Best Duolingo English Test practice platforms in 2026
Aman Batth · 7 min read · · Updated
Every DET platform gives you a score. Almost none tells you which mistake you made or how to stop making it. Here is the standard worth judging any of them by, what Hilingo does against it, and where the others land.
Disclosure: we make Hilingo. We are not pretending to be a neutral reviewer, and we rank ourselves first. What we will do instead is tell you exactly what to test, so you can check every claim here yourself in one free mock without paying anyone.
The problem with "best platform" lists
Nearly every DET tool does the same thing: you answer questions, it gives you a number.
A number tells you that you failed. It does not tell you why. Duolingo's own practice test is the clearest example — authentic interface, and at the end you get an overall range with no subscores and no feedback. You cannot fix "somewhere around 105".
So the question is not which platform has the most questions. It is: after the mock, do you know what to do tomorrow morning?
Here is the standard we would judge any platform by — including us:
- Does it name the mistake? Not "you scored 105" but which word you missed and what to change.
- Does it run the real format? All 13 task types across 64 screens, at the real per-task time limits, adaptive.
- Does it report the four real subscores? Literacy, Comprehension, Conversation, Production — not one number.
- Does it mark pronunciation per word? A single speaking mark tells you nothing you can act on.
- Does it explain in a language you think in? Feedback you cannot read is not feedback.
- Does it follow you to the next exam? The DET is not accepted for Canadian PR, so most students sit a second test.
Six questions. A platform that answers "no" to five of them is a question bank, not a teacher.
What Hilingo actually does
1. It tells you which mistake you made, and the habit that fixes it
This is the part to judge us on, because it is the part almost nobody does.
On every one of the 64 screens you get: what you answered, what the answer was, what went wrong, and what to change. Real output from a real report:
Listen and Type — "Out of 11 words: 7 exactly right, 2 close, 2 missed. Missed completely: through and although. Nearly right (spelling): recieve — these still earn partial credit, so type them even when unsure. You added 1 word that was not said — extra words cost marks."
Fill in the Blanks — "The word was through; you typed thorough."
Read and Complete — "You completed 6 of 8 blanks. Missed: because and however."
Highlight the answer — "Your highlight overlapped the correct text by about 40%. Highlighting too much is scored the same as highlighting the wrong thing. Select the shortest span that answers the question — usually one clause, not the whole sentence."
Look at what that first note does. It separates missed from nearly right, then tells you something that changes your behaviour immediately: a misspelled word still scores, so type it anyway. A student who reads that stops leaving blanks — and their score moves before their English has improved at all.
Reading and Listening get this too, not just the speaking and writing screens. A tick or a cross on a Listen-and-Type teaches nothing.
2. A real exam simulator — for every exam we run
Not a question bank with a timer bolted on. A full proctored exam shell: PTE Academic, PTE Core, IELTS, CELPIP, the Duolingo English Test and TCF Canada.
The DET mock runs the real structure — all 13 task types across 64 screens — at the real per-task limits: Read Aloud 5 seconds, Interactive Speaking 35, Speak About the Photo 90, Speaking Sample 180. Those come from the test's own task specification.
That matters most on the DET because it is adaptive — it climbs until you stumble. (the DET is adaptive) Practise at the wrong tempo and you train the wrong habit, then meet the real thing at full speed.
3. The four real DET subscores
The official practice test gives one number. We report the DET's actual four — Literacy, Comprehension, Conversation, Production — derived the way the real test derives them, from paired skills. (the DET's four combined subscores)
"You scored about 105" is a verdict. "Your Production is holding you down while your Comprehension is fine" is a study plan.
4. Per-word pronunciation, not one speaking mark
We score every speaking answer per component and colour every word green, orange or red by how clearly it was heard.
Nobody improves from "6.5 in speaking". People improve from seeing, at a glance, that they drop the ending on past-tense verbs.
5. An AI teacher that has already read your result — in your language
Nothing else in this category has this.
Our AI Teacher does not open with "how can I help?". It already knows your scores, your weakest subscore and which questions you lost, so it starts with a diagnosis. Ask why you lost a mark and it answers about your answer.
She answers in 51 languages — हिन्दी, ਪੰਜਾਬੀ, ગુજરાતી, বাংলা, العربية, Filipino, Kreyòl ayisyen and more — offered up front, so a student not yet confident in English does not have to write English to ask for help. If you are preparing in Punjab or Gujarat: your tutor explains your English mistakes to you in Punjabi.
6. It follows you to your next test
You sit the DET for a university offer. Then you learn IRCC does not accept the DET for permanent residence, and you need CELPIP.
On Hilingo that is the same login, the same scorer, the same report you already know how to read. On a DET-only tool you start over and pay again.
Take a free full DET mock — 64 screens, scored per task, then ask the AI Teacher why you lost your worst question. Twenty minutes tells you whether anything below matters.
Where the others land
Short, factual, and every claim is what they say publicly.
| Platform | What it does well | Where it stops |
|---|---|---|
| DET Ready (official) | The most authentic interface — take it once | An overall range, no subscores, no feedback |
| Arno | Full mock with subscores and AI feedback; also covers TOEFL | DET plus TOEFL only |
| TestGlider | Timed full-length mocks, clean results breakdown | Simulation over diagnosis |
| DET Ready (premium) | 5,000+ questions with answers | A drill library, not a teacher |
| LingoLeap | DET-specific automated scoring and guidance | Single test |
| Gurully / Prep27 | DET alongside PTE and IELTS, free mocks | Worth it mainly if you already pay them |
| PrepareBuddy | Broad coverage, AI feedback | Publicly claims 95% accuracy — see below |
About accuracy percentages
PrepareBuddy claims 95%. Others quote similar figures.
No platform in this category publishes the method behind its number. Not the sample size, not what it was measured against, not who checked it. A percentage with no method is a marketing asset, not a measurement.
So we do not quote one. Check something real instead: take a free mock and see whether the feedback tells you anything you did not already know. That takes twenty minutes and cannot be faked on a landing page.
Choose by what you are short of
| Your problem | Pick |
|---|---|
| "I do not know why I am losing marks" | Hilingo — feedback on every screen |
| "I want it explained in Punjabi or Hindi" | Hilingo — AI Teacher, 51 languages, knows your result |
| "I want the four real DET subscores" | Hilingo |
| "I need CELPIP or IELTS later too" | Hilingo — one engine, six exams |
| "I am also taking TOEFL" | Arno |
| "I fall apart on the clock" | TestGlider |
| "I have not seen enough questions" | DET Ready premium |
Canada: the trap that costs a test fee
The Duolingo English Test is accepted by Canadian universities and colleges for admission. IRCC does not accept it for permanent residence — at any score. For PR you need CELPIP, IELTS or PTE Core in English, or TEF or TCF in French. (IRCC's list of approved language tests)
People sit the DET for their offer, assume it carries through to PR, and find out months later it does not. Two test fees and a lost intake.
It is also the clearest reason to choose a platform that runs both. Start with the free DET mock; when PR comes around, CELPIP is already there with the scorer you have learned to read.
When not to pick us
Straight, and there are exactly two:
- You are taking TOEFL alongside the DET. Arno covers that pairing and we do not.
- You want the single largest DET-only drill library. That is DET Ready premium.
Neither is a close call. If you are in one of those two cases, go there.
For everyone else — and anyone whose plan involves Canada — one free mock settles it.
Last checked September 2026. Platforms change; verify on their own sites. If we have described your platform inaccurately, tell us and we will correct it.