If you have been learning Japanese you may be considering testing your knowledge so that you can work or study in Japan, or perhaps you just want to officially measure your results. You have various options to measure your Japanese, such as the JLPT and the Jtest.
So, between the JLPT and Jtest, what’s the difference? The JLPT is sponsored by the Japan foundation and is accredited by the Japanese government. The Jtest is more business oriented and considered more difficult because it emphasizes communicative Japanese while the JLPT mainly tests for vocabulary and reading.
Deciding which test you should take depends on your reasons for learning Japanese and your future goals. While both tests share some similarities, there are key differences between them. To gain a better understanding of the differences between the JLPT and the Jtest, read on.
JLPT vs. Jtest
In this section I will go over the details of each test and how they compare, so that you can get an idea of which test meets your needs.
Price
JLPT – The cost of the JLPT varies depending on where you chose to take it. It costs about ¥5,500 (about $50) to take the actual test and ¥500 (about $5) to register in Japan, however if you are taking the test in the United States it will cost you about $60.
Jtest – One of the benefits of the Jtest is the cheaper cost. The registration fee for level A through F is ¥3,600 (roughly $35), while the Business J Test registration fee is about ¥4,500 (roughly $45). However, the Jtest is not offered in the United States. More on that in the location section.
Frequency
JLPT – The frequency with which the JLPT is given depends on where you are taking the test. In Japan the test is given twice a year, once in July and again in December. However, in the United States the test is only given in December.
Jtest – The Jtest is held much more frequently than the JLPT, even in countries outside of Japan. However, the frequency depends on the level you are taking. For the A-D levels the Jtest is held in January, March, May, July, September, and November. That’s six times a year! For the E-F levels the test is held three times a year: March, July, and November.
Those test months apply to Japan, China, Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, India, and Mongolia.
Levels
JLPT – The JLPT consists of 5 levels. N5 being the easiest and N1 being the most difficult. N3 is usually where people start taking your Japanese level seriously in terms of educational or job applications, however, many companies will probably want higher than that.
As the difficulty of the levels increases, so does the amount of kanji characters and vocabulary you should be familiar with. For example, for the N5 it is suggested that you know about 100 kanji characters and 800 vocabulary words, where for the N1 it is suggested that you know about 2,000 kanji characters and 10,000 vocabular words.
Jtest – The Jtest has more levels than the JLPT. The easiest level of the Jtest is F, while A is the most difficult. However, the Jtest has an additional ‘Business J Test’ for the highest learning levels.
“A-C Level Test measures a higher level of proficiency than N1 for JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test).”
From the j-test Philippines website.
The Jtest levels are broken into tiers: A-C, D-E, and F-G. That means if you take the A-C level test, you will be awarded a letter based on your test score—A if you do well, C if you don’t do so well.
Content
JLPT – The JLPT is broken down into listening comprehension and reading comprehension. The reading comprehension section is used to test your grammar and vocabulary. Below is a chart of how many kanji and vocabulary you are expected to know for each section.
| Level | Kanji | Vocabulary |
| N5 | 100 | 800 |
| N4 | 300 | 1,500 |
| N3 | 650 | 3,750 |
| N2 | 1,000 | 6,000 |
| N1 | 2,000 | 10,000 |
Jtest – The Jtest has a listening comprehension, reading comprehension, and writing section. Like the JLPT the Jtest uses the reading section to test your grammar and vocabulary. However, the JLPT does not have a writing section.
The Jtest is also more listening focused than the JLPT.
Score
JLPT – The JLPT is scored out of 180 points. These are the following scores you need to pass each test: N5(80), N4(90), N3(95), N2(90), N1(100).
The JLPT does not simply add up the number of questions answered correctly, but gives a scaled score. You can read more about the JLPT’s scaled scoring here.
Jtest – Since the Jtest has tiered tests, the letter you are awarded on your certificate depends on the score you get on the test. For example, the A-C tier test is out of 1,000 points, and contains two sections.
In order to obtain level ‘A’ you need 900-930 points, ‘B’ requires 800-850, and ‘C’ requires 600-700. The other tiers, also out of 1000, are scored as follows: D(500-600 points), E(350 points or more), F(250-350 points).
Recognition
JLPT – The JLPT is internationally recognized, accredited by the Japanese government, recognized by universities and businesses around Japan, and actually administered by the Japanese government (in Japan). For that reason, the JLPT is most likely necessary if you are applying to any school or job in Japan.
Jtest – The Jtest is only offered in Asia and is not as well-known as the JLPT, it may help in one of the countries where it is administered, but if you plan on applying for a job in Japan, or you want to add your Japanese proficiency to an application in the United States, you should also take the JLPT.
Location
JLPT – The JLPT is administered by the Japanese government all throughout Japan. You can also take the JLPT in countries on nearly every continent, where the test is administered through host organizations. To find out more information about which countries offer the JLPT visit the official JLPT website.
Jtest – The Jtest is only administered in Asia. So, if you live in the United States, you can’t take the Jtest unless you fly to a country like Japan or The Philippines. The Jtest’s website for Japan is actually in Japanese, making it very difficult for English speakers to access in Japan.
However, there is a decent website for the Jtest in The Philippines here and some useful information on how to apply for the test in Japan (written in English) at jpn-study.com.
Other countries which host the Jtest include: China, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand, Mongolia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia, The Philippines, Brazil and Nepal.
Within Japan, the cities which host the Jtest 6 times a year are: Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, and Fukuoka. The cities which host the Jtest 3 times a year are: Sapporo, Sendai, Shizuoka, Kobe, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Takamatsu, Oita, and Okinawa.
Which Test Should You Take?
While the Jtest may offer a better measurement of your communicative Japanese, and there are levels which exceed the JLPT in difficulty, it’s lack of recognition may make your certificate unimportant to many organizations.
On the other hand, the JLPT is more focused on academic Japanese and much more widely recognized. According to the JLPT website:
“Since then [1984], the JLPT has become the largest Japanese-language test in the world, with approximately 610,000 examinees in 62 countries and areas worldwide in 2011.”
With these factors in mind, it is clear that if you plan on using your Japanese language proficiency certificate for professional or education reasons, the JLPT is your obvious choice.
However, if you really want to better gauge your communicative ability, I would suggest doing both if you live in Japan, or one of the countries that also offers the Jtest.