What Is the TOPIK Exam? Levels, Structure, and How to Prepare

What is TOPIK?

TOPIK, the Test of Proficiency in Korean, is the standard Korean-language exam for non-native speakers. It is run by NIIED, the National Institute for International Education, a body of Korea's Ministry of Education.

Universities use it for admissions, employers use it for hiring, and Korean immigration uses it for visa points. It is offered several times a year in Korea and at test centers worldwide, on paper and, since 2023, as an internet-based test in a growing list of countries.

Registration happens at topik.go.kr or through your local testing center.

TOPIK I vs TOPIK II

There are two separate exams, and you register for one or the other. TOPIK I covers beginner Korean; TOPIK II spans intermediate to advanced. There is no speaking section on either.

Levels and passing scores

Your level is decided by your total score, not by passing individual sections. Results are valid for two years.

How to prepare: vocabulary first

There is no official TOPIK word list. But the exam reuses vocabulary heavily: the same words appear across released papers year after year, which makes the released exams themselves the best source of what to study.

We analyzed every officially released TOPIK exam and built flashcard decks from the words that actually recur. Studied with spaced repetition, a recurring-vocabulary deck covers the highest-value words in the weeks before your test date.