Cambridge Scale to CEFR
Convert a Cambridge English Scale score to its CEFR level.
A score of 176 sits in the 160–179 band on the Cambridge English Scale. 4 more points would reach C1.
Each qualification reports within its own slice of the scale, so a single exam cannot return every level — a candidate scoring far above the target level of their exam is normally advised to sit the next one up.
The Cambridge English Scale places CEFR levels at fixed points twenty apart: 100 is A1, 120 A2, 140 B1, 160 B2, 180 C1, and 200 C2. A score of 176 therefore sits in the B2 band, four points short of C1.
One scale across every exam
Before 2015 each Cambridge English qualification had its own scoring system, which made results awkward to compare. The Cambridge English Scale replaced them with a single range running from 80 to 230, shared by every exam, so a score means the same thing whichever paper produced it.
CEFR levels are set at fixed points on that scale, each level exactly twenty points wide. That is the fact worth remembering: 160 is where B2 begins and 180 is where C1 begins, on any Cambridge paper.
Each exam covers a slice
No single exam spans the whole scale. Each qualification reports within a range around its target level, extending far enough below to record a lower CEFR level and far enough above to reward candidates who exceed it. A strong performance on B2 First can therefore certify C1, and a strong C1 Advanced can certify C2.
The corollary matters when choosing a paper: a candidate who is comfortably above the target level of the exam they sat is normally advised to take the next one up, because the scale caps out before their ability does.
Worked example: a score of 176
Locate the score against the fixed boundaries:
- 1 Take the overall score. The statement of results gives an overall Cambridge English Scale score — 176 here.
- 2 Recall the boundaries. A1 starts at 100, A2 at 120, B1 at 140, B2 at 160, C1 at 180, C2 at 200.
- 3 Find the band. 176 is at least 160 but below 180, so it sits in B2.
- 4 Check the distance to the next level. C1 begins at 180, so 176 is four points short.
- 5 Read the individual skills too. Reading, writing, listening, and speaking each get their own scale score, and they can sit at different CEFR levels.
CEFR levels on the Cambridge English Scale
The boundaries are fixed and identical across all Cambridge English qualifications.
| Scale score | CEFR level |
|---|---|
| 200 and above | C2 |
| 180–199 | C1 |
| 160–179 | B2 |
| 140–159 | B1 |
| 120–139 | A2 |
| 100–119 | A1 |
Which exam certifies which level
Each qualification is built around one CEFR level but reports above and below it, so the result can certify an adjacent level.
| Qualification | Target CEFR level |
|---|---|
| A2 Key | A2 |
| B1 Preliminary | B1 |
| B2 First | B2 |
| C1 Advanced | C1 |
| C2 Proficiency | C2 |
Grades and what sits above the target
Cambridge reports a grade alongside the score. On the higher qualifications the grades are A, B and C; on A2 Key and B1 Preliminary they are Distinction, Merit and Pass. A grade C on C1 Advanced corresponds to a scale score from 180 to 192 and certifies C1, while a grade A on the same paper reaches 200 and above and therefore certifies C2.
The same structure applies on B2 First, where a grade C begins at 160 and certifies B2, and the highest grades push into the C1 band. Because the underlying scale is shared, the CEFR level always follows from the score rather than from the grade letter.
One caution when comparing with IELTS: CEFR bands and IELTS bands do not line up cleanly, since IELTS reports a single score for a wide ability range. Cambridge publishes an approximate comparison — B2 spanning roughly IELTS 5.5 to 6.5 and C1 roughly 7.0 to 8.0 — but an institution that names an IELTS requirement will usually state its Cambridge equivalent separately rather than expecting a conversion.