Common TOEFL Writing Essay Topics | Generated by AI
Question: What are the common topics for TOEFL essays?
Answer:
The TOEFL iBT Writing section includes two tasks, but when people refer to “TOEFL essays” and especially “common topics,” they usually mean the Independent Writing task (the opinion-based essay). Note that as of 2023–2026, the second writing task is no longer a full traditional independent essay; it is now a shorter “Writing for an Academic Discussion” response (≈100+ words), while the first task remains the Integrated Writing.
However, the classic Independent Writing-style topics (still very relevant for practice and understanding the style of opinion/argument writing required) commonly fall into these major categories:
Most Frequent Topic Categories
- Education (by far the most common area)
- Role of teachers, homework, class size, online vs. in-person learning, university education value, discipline in schools, qualities of good students/teachers
- Technology
- Impact of the internet/social media/cell phones, technology in education/work, advantages/disadvantages of technological progress
- Work and Career
- Job satisfaction, working from home vs. office, qualities of good coworkers/bosses, choosing a career, retirement
- Society and Community
- City life vs. countryside living, qualities of good neighbors/friends, community service, advertising influence, government spending priorities
- Environment
- Pollution, protecting nature, recycling, human impact on animals/plants, ecocertification/business vs. environment
- Media and Communication
- Newspapers vs. TV/internet news, influence of advertising, social media effects, television’s role
- Family and Children
- Parenting styles, role of parents vs. teachers, growing up in city vs. countryside, strict rules for children, family size
- Travel and Leisure
- Traveling alone vs. with companions, benefits of travel, use of free time, importance of holidays
- Personal Development and Values
- Money vs. happiness/success, ambition, patience vs. quick decisions, learning from mistakes, qualities to teach children
- Health and Lifestyle
- Exercise, diet, work-life balance, living longer
Common Question Formats (still useful patterns)
- Agree or disagree with a statement (most frequent)
- Preference/which is better (A or B)
- Multiple choice (choose one of three options and explain why)
- Explain both views + give your opinion (less common now)
These topics are deliberately general and do not require expert knowledge — they test your ability to organize ideas, support opinions with reasons/examples, and write clearly in English.
For the current TOEFL (2026), the Academic Discussion task often involves short opinion responses on university-level themes such as:
- Social media effects
- Grading systems
- Advertising/targeted ads
- Urban planning/green spaces
- Animal behavior/studies
- Political science/economics concepts
Practicing the classic independent-style topics remains extremely valuable because they build the core skills (opinion development, coherence, vocabulary range) needed for both writing tasks.
References:
- Magoosh TOEFL Writing Topics
- TOEFL Resources Independent Writing Guide
- Good Luck TOEFL Writing Topics List
- CCBP Comprehensive Guide to TOEFL Independent Writing