The DELF B1 written test lasts 45 minutes and asks for one text of at least 160 words, marked out of 25, according to the official candidate manual. That is not much time, and it is easy to lose points not on your French but on the clock: you start writing straight away, run out of ideas halfway, and have no minutes left to check your agreements. A fixed method removes that problem, because you already know what to do at minute 0, minute 10 and minute 40.
What exactly does the DELF B1 written test ask for?
You write one text expressing a personal point of view on a general subject, in a format the instructions specify: a letter, an email, a newspaper article or a forum essay. In the adult version of the exam, the subject can be professional. The starting point is usually a short written document or situation, and you react to it with facts, an experience and an opinion.
Three things are fixed every time:
- One exercise only, 45 minutes.
- 160 words minimum. You can write more, you cannot write less.
- The score is out of 25, and like every DELF test, a score below 5 out of 25 is eliminatory. You need 50 out of 100 overall to pass the diploma.
Read the instructions twice before anything else. The manual is explicit that they tell you the type of text, the situation, the events to describe and the feelings and opinions to develop. Underline each of those, because each one is something the examiner will look for.
How should you split the 45 minutes?
The official manual recommends about 10 minutes to plan on draft paper, about 30 minutes to write on the exam paper, and about 5 minutes to reread for spelling and grammar.
| Time | What you do | What you must not do |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 10 min | Underline the instructions, list ideas, choose one experience and one opinion, write keywords | Write full sentences on the draft |
| 10 to 40 min | Write the text directly on the exam paper, paragraph by paragraph | Change your plan halfway through |
| 40 to 45 min | Reread agreements, verb endings, punctuation, count the words | Add a new paragraph |
The draft is not marked, so it should contain a plan, not a text. Writing everything on the draft and then copying it out eats a large part of your 30 writing minutes, and usually means you never reach the checking stage.
What structure works for 160 to 200 words?
Four short paragraphs fit the grid almost exactly: an opening, a fact or experience, a justified opinion, and a conclusion. Aim for 180 to 200 words, which gives you a margin above the minimum without eating into your checking time.
- Opening (2 sentences). Adapt it to the format. For an email: "Bonjour à tous, je réagis à votre article sur le télétravail." (Hello everyone, I am responding to your article on remote work.)
- Experience (3 to 4 sentences, in the past). "L'année dernière, j'ai travaillé trois jours par semaine à la maison. Au début, c'était difficile parce que je me sentais seul." (Last year I worked from home three days a week. At first it was hard because I felt lonely.)
- Opinion with an example (3 to 4 sentences). "À mon avis, le télétravail est une bonne solution, à condition de garder un jour au bureau. Par exemple, mon équipe se retrouve le lundi." (In my opinion remote work is a good solution, provided you keep one day at the office. For example, my team meets on Mondays.)
- Conclusion with advice (1 to 2 sentences, in the conditional). "Si j'étais vous, j'essaierais d'abord deux jours par semaine." (If I were you, I would try two days a week first.)
Finish with the closing the format needs (a sign-off for a letter or email, nothing for an article) and write your word count at the bottom of the paper, as the manual asks.
What does the marking grid reward?
Half the grid rewards what you say and how you organise it, the other half rewards vocabulary and grammar, so a correct but empty text cannot score well. The manual publishes the grid in full:
- Respect for the instructions (type of text, theme, 160 words): 2 points
- Ability to present facts, past events and personal experiences: 4 points
- Ability to express your thinking, give and justify an opinion: 4 points
- Coherence and cohesion: 3 points
- Vocabulary and spelling of words: 6 points
- Grammar and grammatical spelling: 6 points
Two details explain the structure above. The grid explicitly looks for past tenses (passé composé, imparfait, plus-que-parfait) to tell an experience, and for the conditional to make hypotheses or give advice, which is why the experience paragraph is in the past and the conclusion uses "si j'étais vous". It also rewards connectors that link your ideas, so use them on purpose:
- "D'abord... Ensuite... Enfin..." (First... Then... Finally...)
- "Pourtant" (However)
- "C'est pourquoi" (That is why)
- "Par exemple" (For example)
What should you check in the last five minutes?
Check the three things the grid marks at sentence level (agreements, verb forms, pronouns and prepositions), then count your words one last time. The grid gives points for agreeing nouns and adjectives in gender and number and for using pronouns and prepositions correctly, so reread once for those alone. Make sure your handwriting is legible, since the manual reminds candidates that it must be clear.
The method only works if you have done it against the clock before exam day. If you want a native speaker to set you a real B1 subject, time you and mark your text against the grid, Yann, a certified French teacher, does exactly that in lessons. Book a free trial lesson at frenchwithyann.com and bring your last practice text.
Common questions
What happens if I write fewer than 160 words in the DELF B1?
Respecting the word count is part of the first criterion of the official grid, together with the type of text and the theme. Writing fewer than 160 words costs you points there, so count your words and write the total at the bottom of your paper, as the manual asks.
Can I use a dictionary in the DELF B1 written test?
No. The official rules only allow a monolingual dictionary in certain DALF C1 and C2 tests. At B1 you write with no dictionary, so practise paraphrasing the words you do not know.
Is the draft paper marked in the DELF B1?
No, the manual states that the draft is not corrected. Use it for your plan and keywords only, and do not write the whole text twice, because 45 minutes leaves no time for that.