A candidate can get IELTS band score between 0 and 9 and it can also be like .5 (6.5, 7.5 or 3.5). There is an individual score for each skill such as Listening, Writing, Reading, Speaking and there is an Overall band score as well.
If you achieve a score of 9, you are an expert user and if your score is 8 you are a very good user. Score of 7 meant for a good user and 6 for a component user, at the same time achiever of a 5 score means a modest user.
1. Listening & Reading Band Scores
Listening and reading band scores are calculated by the number of correct answers candidate as given out of total 40 questions in the test. There is no negative marking for incorrect answer.
| Correct Answers | Band Scores |
|---|---|
| 30 – 40 | 9 |
| 36 – 37 | 8.5 |
| 35 – 36 | 8 |
| 32 – 34 | 7.5 |
| 30 – 31 | 7 |
| 26 – 29 | 6.5 |
| 23 – 25 | 6 |
| 18 – 22 | 5.5 |
| 16 – 17 | 5 |
| 13 – 12 | 4.5 |
| 11 – 12 | 4 |
2. IELTS Reading Scores (AC)
| Correct Answers | Band Scores |
|---|---|
| 40 – 39 | 9 |
| 38 – 37 | 8.5 |
| 36 – 35 | 8 |
| 34 – 33 | 7.5 |
| 32 – 30 | 7 |
| 29 – 27 | 6.5 |
| 26 – 23 | 6 |
| 22- 19 | 5.5 |
| 18 – 15 | 5 |
| 14 – 13 | 4.5 |
| 12 – 10 | 4 |
| 9 – 8 | 3.5 |
| 7 – 6 | 3 |
| 5 – 4 | 2.5 |
3. IELTS Reading Scores (GT)
| Correct Answers | Band Scores |
|---|---|
| 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 |
| 12 – 14 | 3.5 |
| 9 – 11 | 3 |
| 6 – 8 | 2.5 |
4. Writing Band Scores
There are two writing tasks involved in IELTS which are assessed by 4 criteria in each task. Click the link below to view:
- IELTS writing task 1 band score descriptors by IELTS (https://takeielts.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/ielts_task_1_writing_band_descriptors.pdf)
- IELTS writing task 2 band score descriptors by IELTS (https://takeielts.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/ielts_task_2_writing_band_descriptors.pdf)
5. IELTS Speaking Assessment Criteria
Fluency, Lexical resource, Grammar Range and Accuracy, Pronunciation are the marking criteria for IELTS speaking.
Click the link to view Speaking band score for each criteria published by IELTS. (https://takeielts.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/ielts_Speaking_band_descriptors.pdf)
So, it can be concluded that it needs hard work, proper knowledge and training to master all the skills that can help you get the desired band score.