A1Starter

A1 English level: what it means and what you can do

By the English.me team · 10 November 2026

The short answer

A1 is the first of the six CEFR levels. At A1 you can understand and use everyday expressions and very simple sentences. You can introduce yourself, ask and answer questions about personal details, and get by in a shop or café, as long as people speak slowly and clearly. Most learners reach A1 after about 90–100 hours of lessons.

A1 at a glance

Place on the scale: Level 1 of 6The first of two “basic user” levels
Time to reach it: 90–100 hoursof lessons, starting from zero
Vocabulary: A few hundred wordsThe most common everyday ones
Exams at this level: Trinity GESE Grade 2or a score of 100–119 in Cambridge A2 Key

What you can do at A1

The CEFR describes each level by what people can do with the language. At A1, everything works best when the topic is familiar, the sentences are short and the other person is patient.

Listening

Understand slow, clear speech about you, your family and things around you.
Catch numbers, prices and times when people say them clearly.
Follow very simple instructions, like Sit down, please or Turn left here.

Reading

Understand familiar names, words and very simple sentences on signs and posters.
Read short, simple messages, like See you at six at the station.
Find basic information on a form, a menu or a price list.

Speaking

Introduce yourself and say where you live and what you do.
Ask and answer simple questions about familiar things, if the other person helps.
Use set phrases for greetings, thanks, apologies and shopping.

Writing

Fill in a form with your name, address, nationality and date of birth.
Write a short, simple message or a holiday postcard.
Write simple sentences about yourself and your day.

What’s still hard at A1

Following people who speak at normal speed, or with an accent you don’t know.
Phone calls, films and the news.
Explaining a problem or giving reasons.
Talking about the past or the future in any detail.
Writing more than a few short sentences that connect.

What A1 English looks like

Short sentences, set phrases and numbers: this is A1 English in action.

Speaking: at a café

ServerHi! What can I get you?

YouA coffee, please.

ServerSmall or large?

YouSmall, please. How much is it?

ServerThat’s two fifty.

YouHere you are. Thank you!

At A1 you can manage this if the person speaks slowly and clearly. A busy café with fast speech and unexpected questions is still hard.

Writing: a holiday message

Hi Tom!

I’m in Lisbon with my sister. It’s sunny and hot. Our hotel is small, but it’s nice. We walk a lot and we go to the beach every day.

See you on Saturday!

Ana

This is good A1 writing: the present simple, be, and short sentences joined with and and but. At A2, Ana would also use the past (Yesterday we visited a castle) and give more detail.

Grammar you know at A1

beI’m Ana. Are you a student?
have got and haveI’ve got two brothers. She has a bike.
Present simple for habits and factsI work in a shop. He doesn’t drive.
Present continuous for nowI’m waiting for the bus.
can and can’tI can swim. Can you help me?
there is and there areThere’s a park near my flat.
a, an, plurals, this and thatan apple, two buses, this book
my, your, his, her and ’smy sister’s phone
Question wordsWhat…? Where…? When…? How much…?
in, on and at for timeat 8 o’clock, on Monday, in July
ImperativesOpen the door. Don’t run.
and, but and orI like tea, but I don’t like coffee.

Words you know at A1

The words for everyday topics like these:

Numbers, prices and times
Days, months and dates
Family and friends
Jobs and countries
Your home and your town
Food and drink
Clothes and colours
The weather
Daily routines
Free time and hobbies
Shops and transport

Try three A1 questions

These questions are like the ones in our test, in three of its six formats. They aren’t in the test itself.

Fill the gap

It’s cold in here. the window, please.

Choose the reply

Can I sit here?

Choose the best reply.

Reading

Hi, I’m Marco. I live with my two sisters, Lucia and Sara. Lucia is 20, and she works in a bookshop. Sara is 16. She’s a student.

Who works in a bookshop?

What an A1 result means on English.me

Our test calls A1 Starter. You get an A1 result when your answers show you can handle A1 questions, like simple sentences about yourself, everyday phrases, short notes and signs, but you would get fewer than half of typical A2 questions right.

Because A1 is the first level, it also covers people who are just starting out. If your result says you’re close to A2, a few weeks of regular practice may be enough to move up.

How to get from A1 to A2

Cambridge English estimates that reaching A2 takes about 180–200 guided learning hours from zero. That’s roughly 90–100 more hours after A1. With three or four hours of lessons a week, it takes about six months. Listening, reading and speaking on your own make it faster.

What’s new at A2

The past simple: I went, I saw
going to for plans
Comparisons: bigger, the best
Linking ideas with because and so
Everyday tasks: shopping, directions, your weekend

Five ways to move up

Learn phrases, not just wordsChunks like Can I have…?, I’d like… and How much is…? let you say useful things long before you know all the grammar.
Listen every dayChoose short audio made for learners and play it two or three times, until you catch most of the words.
Read books written for your levelGraded readers are short books for learners. At A1, start with the first or second level of a series.
Start using the pastEach evening, say three things you did that day: I worked. I cooked dinner. I watched a film. The past simple is the biggest step at A2.
Write a little every dayA message to a friend or a few lines in a diary is enough. Look up the words you were missing, and use them again the next day.

A1 on other English exams

Exam	What counts as A1
Cambridge English	A2 Key: a score of 100–119 gets a certificate at A1. Children can take A1 Movers.
TOEFL iBT	A band of 1 or 1.5 on the 1–6 scale used since January 2026.
Trinity College London	GESE Grade 2, a short spoken exam with an examiner.
LanguageCert	International ESOL Preliminary (A1).
IELTS	Not designed for this level. Most people take it at B1 or above.

Each exam measures English in its own way, so treat these as rough matches, not exact equivalents. English.me isn’t connected to any of these organisations.

Questions people ask

Is A1 a beginner level?

Yes. A1 is the first CEFR level, for people in the early stages of learning. Some courses also use “Pre-A1” for complete beginners who know only a few words. At A1 you can already use English for simple, everyday things.

What’s the difference between A1 and A2?

At A1 you can handle very simple, predictable exchanges about yourself. At A2 you can manage everyday situations, such as shopping, asking for directions or talking about your weekend, using short sentences that connect.

Is A1 English enough for a job or a visa?

For most jobs that use English every day, no: employers usually ask for B1 or higher. Some visas ask for A1, though. For example, UK family visas have asked for A1 speaking and listening, tested with an approved exam such as Trinity GESE Grade 2. Rules change, so always check the government’s official website.

How long does it take to go from A1 to B1?

Cambridge English estimates about 350–400 guided learning hours to reach B1 from zero. After A1, that means roughly another 250–300 hours, or one to two years of regular study, depending on how much you practise outside lessons.

How do I know if I’m A1?

Take a level test. The English.me test takes about 8 minutes, adapts to your answers and places you on the scale from A1 to C2. It’s free, with no signup.

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