JLPT Guide: Levels, Dates, Registration and Official Resources

The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test, usually shortened to JLPT, is the exam most learners mean when they say they want a Japanese level. This guide gathers the official facts in one place: what the test is, how the five levels differ, how it is scored, how registration, test day and results work, and where the free official practice material lives. It was checked against the official JLPT website on 21 October 2026, so look at that site for anything that matters to your own date.

What the JLPT is

The JLPT measures Japanese language ability for people whose first language is not Japanese. It is organised by the Japan Foundation and Japan Educational Exchanges and Services (JEES). The official site says it is held twice a year, with the dates for 2026 being Sunday 5 July and Sunday 6 December. Outside Japan, some cities hold the test in only one of those months, so the city you sit in decides your real choice of date.

The test has five levels, from N5 (the easiest) to N1 (the hardest). It is a multiple-choice test, scored by computer, and it covers vocabulary, grammar, reading and listening.

Official background on the test is on the JLPT 'about the test' page.

The five levels at a glance

The summaries below are our paraphrase of the official level summaries. Section times and pass marks come from the official test-sections and scoring pages. We added up the section times ourselves to give a total, which is a guide and not an official figure.

Section times can change, and the official page notes that listening time may vary slightly with the length of the recordings. We do not give study-hour estimates here, because the official site does not publish a single figure and the real number depends on your starting point.

How to choose a level

• If you are working through hiragana, katakana and your first few dozen kanji, choose N5.
• If you can read simple texts in basic kanji and follow slow, short conversations, N4 is a reasonable next step.
• If you can follow everyday topics at close to normal speed and read short articles with some help, aim for N3.
• If you read newspaper-style articles and want a certificate that employers and universities often ask for, look at N2 and N1, and check what your own target school or employer actually requires.
• If you are unsure, read the official level summaries and try the official sample questions for two neighbouring levels before you register. Choose the level where you can finish most questions, not the one you hope to reach.

On NihongoTech you can build up through the lessons, the grammar pages, the vocabulary lists and kanji practice. For a realistic timeline at the first level, read how long it takes to pass JLPT N5.

Test dates

The 2026 dates on the official site are Sunday 5 July and Sunday 6 December. The official overseas schedule lists each city with its local host institution and shows whether the test is held in July, December or both. That list was dated 11 September 2026 when we checked, and the page itself warns that you should confirm with the host institution, so always check your city before you plan around a date.

How registration works

Outside Japan, you register through the local host institution in your country or city, not through a single global form. The official overseas page names the institution for each city and sends you to it for details. Deadlines, the registration method (online or on paper) and the fee all vary from country to country, and the official pages do not publish one fee for everybody.

• Find your city on the official overseas schedule and note its host institution.
• Check which months the test is held there and when its registration window opens and closes.
• Read the host institution's own instructions for how to apply and pay.
• Choose your level carefully, because you generally cannot move to another level after you have applied. Confirm the rule with your institution.

Living in or travelling from Portugal? Our step-by-step JLPT registration guide for Portugal covers the specifics. If your own country has no test site, see which European countries have no JLPT test site and our study plan for the gap.

On the day of the test

The exact rules are set by the host institution and sent with your test voucher, so treat the official instructions you receive as final. In general, expect the following.

• Bring your test voucher (the 受験票) and the photo ID the instructions ask for.
• Bring pencils and an eraser, because the answer sheet is marked by computer. Check whether pens are allowed, as the instructions normally say they are not.
• Do not expect to use a dictionary or a phone. Check what you may have on your desk.
• Listen carefully in the listening section and follow the instructions for each question, because the official FAQ notes that some listening questions have three choices instead of four.
• Do not take the test paper home with you. The official FAQ says that doing so means you automatically fail.

Scoring and pass marks

Each level is scored out of 180 points. At N1, N2 and N3 the score is split into three sections of up to 60 points each: language knowledge (vocabulary and grammar), reading and listening. At N4 and N5, vocabulary, grammar and reading are scored together out of 120, and listening is scored out of 60. To pass you must reach the overall pass mark and the minimum in every section. If you fall below one sectional minimum, you fail even if your total is above the pass mark, and missing a whole section also counts as a fail.

Results and your certificate

• Results are published online for a limited time. For the July 2026 test, the official page shows a window from 27 August to 31 October 2026 (Japan time), and the page notes that timing and content vary by location.
• Everyone who sat the test receives a Score Report. Candidates who pass also receive a Certificate of Proficiency.
• Outside Japan, the Score Report is sent through the local host institution. The official page says July reports arrive in mid-October and December reports in mid-March.
• If you need proof for a school or employer, the official site has a separate page for the Certificate of Result and Scores, and where you request it depends on where you took the test.

Official pages: online results announcement, scoring sections, pass or fail and the Score Report and certificate issuance.

Official sample questions and the practice workbook

The official site offers sample questions for every level, with test items, listening files, answer sheets, answer keys and listening scripts to download. It also describes two Official Practice Workbooks, sold by the publisher Bonjinsha, which contain questions close in number to a real test. Use the samples early to see the format and again before test day to practice under time pressure. We do not list textbooks here, because they have their own page.

Start with the official sample questions page and the practice workbook and sample set page.

What the JLPT does not test

The JLPT has no speaking section and no writing section. It tests what you can recognise and understand: vocabulary, grammar, reading and listening. A pass therefore tells an employer or school how well you understand Japanese, but not how well you speak it or write it by hand. If those skills matter to you, practice them separately and do not let the exam format decide what you study.

Keep practicing the other skills with our lessons and kanji practice, and see the self-study plan for a weekly routine that does not depend on a test centre nearby.

Japanese words for the JLPT

Official information

These are the official pages we read on 21 October 2026. Please check them again for your own test date, because dates, fees and rules can change.

About the JLPT, N1 to N5 level summaries, test sections and times, scoring and pass marks, overseas test schedule and host institutions, sample questions and results announcement.