Goethe exam format

How to prepare

These pages describe the Goethe-Zertifikat shape we practise in the app: four modules, the tasks inside each one, and the pass rule for that level. They prepare you for that exam. They are not a Goethe-Institut paper and not a past paper.

Pick the level you are actually studying. A page for a higher level will not make the lower exam easier, and the pass rules are not the same from A1 to C2. If you are unsure, take the placement test first and then open the matching level.

A worked example

Ich lerne für A2, nicht für B1.

A short decision, not a sample answer: stay on the level whose tasks you can already attempt.

The mock in the app uses the same module split as the level page. Jumping a level means you practise the wrong tasks.

What usually drops the point

• Treating every level as “60 percent overall”. A2 also has a written-part floor and an oral-part floor. B2, C1 and C2 pass each module on its own.
• Memorising a slogan about the exam instead of opening the skill page and doing the task type.
• Using a blog post that mixes telc, ÖSD and Goethe timings. This guide only describes the Goethe-style modules in our app.

How to use the mock

Read the level page once, then spend your study time on the four skill pages. Each skill page has one example we wrote, three things that usually drop the point, and a link into the mock.

1. Open the level the placement test suggests.
2. Skim the four skill links and note which task name you do not recognise.
3. Start the mock for that level and stop after one module. Check it against the skill page before you continue.

Author: Fahrplan Deutsch. Last reviewed 2026-10-27. reviewed: false. A native-speaker review is still open. This page is not a Goethe-Institut paper.