The most important part of your IELTS preparation is to understand as to how you will be marked and scored.
To begin with, there are two types of IELTS tests – IELTS ACADEMIC and IELTS GENERAL. For both the tests, the Listening and Speaking parts are the same.
For the academic exam, the Reading texts are more difficult and Writing task 1 is also different.
The speaking section of the test can be taken on a different day or the same day as the listening, reading and writing.
IELTS Band Scores and marking criteria
There are four criteria in the IELTS Writing section that you are marked on.
Writing Task 1
- Task achievement
- Lexical Resource (vocabulary)
- Accuracy and grammatical range
- Coherence and cohesion
Writing Task 2
- Task response
- Lexical Resource (vocabulary)
- Accuracy and grammatical range
- Coherence and cohesion
There are four criteria in the IELTS Speaking section that you are marked on
Speaking parts 1-3
- Fluency and coherence
- Lexical Resource (vocabulary)
- Accuracy and grammatical range
- Pronunciation
Marking criteria for Listening and Reading:
As mentioned above, the scoring for the listening section is the same for IELTS general and academic. For the reading section, the scoring is different for IELTS academic and general.
Listening Scores for IELTS
| Correct answers out of 40 | Band score | |
|---|---|---|
| 39-40 | 9 | |
| 37-38 | 8.5 | |
| 35-36 | 8 | |
| 33-34 | 7.5 | |
| 30-32 | 7 | |
| 27-29 | 6.5 | |
| 23-26 | 6 | |
| 20-22 | 5.5 | |
| 16-19 | 5 | |
| 13-15 | 4.5 | |
| 9-12 | 4 | |
Academic Reading Scores for IELTS
| Correct answers out of 40 | Band score | |
|---|---|---|
| 39-40 | 9 | |
| 37-38 | 8.5 | |
| 35-36 | 8 | |
| 33-34 | 7.5 | |
| 30-32 | 7 | |
| 27-29 | 6.5 | |
| 23-26 | 6 | |
| 19-22 | 5.5 | |
| 15-18 | 5 | |
| 13-14 | 4.5 | |
| 10-12 | 4 | |
General Reading Scores for IELTS
| Correct answers out of 40 | Band score | |
|---|---|---|
| 40 | 9 | |
| 39 | 8.5 | |
| 37-38 | 8 | |
| 36 | 7.5 | |
| 34-35 | 7 | |
| 32-33 | 6.5 | |
| 30-31 | 6 | |
| 27-29 | 5.5 | |
| 23-26 | 5 | |
| 19-22 | 4.5 | |
| 15-18 | 4 | |
Calculation of the Scores
The IELTS Band Scores range from 0 to 9. In case you reach the exam centre but do not give the test then you are given a Band 0.
Every part of the exam ( listening, reading, writing, speaking ) gets a band score which will be rounded up or down to the nearest 0.5 or whole band score.
For instance:
- In case your band score is 5.25, it will go up to band 5.5.
- If it is 5.75, it will go up to Band 6.
- If it is 5.1, it will go down to Band 5.
We hope the above information about the marking criteria for IELTS will help you in preparing for your exam in a much-advanced way!
If you’re looking for expert guidance and a foolproof way to crack the test, get in touch with English Wise.
