English level B1 is the third level of English in the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), a definition of different language levels written by the Council of Europe. In everyday speech, this level would be called “intermediate”, and indeed, that is the official level descriptor in the CEFR.
Long answer: B1 means you can get by in most day to day situations, but "fluent" means different things to different people. For me, it means "no difficulty", and for that, I'd think you'd need C1 bare minimum, and even then I would hesitate if someone asked me if I was fluent.
The relationships between the different possible scores are shown in the diagram below. You can see that an IELTS band score of 7.0 is equivalent to a CEFR level of C1, and an IELTS band score of 4.5 is equivalent to a CEFR level of B1.
B1 English (Intermediate)
Level B1 corresponds to users who can understand and produce text on familiar topics and give opinions and descriptions.
Level B1: Pre-intermediate/Intermediate corresponds to independent users of the language, who have the necessary fluency to communicate in a limited way with native speakers.
The CEFR guidelines say that someone at the B1 level in English can: Understand conversations about work, school and leisure-related topics. Deal with most travelling situations. Write simple text about topics of interest to them.
Lower Intermediate (B1)
be able to express yourself on familiar topics such as family, hobbies and jobs. have enough vocabulary to communicate in everyday familiar situations. be able to initiate and maintain a simple face-to-face conversation on the topics that interest you, such as hobbies or jobs.
A B1 level of English would be sufficient for interactions with English speakers on familiar topics. In the workplace, people at a B1 level of English are able to read simple reports on familiar topics and write simple e-mails on subjects in their field.
To complete your German B1 level, also known as the intermediate level, you will need to spend at least 80 hours per week studying for one month. Goeth Institut estimates that you'll need between 350 and 650 45-minute teaching units, depending on your previous level of A1 or A2.
Level B1: Expressing yourself
B1 is often seen as the hard one. You think you're familiar with Dutch and now it turns out that there is much more to the language: the past tense, the future tense, the passive, idioms, formal language, irregularities and the dreaded "er".
The A1 and A2 levels are considered the basic levels, while B1 and B2 are the independent levels. C1 and C2 are the proficient levels. To increase from B1 to B2, you need to be able to understand more complex grammar structures and vocabulary, and be able to use them correctly in spoken and written English.
Some recognised B1 English test qualifications only last two years; however, you can still use a B1 level qualification that was obtained more than two years ago in two situations.
As you go up the levels, you need more hours to get to the next one. To get from A1 to A2, it typically requires 100-150 hours of guided learning, but it can take 180-260 hours to get from B1 to B2.
Conclusion. Based on this instant analysis of vocabulary level of each word, we can see that it should be relatively easy for a reader with a B2 vocabulary should be able to understand this text without much effort but could be a slight challenge for a B1 level learner. And a great challenge for an A2 level learner.
By one estimate, it takes about 200 learning hours to progress from one CEFR level to the other. To reach an A2 level, you'll need to put in about 180 to 200 hours; for B1, about 350 to 400 total.
If you achieve a scale score of 140–159 (Pass, Pass with Merit) in your exam, you will receive the Preliminary English Test certificate at Level B1. We believe it is important to recognise your achievement, even if you do not reach Level B1.
When you reach B1, you should have a working vocabulary of about 2500 words, and you can recall about half of them with some speed. It takes approximately 350-400 hours with the language to pass the B1 Cambridge examination.
Reaching B2 is generally considered by most people as having basic fluency. You'll have a working vocabulary of around 4000 words. It's not always effortless and it's not always perfect, but neither you nor your native speaking partners are having a really hard time in most circumstances at this point.
These jobs require the ability to interact in a given language, and a B1 candidate would be more than able to communicate and interact with your clients. Level B2 refers to a candidate who is able to clearly and spontaneously communicate in a more detailed manner.
Learners who achieve B1 Intermediate level can understand information about familiar topics. They can communicate in most situations whilst travelling in an English-speaking area.
Students require about 400 hours of instruction to reach B1 from a complete beginner level. According to the CEFR guidelines, a language learner at the B1 level: Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc.