Korean Level Self-Test (A1-C1 Guide)

Level: TOPIK 1 and up. No login, no score to submit — just a quick, honest way to find where to start in Korean.

By the end of this page you can…

…place yourself on the CEFR scale (A1 to C1), see how that relates to the TOPIK, and open the right first lesson.

How to use this self-test

Read each level from the top. For each can-do statement, ask whether you could do it right now, unprepared, without looking anything up. Your level is the highest band where you can honestly tick every line. The moment a band has even one line you cannot do, stop — that band is your current target, not your current level.

A1 — Beginner

• I can use greetings and very basic phrases (annyeonghaseyo, gamsahamnida).
• I can introduce myself and say where I am from.
• I can read Hangul, slowly but accurately.
• I can ask and answer simple questions about personal details, very slowly.

A2 — Elementary

• I can handle short social exchanges: shopping, ordering food, asking directions.
• I can describe my family and daily routine in simple sentences.
• I can read Hangul comfortably and use the polite -yo verb ending.
• I can talk about the past in a basic way.

B1 — Intermediate

• I can cope with most situations while travelling in Korea.
• I can describe experiences, plans and opinions and give short reasons.
• I can follow the main points of clear standard speech on familiar topics.
• I can read short everyday texts and recognise common Sino-Korean words.

B2 — Upper intermediate

• I can hold a fluent conversation with native speakers without much strain.
• I can understand the main ideas of complex texts and most TV news.
• I can write clear, detailed text and argue a point of view.
• I can switch registers between casual and formal speech.

C1 — Advanced

• I can understand long, demanding texts and catch implied meaning.
• I can express myself fluently without obviously searching for words.
• I can use Korean flexibly for social, academic and professional purposes.
• I can read newspapers and formal writing with few gaps.

Try a sentence at each level

Can you read and understand these without help? Comfort with each one roughly matches that band.

Where to start based on your result

• A1: open Start Learning Korean Here, learn Hangul, then begin the grammar backbone.
• A2–B1: jump into the Korean grammar section at the first point you feel shaky, such as the topic particle 은/는 (eun/neun).
• B2–C1: use the grammar pages as a reference to plug specific gaps, and focus your time on reading, listening and writing practice.

Quick recap before the quiz.

Practice

Quiz

Next

• Begin at Start Learning Korean Here
• Browse the Korean grammar section