AI-scored · 4 skills · CEFR A1–C1
PCAT scores all four skills with AI and returns a CEFR-aligned level, plus what to practise next, within 48 hours.
About
PCAT (ELT Practical English Test) is an AI-scored English proficiency test built around workplace communication. It measures reading, listening, writing and speaking through four task types — reading work chat, listening to meeting audio, writing short email replies, and responding by voice — and returns a CEFR-aligned level (A1–C1) together with six dimension-level scores. The test is taken online and results arrive within 48 hours.
The same rubric is applied every time, without rater-to-rater drift.
Six dimensions show exactly which phrasing failed to get through.
No multi-week wait. You review while the attempt is still fresh.
What we measure
PCAT measures all four skills in a single sitting of about 60 minutes. Every task uses a format you actually meet at work.
What did Sarah do about the delay?
Work chat threads and short specification documents — the register you actually read on the job.
What did R. Patel propose?
Meetings, calls and announcements, answered in multiple choice.
Hi! The Q1 report is in our shared folder — link below. The marketing team updated the latest numbers yesterday …
Chat replies and short emails, scored on whether the message gets through.
Vendor contract renewal — raise the slower support response times and negotiate an SLA.
“We’re approaching the end of our current contract. Is there anything you’d like to discuss before we get into the details?”
Spoken responses, scored on both pronunciation and content.
Scoring principle
The scoring principle is Communicative Effectiveness over Grammatical Accuracy. Communication — did it get through — contributes 85% of the total; Language Quality — was it correct — contributes 15%. Whether you moved the other person comes first; grammatical precision comes second.
An error the other person cannot decode, or decodes wrongly. It hits Intelligibility directly and pulls the total score down.
An error the meaning survives. It only moves the Language Quality bands and barely affects the total.
How it works
Create an account and buy test credits.
Run the environment check for your microphone and browser.
Sit the four-skill test (about 60 minutes). You may resume within 24 hours if interrupted.
About 60 minReceive your CEFR level and dimension-level report within 48 hours.
Within 48 hoursPricing
One credit buys one attempt. All prices include consumption tax, and there are no other charges.
JPY 5,500 per attempt
JPY 4,950 per attempt
JPY 4,400 per attempt
FAQ
No. PCAT can only be taken on a desktop or laptop computer. Speaking responses are recorded through your microphone, and the answer screens are designed for a computer-sized display, so smartphones and tablets are not supported and are not covered by our testing. You can still read this site, sign in and check your results on a phone, but you cannot start a test or buy credits from one. If you arrive here on a phone, open eltpcat.com on a computer when you are ready to take the test. The test itself runs in a web browser — there is nothing to install. Before it starts, an environment check confirms that your browser can record audio, that your microphone is picking up sound and that you are online.
The current version of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge or Safari on Windows or macOS. The Speaking section records your voice with the browser's built-in recording API, so an up-to-date browser is required. Firefox can record, but it is not covered by our testing, and we do not recommend it for a scored attempt. You do not need to guess whether your setup works: the environment check that runs before every test confirms your browser, microphone, speakers, camera (optional) and network connection, and tells you what to fix before any time is counted. JavaScript and cookies must be enabled, because sign-in and the test itself depend on them. A stable internet connection is needed throughout; if you are disconnected, you can resume within 24 hours.
Within 48 hours of finishing the test. PCAT is scored by AI, so there is no multi-week wait for human graders. Your score report shows a CEFR-aligned level from A1 to C1 for the whole test, a level for each of the four skills — reading, listening, writing and speaking — and six dimension-level scores that show which aspects of communication worked and which did not. For Speaking and Writing, the report weights Communication (did the message get through, was the task achieved) at 85% and Language Quality (grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation) at 15%, and it points to what to practise next. The report is available in your account as soon as scoring completes.
JPY 5,500 per attempt, tax included. PCAT uses credits: one credit is one full four-skill test. A pack of three credits costs JPY 14,850 (JPY 4,950 per attempt) and a pack of five costs JPY 22,000 (JPY 4,400 per attempt), all tax included. There are no other charges — no registration fee and no charge for the score report. Credits are valid for one year from purchase and cannot be transferred or redeemed for cash. A credit is consumed when you start a test; if you are interrupted, you can resume the same attempt within 24 hours without using another credit. Refunds are not issued as a rule once a test has started; see the terms of service for details. Payment is by card through Stripe.
About 60 minutes for all four skills in a single sitting: Speaking 12 minutes, Listening 12 minutes, Reading 10 minutes and Writing 8 minutes, plus the environment check and short instructions before each section. Each section has its own time limit, and the clock starts when you begin the section — not while you read the instructions or work through the sample question. If you are interrupted — a dropped connection, for example — you can resume within 24 hours at no extra cost; after 24 hours the session expires and a new credit is required. Set aside a quiet hour with a working microphone and a stable connection before you start.
TOEIC Listening & Reading measures the receptive skills: understanding what you hear and read. PCAT measures all four skills, adding the productive ones — writing and speaking — in workplace scenarios such as replying to a work chat, answering an email and responding by voice in a meeting. The score is a CEFR-aligned level (A1–C1) with six dimension-level scores, and the scoring principle is communicative effectiveness over grammatical accuracy: whether your message got through counts for 85%, language quality for 15%. That is why someone with a high TOEIC score can still find it hard to speak up in meetings, and why PCAT is designed to show that gap. It is taken online in about 60 minutes, and results arrive within 48 hours.
From JPY 5,500 per credit (tax included). Credits are valid for one year.