Best TOEFL Preparation Books Resources - Reviews & Comments

What is TOEFL?
TOEFL stands for Test of English as a Foreign Language - in other words it is English Language Proficiency test that all US Business Schools require International applicants to take. The new Internet Based Test or TOEFL iBT is scored from 0 to 120 but schools do not look at it from a scoring standpoint but rather Pass/Fail. Many schools will set a certain minimum that an applicants must get. If you are a native speaker or have been educated at a Western College that used English as the main language of instruction, there is a good chance that TOEFL requirement will be waived. US Residents and graduates of US colleges do not need to take TOEFL.


Some useful links:

- About the TOEFL iBT:
ETS TOEFL@iBT Home

- Test preparation:
TOEFL@ iBT Test Preparation

- Online practice. Similar to GMATprep but pretty expensive - tests are $44.95 each Sometimes I'm glad ETS is not provider of GMAT anymore:
http://toeflpractice.ets.org/

TOEFL Preparation Guide books:

1. The Official Guide to the New TOEFL iBT:

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This book is a "must have" for TOEFL Preparation, no doubt about it. All four sections of the test are covered in detail with very thoroughly explained basic type of questions. This product is all you need to master the TOEFL. Unlike OG for GMAT, Official Guide for TOEFL is enough, you don't need any additional material. While additional scripts and books can help, they are not necessary to get the high score.

Pros:
Well written, excellent selection of example essays and readings. Simply, applicant will be very well prepared for the test with this book and wouldn't find any subsequent unpleasant surprises in the test itself.

Cons:
Nothing specific for this book. What used to drive me crazy during TOEFL preparation was lack of any kind of resource for practice of Speaking section.

2. Cambridge Preparation for the TOEFL Test:

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Note:
These are the only TOEFL books I had experience with. I expect members of the forum to recommend other books or to critique these two.

Welcome to the new TOEFL Subforum.

I have not used this version, but used a similar book before to get my vocabulary up. This one is TOEFL specific.

400 Must-Have Words for the TOEFL

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Here is the one I have used, which I can't believe they still have in print. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars, but I thought it was worth the money.
More Illustrated Word Smart (Smart Guides)

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Also here is a TOEFL summary for Top 20 schools by Hjort: toefl-compendium-29863.html

I found best match between the real TOEFL Test and the Cambridge Practice Tests as well as i-Courses TOEFL Practice Tests. The good news is that i-Courses also offers a free TOEFL Sample that may be used online just by registering into their web page. For the full TOEFL Tests i-Courses give a nice feedback while in Cambridge that is a drawback that you cannot receive real teacher feedback nor your essays or writings are scored.

I-course TOEFL Test Online and Cambridge TOEFL Preparation.

Greets,

looks like i have all the info here

Hello all!

For my TOEFL preparation, I have bought the followowing books:

--> The complete guide to the TOEFL test iBT Edition

--> The official guide TOEFL Test

See ya!

thank for the post

A friend of mine has lent me Cracking the TOEFL iBT, but the 2009 edition.
Since I didn't find any mention of this book on this forum, just wanted to know, if it's a good enough book. If not, then I may have to purchase one of the others suggested in the posts above in this thread.

Thanks

If somebody needs, contact me.
I have a list of all Toefl iBT books that you need to study, but I am new here so I can not post link. :D

Thank you!
Please post the names and i will link them up.

I studied using "Barrons" http://www.amazon.com/Barrons-TOEFL-CD- ... 334&sr=8-1

The accompanying CD had 7 full length practice tests and was comparable to what I found in the real exam.

By the way, I got this book while I was in India and they had an Indian edition.It was quite inexpensive considering the amount of practice the CD provided. The Indian edition costed less than 400 INR ( less than 10 dollars).

Are there any free online materials for speaking and listening... ?

Cambridge is the best book for listening. I think, the difficulty of the listening passage is as same as real Toefl. Also I got nearly same points in real Toefl

Is cambridge good for writing and reading as well? Thanks.

I got myself a copy of the Official Guide for the new TOEFL iBT from my local library(luckily they had a copy) and the book is the second edition. If I'm not wrong, the third edition is already out. So was wondering if I would need to buy the third edition? Also, is it sufficient if I go through the official guide alone? I scored 100 last time without any practice/prep. However, I need to retake it to score around 110 now with a minimum of 26 in each section. My trest is on friday march 11. thank you

hey,
no need to buy the last version, you are fine with yours. Good luck.

Thanks rid! I'm relieved now..will start studying...

Please send me at awaitedfriend@gmail.com

Hi,

How is the Kaplan book for Toefl?

I heard that the book is accompanied with 4 practice tests that are representative of the real exam. However, I read online somewhere that the practice tests will not give you a score once you are done. I was wondering if anyone can confirm this? Is it cause of the speaking section? But still if the tests won't give me a score then how will I know where I stand?

Thanks!

Has anyone used Longman? I read some good reviews but also read an english teacher saying that the integrated tasks of this book are very different from the ones of the real test...