 September 2026. The shaded rows are the two levels the programme rules and the CRS grid turn on. IRCC's charts run from CLB 10 down to CLB 4, and its CRS grid tops out at “CLB 10 or more”.
What the chart says about each test
The observations below are ours, read off IRCC's numbers; IRCC itself draws no comparison. First, the three scales are not shaped alike. CELPIP's is the CLB scale, so every ability moves one step at a time and a level is exactly what its name says. IELTS bands move in halves, and IRCC's chart does not treat the four abilities the same way: CLB 9 needs 7.0 in Reading, Writing and Speaking but 8.0 in Listening, and CLB 10 needs 8.5 in Listening against 8.0 in Reading and 7.5 in the other two. On a PTE Core report the ability score is a number from 10 to 90 and each CLB level is a range, ten points wide or narrower; CLB 10 in Writing is the single score 90.
Second, the level that counts is the lowest of the four. Every Express Entry minimum is written “for all 4 abilities”, and the CRS grid scores each ability on its own. So a candidate reading the chart should read it by their weakest skill: on IELTS that is often Listening at the top levels, because its band requirement sits half a band above the others; on PTE Core it is whichever ability lands at the bottom of a range; on CELPIP it is simply the lowest number on the report.
Third, none of this makes a test easier. The chart is a translation, built by IRCC so that the same ability earns the same level whichever test reports it. What differs between the tests is everything the chart does not show: how long they run, how each section is delivered, how they are marked, and when the report arrives. That is the next table.
The practical differences, from each provider's own site
Each cell names its source. A blank is deliberate: it means the provider does not publish the figure, and this page will not supply one for it.
| CELPIP-General | IELTS General Training | PTE Core | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Score scale | CELPIP levels, reported per ability on a scale aligned to the CLB one-to-one: CELPIP 9 is CLB 9. | Bands per ability in half-band steps; IRCC's chart uses bands from 3.5 to 8.5. | 10–90, overall and per communicative skill, scored by Pearson's automated engine. |
| Sections and timing | Listening 46–55 min (6 parts) · Reading 43–56 min (4 parts) · Writing 53 min (2 tasks) · Speaking 15 min (8 tasks); Listening and Reading include unscored items. One sitting. | Listening about 30 min (plus 10 min to transfer answers on paper) · Reading 60 min · Writing 60 min · Speaking 11–14 min. Listening and Speaking are shared with IELTS Academic; Reading and Writing are the General Training versions. Taken at a test centre. | A single two-hour computer test in three parts: Speaking & Writing 50–65 min · Reading 27–37 min · Listening 22–37 min, in a test-centre room of no more than 15 seats. |
| Results | Online in your CELPIP account in 2–4 business days; hard-copy reports discontinued. | IELTS on computer 1–5 days; IELTS on paper up to 13 days; a Test Report Form on paper or as an eTRF. | Typically 2 days, shared with IRCC by score-report code or from the myPTE account. |
| Validity | Two years from the date the score report is issued (Paragon). IRCC: under two years old at profile and at application. | IRCC's two-year rule applies; the IELTS partners' own validity statement is not reproduced here. | Two years from the test date (Pearson). IRCC's two-year rule applies. |
| Fee in Canada | $299 CAD, as shown for Canadian test centres on Paragon's test-date finder, 6 September 2026. | Set by the test centre. No single Canadian figure is published by the IELTS partners, so none is printed here. | CA$360, as shown for Canada on Pearson's test-centres-and-fees page, 6 September 2026. |
| Source | celpip.ca, test format and scoring; results; test dates | ielts.org, General Training format; results | pearsonpte.com, PTE Core; scoring; fees |
What a CLB level buys, whichever test earned it
Two IRCC pages set the stakes. The language-test page gives each programme's minimum; the Comprehensive Ranking System grid gives the points.
Programme minimums (all four abilities)
| Federal Skilled Worker | CLB 7 |
| Canadian Experience Class, TEER 0 or 1 | CLB 7 |
| Canadian Experience Class, TEER 2 or 3 | CLB 5 |
| Federal Skilled Trades | CLB 5 speaking and listening; CLB 4 reading and writing |
| Provincial nominee streams | Set by each province per stream |
Source: IRCC, Language testing — Express Entry. The FSW second-language minimum is CLB 5.
CRS points per ability, first official language, no spouse
| CLB 4 or 5 | 6 points |
| CLB 6 | 9 points |
| CLB 7 | 17 points |
| CLB 8 | 23 points |
| CLB 9 | 31 points |
| CLB 10 or more | 34 points |
Source: IRCC, CRS grid; maximum 136 for the four abilities (128 with a spouse or partner). Below CLB 4 scores 0.
A worked case, computed with the same grid the site's calculator uses: CLB 9 in Reading, Writing and Listening and CLB 7 in Speaking comes to 110 language points; four nines would be 124. The 14-point gap is one ability, one level. The grid's skill-transferability section adds a second edge at the same two levels: CLB 7 in all four abilities, with at least one under 9, combines with education or foreign work experience for up to 25 points each, and CLB 9 in all four for up to 50. Read the equivalency chart above with that in mind: the row that matters is the one your weakest ability sits on.
Choosing, without a recommendation from IRCC
IRCC gives no steer, so the decision rests on the facts above. If the report is needed quickly, Pearson's two days and Paragon's two to four business days are published figures, and the IELTS window depends on whether you sit it on computer or on paper. If your weakest ability is Listening, note where IRCC's IELTS chart puts the Listening band at CLB 9 and 10. If a ten-point range feels different from a half-band step, that is a real difference in how a near-miss shows up, not in the level IRCC assigns. And if you already hold a valid report from any of the three, IRCC's chart converts it as it stands; a new test is a new sitting, not a transfer.
This site prepares candidates for CELPIP-General. The fairest thing it can do for the choice is to let you sit a section under CELPIP conditions and see the CLB level it produces, then hold that against the chart.
Questions candidates ask
Which English tests does IRCC accept for Express Entry?
Three, each in one specific version: the CELPIP-General test from Paragon Testing Enterprises, the IELTS General Training test from the IELTS partners, and the PTE Core test from Pearson. IRCC's manual is explicit about the versions: CELPIP-General Listening and Speaking counts for citizenship only, the IELTS One Skill Retake is accepted only under the Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot, and TOEFL Essentials is not currently accepted. IELTS Academic and PTE Academic are not on the list.
Is one test easier than the others?
IRCC does not say so and neither does this page. What IRCC publishes is an equivalency chart: for each CLB level, the score each test must show in each ability. The chart is reproduced above. It tells you what a given level costs on each scale, which is a different question from which test is easier, and the honest answer to that one depends on the candidate.
Does IRCC prefer CELPIP, IELTS or PTE?
No. All three are designated tests, and a CLB 9 established by any of them is the same CLB 9 in an Express Entry profile. IRCC's pages set the requirement in CLB terms and let the candidate choose the test.
Can I mix tests, or use my best skill from each?
IRCC's language-test page asks for results from a test, and its charts convert one report at a time. The results also have to be less than two years old when you complete your profile and when you apply for permanent residence; a report that expires between the two must be replaced, and IRCC states it will refuse an application filed with expired results.
How much do the tests cost in Canada?
Paragon's test-date finder shows $299 CAD for CELPIP-General at Canadian centres, and Pearson's test-centres-and-fees page shows CA$360 for PTE Core with Canada selected, both as checked on the date at the foot of this page. IELTS fees are set by the individual test centre; the IELTS partners do not publish one Canadian figure, so this page prints none. Confirm any fee at booking.
How fast do results come?
Paragon says CELPIP scores are available in your account in two to four business days. The IELTS results page gives one to five days for IELTS on computer and up to thirteen days for IELTS on paper. Pearson says PTE Core results typically arrive in two days.
What does a CLB level get me in points?
For a single applicant's first official language, IRCC's CRS grid gives, per ability, 6 points at CLB 4 or 5, 9 at CLB 6, 17 at CLB 7, 23 at CLB 8, 31 at CLB 9 and 34 at CLB 10 or above, for a maximum of 136. The grid also uses CLB 7 and CLB 9 in all four abilities as thresholds in its skill-transferability section, where they combine with education and foreign work experience for up to 50 points each.
Sources
- IRCC, Language requirements — designated organisations, accepted versions, and the CLB equivalency charts.
- IRCC, Language testing — Express Entry — programme minimums and the two-year rule.
- IRCC, Comprehensive Ranking System criteria — language points and skill-transferability thresholds.
- Paragon, CELPIP test format and scoring, results, and test dates.
- IELTS, General Training test format and getting your results.
- Pearson, PTE Core, scoring, and test centres and fees.
Checked 6 September 2026. Fees and timings are the providers' and change; confirm at booking. Nothing on this page is immigration advice.
Related: Listening guide · Reading guide · Writing guide · Speaking guide · How CELPIP is scored · CELPIP for the PGWP · CELPIP for citizenship · CELPIP registration, fee and test day · CLB calculator · CELPIP for Australian visas · free CELPIP practice test.