IELTS | Test Takers - How do I prepare?

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There’s a range of materials to help you prepare for your IELTS test.

Firstly, download the free Information for Candidates booklet (PDF, 935KB) which provides an explanation of the test.

Sample questions online

Try some free sample questions online. These sample questions will give you an idea of what to expect in the Reading, Writing and Speaking modules.

IELTS preparation courses

Some IELTS centres have workshops to help you prepare for your test. Talk to your local IELTS test centre for details. Preparation courses may also be offered by language schools in your country.
                                                      

Official IELTS Practice Materials

IELTS has official practice materials to help you understand the format of the test and the types of questions. There are two volumes of the Official IELTS Practice Materials:

• Vol. 1 Official IELTS Practice Materials (with CD)            
• Vol. 2 Official IELTS Practice Materials (with DVD)

Both volumes of the practice material offer samples of the Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking modules with sample answers and Examiner comments. The CD in Vol. 1 offers samples of the Listening test and the DVD in Vol. 2 shows candidates taking the Speaking test.

The Official IELTS Practice Materials Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 are the only IELTS practice materials endorsed by the IELTS partners. You can order your Official IELTS Practice Materials in one of three ways: 

Official IELTS Practice Materials

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IELTS has official practice materials to help you understand the format of the test and the types of questions.

There are two volumes of the Official IELTS Practice Materials:

• Vol. 1 Official IELTS Practice Materials (with CD)            
• Vol. 2 Official IELTS Practice Materials (with DVD)

Both volumes of the practice material offer samples of the Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking modules with sample answers and Examiner comments. The CD in Vol. 1 offers samples of the Listening test and the DVD in Vol. 2 shows candidates taking the Speaking test.

The Official IELTS Practice Materials Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 are the only IELTS practice materials endorsed by the IELTS partners. You can order your Official IELTS Practice Materials in one of three ways:  

• place an order online from IELTS in Australia (XLS, 1.6MB)
• place an order online from IELTS in the UK
• You can also purchase practice materials through your local test centre.

IELTS - International English Language Testing System

What is IELTS?
IELTS, the International English Language Testing System, is designed to assess the language ability of candidates who need to study or work where English is the language of communication.

IELTS is jointly managed by the University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations (Cambridge ESOL), British Council and IDP: IELTS Australia. IELTS conforms to the highest international standards of language assessment.

IELTS is recognised by universities and employers in many countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the USA. It is also recognised by professional bodies, immigration authorities and other government agencies.

Note: This website is NOT the same or connected or associated with any of the IELTS Test Partners. If you want to prepare yourself for IELTS exam, you are in the right place! But if you are looking for information about registering for the IELTS, test dates or test fees, visit the official IELTS website,

Where can I take IELTS?
More than 400 test centers around the world administer IELTS. Most test centers are run by the British Council, IELTS Australia, or universities and language schools. Some testing centers also offer off-site testing for large groups by prior arrangement with IELTS. Contact your local examination center or visit www.iefts.org to find out where the nearest IELTS test center is located.

Where can I find information about registering for the test?
You can contact your nearest examination center or visit the official IELTS website for more information about application procedures and the location of a test center near you.

The Test Format
There are four sub-tests, or modules, to the IELTS test: Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking. Students must sit all four sub-tests. While all students take the same Listening and Speaking tests, they sit different Reading and Writing tests, depending on whether they have selected the Academic IELTS test or the General Training IELTS test.

On the day of the test, the four subsections will be taken in the following order:

Total Test Time
2 hours 45 minutes

The Speaking test may even take place a day or two later at some centres.

IELTS Listening test lasts for about 30 minutes. It consists of four sections, played on cassette tape, in order of increasing difficulty. Each section might be a dialogue or a monologue. The test is played once only, and the questions for each section must be answered while listening, although time is given for students to check their answers.

IELTS Reading test lasts for 60 minutes. Students are given an Academic Reading test, or a General Training Reading test. Both tests consist of three sections, and in both tests the sections are in order of increasing difficulty.

IELTS Writing test also lasts for 60 minutes. Again, students take either an Academic test, or a General Training test. Students must perform two writing tasks, which require different styles of writing. There is no choice of question topics.

IELTS Speaking test consists of a one-to-one interview with a specially trained examiner. The examiner will lead the candidate through the three parts of the test:
An introduction and interview, an individual long turn where the candidate speaks for one or two minutes on a particular topic, and a two-way discussion thematically linked to the individual long turn. This interview will last for approximately 11-14 minutes.

IELTS Listening Exercises

You will need to practice with some IELTS listening exercises if you are going to take the exam.
That is because both the IELTS Academic and General Training Modules have a listening test.
For format of the listening test is very similar for the Academic and General Training Modules.
At the next section of this page, you will see a free IELTS listening sample test.
The listening test will have conversations, dialogues and lectures which will be pre-recorded and re-played during the exam.
The listening test will have speakers of English from around the world, who will speak with different accents.
The accents may be those of native or non-native speakers of English.
You will be allowed to have a look through the exam questions before you hear the recording.
Be ready when the recording starts, however, because you will hear the excerpts one time only.
The listening test is usually 30 to 40 minutes long.
The IELTS listening test has 4 parts and there will be 40 total questions.
You will get ten more minutes when the test finishes to write your answers on the answer paper.
Our listening test practice materials are like those you will see on the real IELTS exam.

Free Study Material on IELTS

Would you like some free study material on IELTS?
Studying for the IELTS exam is so important. Students are usually short of money, so it's normal to look for the best free material on IELTS available.
But be careful, not all information on the internet is created equal. Some websites are better than others, as you well know.
Also, if you are at a lower level of English language skill, it might be better to take an IELTS course or to employ a private tutor.
Nevertheless, there is nothing wrong with using the best information available on the internet, including free IELTS material.
We provide our own links to FREE grammar practice at the bottom of this page.
In addition, why not have a look at the Free IELTS Exams link on the left-hand side of the screen? We have already chosen the best online English practice for you.
Good luck on your exam!

How to prepare for the IELTS test

IELTS measures your reading, writing, listening and speaking skills, and assesses your ability to communicate for work, study or life in an English-speaking country.

The first step is to make sure you understand the IELTS test format. You need to know what will be expected of you on test day.

Understand the IELTS test format

• Study the test format to make sure that you know what to expect.
• Look carefully at the content of each part of the IELTS test: listening, reading, writing and speaking.
• Get to know the different types of questions that you may be asked in each part.

Once you are familiar with the IELTS test format, you will need to undertake a number of focused preparation activities.

Recommended preparation activities

• Examine our IELTS practice test papers and answers.
• Take practice tests under timed conditions.
• Practise with the British Council's IELTS online preparation resources, available free when you book your test with the British Council.
• Buy IELTS self-study books and materials.
• Consider taking an IELTS preparation course with the British Council.
• Review our IELTS test day advice.