The Duolingo English Test is bought online, taken at home, and priced in the checkout of your own account — which is also the only place its current price is shown. This page sets out what a purchase actually gets you, the time limits attached to it, the add-on that speeds up results, and the rules that can cost you a test without a refund, all from Duolingo's own Official Guide, alongside the Myndaq Duolingo English Test course. For what is inside the test, see the DET syllabus and question types.
Why this page does not quote a price
Duolingo shows the test price inside its purchase flow, in your currency, after you log in. Its public pages render that figure in the browser, and its help centre could not be read when this page was checked, so there is no official page from which a figure could be verified on 24 September 2026. Prices quoted on agent and coaching sites are second-hand and not reproduced here.
What Duolingo's guide does say is that the test is offered "at a fraction of the price of other tests", and that sending results costs nothing extra. To see the price that applies to you, create a free account at englishtest.duolingo.com and open the purchase screen.
What you can buy
When you click Buy Now, you choose:
- A single test or a bundle of two tests.
- Results in two days or the same day — the second option is Faster Results, below.
- Payment method. Most major credit cards are accepted, plus other methods depending on your location. A coupon code can be applied at checkout.
The time limits attached to a purchase
These are the rules most candidates discover too late:
- You have 21 days from purchase to begin your test. A test bought well ahead of an application deadline can expire unused.
- With a bundle, you have a further 21 days to take the second test after you receive the result of the first.
- You can buy at most three tests in any 30-day period. Each is a separate certified attempt. If you are planning to retake quickly, count your purchases.
Faster Results
Standard results arrive within 48 hours. Faster Results cuts the turnaround to 12 hours. You can add it in three places:
- when you buy the test;
- after buying but before you start, from Get Faster Results on your home page;
- within one hour of submitting your test and completing the post-test survey.
The third option is the useful one: you can decide after you have sat the test whether speed is worth paying for.
Sending scores
Results appear in your online account, and you can start sending them as soon as they are available. You can send certified results to an unlimited number of institutions at no additional fee, electronically, with nothing to post. Institutions see the same overall score and subscores you see, can read your Writing Sample and watch your Speaking Sample (sent as a video).
Retakes and validity
- Certified scores are valid for two years.
- To retake, you buy another test — there is no separate retake product — subject to the three-in-30-days limit.
- Because each test is drawn from a very large pool of questions, a retake is a new test rather than a repeat of the old one.
What can cost you a test without a refund
The DET is proctored from recordings of your session, and the guide is explicit: if you break a rule, Duolingo can decline to certify the result, or invalidate a result it had already certified, without providing a refund. Depending on how serious the violation is, test takers can also be suspended for one year or banned permanently. Where an appeal is available, an Appeal This Result button appears next to the invalid result on your home page.
The rules that most often catch honest candidates, all from the guide:
- Do not look away from the screen except to type.
- Do not wear headphones or earbuds; keep your ears visible.
- Close every other program — browsers, messaging and remote-desktop software — before you start.
- Do not take notes, and keep paper and extra devices out of the room.
- Keep your phone camera recording your whole screen and keyboard; if the video is interrupted or obscured, the test is cancelled or invalidated and you start again.
- Have your physical government-issued photo ID in hand — copies and photos of it are not accepted.
In other words, most lost fees are lost to setup, not to English. Read the rules before paying, not after.
Accommodations
If you need accommodations, you request them through a form on Duolingo's site while logged in; requests are assessed case by case, and the support team replies within 3 days. Allow for that before your 21-day window runs down.
Quick answers
How much does the Duolingo English Test cost?
The price is shown in the purchase flow of your Duolingo English Test account, in your currency. It could not be read from an official public page when this page was checked, so we do not quote a figure.
How long do I have to take the test after buying it?
21 days from purchase to begin. With a two-test bundle, a further 21 days for the second test after your first result.
What is Faster Results?
An add-on that cuts result turnaround from 48 hours to 12. You can buy it at purchase, before you start, or within an hour of submitting your test.
Does it cost extra to send my scores?
No. Certified results can be sent to any number of institutions at no additional fee.
Is the fee refunded if my test is invalidated?
Not when the invalidation is for a rule violation; the guide says results can be withheld or invalidated without a refund, with an appeal in some cases.
