FCE Listening: a complete guide to the B2 First Listening paper

The B2 First Listening paper checks whether you can follow real-sounding English: everyday conversations, short talks, interviews and people describing their experiences. You are not tested on every word. You are tested on whether you understand meaning: the main idea, a detail, an opinion, an attitude, a purpose or a feeling.

That is why the paper is full of distractors: words from the wrong options that you really do hear in the recording. A candidate who listens for matching words often chooses the wrong answer. A candidate who listens for the speaker's meaning gets it right. Learning how distractors work is the fastest way to improve, so we have a whole page on FCE listening tips and distractors.

The paper has 30 questions and each one is worth 1 mark, so every part matters. There is no minimum score for Listening on its own: your Listening score is one of the five scores that are averaged into your overall result (see B2 First grades).

• Part 1: 8 short extracts. Each extract is a different situation with different speakers. You answer one 3-option multiple-choice question per extract. Because every extract is new, you must "reset" quickly between them.
• Part 2: sentence completion. One speaker gives a talk, and you complete 10 sentences with words you hear. Spelling and choosing the right short phrase matter here.
• Part 3: multiple matching. Five different speakers talk about a connected topic. You match each speaker to one of 8 options, so three options are not used. This part rewards spotting paraphrase.
• Part 4: interview or exchange. A longer conversation, usually an interview, with 7 three-option multiple-choice questions. Questions follow the order of the recording and often test opinions and attitudes.

Each part page has a step-by-step strategy, the most common traps, a worked example with an original script, and a practice set.

Hearing everything twice is a big advantage, but only if you give each listening a different job.

Before you hear anything Use the reading time to read the questions and underline the key idea in each one. Ask yourself: what kind of information will answer this? A place, a number, a reason, a feeling? Notice the options that look similar, because that is where the distractor usually is.

First listening: find Listen for the meaning of the whole extract, not single words. Choose a provisional answer, or put a light mark next to two possible options. Do not panic if you miss something. You will hear it again.

Second listening: confirm Now listen to check. Why are the other options wrong? Often you will hear a speaker mention an option and then reject it, or change their mind. If you cannot decide after the second listening, choose the most likely answer. A blank answer always scores zero.

On paper, you write your answers on the question paper while you listen. At the end there are 5 minutes to transfer them to the answer sheet. Use this time calmly: copy one part at a time, check that question numbers match, and make sure every Part 2 word is spelt correctly and written clearly. Fill in a guess for any blank.

On computer, you enter answers directly as you listen, and at the end you get 2 minutes to check them. There is nothing to transfer, so use the 2 minutes to look for empty questions and to re-read your Part 2 spellings.

Whichever version you take, practise in the same way: if you will sit the paper version, practise writing on the question paper first; if you will sit the computer version, practise typing your answers. Our page on computer-based vs paper-based B2 First compares the two in more detail.

• FCE Listening Part 1: short extracts
• FCE Listening Part 2: sentence completion
• FCE Listening Part 3: multiple matching
• FCE Listening Part 4: interview
• FCE Listening tips: how distractors work

Practice sets: Part 1 · Part 2 · Part 3 · Part 4

For the whole exam, start with our B2 First exam guide or build a timetable with the FCE study plan.