Goethe B1 Listening: 4 Parts, How Often You Hear Each Text, Scoring
Level:B1Duration:~3 hoursFee:~€150–250Validity:UnlimitedFormat:Modular
Last updated: 30 September 2026 · Verified against current official Goethe-Institut sources
Goethe B1 Listening takes about 40 minutes and has 30 items across four parts. The key difference between the parts is how often you hear them: parts 1 and 4 are played twice, parts 2 and 3 only once. The result is converted to a score out of 100, and you need 60 to pass.
The parts
| Part | Text | Task | Items | Played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part 1 | 5 short texts: announcements, voicemail, radio | True/false + a/b/c (2 per text) | 10 | Twice |
| Part 2 | Guided tour or public talk | a/b/c | 5 | Once |
| Part 3 | Everyday conversation between two people | True/false | 7 | Once |
| Part 4 | Radio discussion (host + two guests) | Who says what? – matching | 8 | Twice |
Tactics by part
- Part 1: focus on the true/false item on the first hearing and the a/b/c item on the second.
- Part 2: use the 60-second reading time to note the order of questions; information comes in the same order.
- Part 3: with a single hearing, watch for negation (nicht, kein, noch nicht) and speakers correcting themselves.
- Part 4: read all eight statements first, note who might say each one and confirm on the second hearing.
Score conversion
| Correct | Points |
|---|---|
| 30 | 100 |
| 24 | 80 |
| 21 | 70 |
| 18 | 60 (pass) |
| 17 | 57 (fail) |
Under the official rules, correct answers are multiplied by 3.33 and rounded.
Official sources
The exam rules and figures in this guide were checked against the official sources below.
Related guide
Practise Goethe B1 Listening at exam pace
Take Goethe B1 Listening sets on Zertifly with the real number of plays and turn your correct answers into points.