Pipplet shutdown: What are your language assessment alternatives?
It’s official! Pipplet – one of the best-known operators in the field of professional language assessment – has announced that it is permanently shutting down its services (see their official announcement here).
For the companies and organisations that use Pipplet’s services, their imminent discontinuation raises a pressing question:
👉 How will they be able to continue assessing the language skills of their candidates and employees quickly and effectively?
In this article, we take stock of the situation and present ELAO as a proven and reliable alternative that is already being used by numerous companies and institutions throughout Europe.
The end of Pipplet: What are the consequences facing companies?
Pipplet had established itself as a practical solution for rapidly testing candidates’ language skills during recruitment. The announcement that its services are shutting down will result in:
- a break in continuity for companies that had integrated Pipplet into their HR processes;
- the need to quickly find a replacement tool so as not to hinder recruitment or internal mobility; and
- a risk of diminished performance if candidates are no longer assessed objectively and reliably.
It is therefore essential for HR managers and recruiters to identify a solution that is equivalent to Pipplet, albeit one that is more accurate and sustainable in the long term.
ELAO: A reliable and accurate alternative to Pipplet
Created in Belgium and used by more than 150 institutions and companies across Europe, ELAO has established itself as the benchmark solution for assessing language skills in a professional context.
Greater accuracy than the CEFR
While most tests simply assess linguistic skills based on the standard six CEFR levels, ELAO goes much further:
- Four sub-levels have been incorporated per CEFR level for a more finely grained assessment
- An additional A0 level has been introduced to allow for the identification of true beginners below A1
👉 The result: enhanced accuracy that facilitates decision-making when it comes to recruitment and internal mobility
Oral assessment with ELAO+
In addition to the written test, ELAO+ features an oral assessment component that uses artificial intelligence to evaluate candidates’ oral expression.
- Candidates record their oral responses to targeted questions
- AI analyses their pronunciation, fluency and content of their responses
- A detailed report with transcripts and audio clips is generated to support HR in the decision-making process
In this way, recruiters are provided with a comprehensive and objective overview that covers both written comprehension and oral skills.
A solution designed for businesses
ELAO is designed to respond to HR and business needs:
- Recruitment: rapidly assess candidates’ language levels
- Internal mobility: ensure that employees have the required skills to assume new roles
- Language training: measure progress reliably
Although ELAO is also used by certain universities, its primary application is professional and HR assessment, making it an ideal alternative to Pipplet.
Pipplet vs. ELAO
Criteria | Pipplet | ELAO |
| Test duration |
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| CEFR alignment |
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| Available languages |
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| Anti-cheating monitoring |
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| Accessibility |
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| Sustainability |
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| Analysis of results |
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👉 In short: ELAO offers all the practical advantages of Pipplet (speed, accessibility), but goes even further by providing enhanced accuracy, comprehensive oral assessment and anti-cheating monitoring.
ELAO’s advantages in a nutshell
- Enhanced accuracy achieved through CEFR sub-levels and level A0
- Comprehensive assessment of both written and oral skills with ELAO+
- Greater credibility ensured by built-in anti-cheating monitoring
- Reliable HR tool ideal for recruitment and internal mobility
- Ease of use thanks to browser-based access, no installation required and an API integration option
Conclusion: an opportunity to switch to a more reliable solution
The discontinuation of Pipplet is bad news for its users. However, it also presents an opportunity for those users to switch to a solution that is more accurate, more comprehensive and better suited to current HR challenges.
ELAO is a direct alternative that offers the same simplicity and rapidity that Pipplet was appreciated for, all the while providing greater accuracy and reliability, as well as an oral assessment component.
