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IELTS guides
Every guide on the site, written around the official band descriptors. Narrow the list by skill or by test type, or search for a word.
General
IELTS Fees and Booking: Where to Find Your Price
Your IELTS fee depends on your country and test. This guide shows where the British Council and IDP show it. It covers how to book and what to check before a change.
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General
Using AI to Prepare for IELTS
AI tools and writing checkers can help you spot mistakes. They cannot give a real IELTS band, and you should not use one in the test. Examiners mark Writing and Speaking.
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GeneralGeneral Training
IELTS vs CELPIP: Which Test for Canada
Canada accepts both CELPIP-General and IELTS General Training for Express Entry. The tests differ in speaking and marking. Canada turns each score into a CLB level.
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General
IELTS Preparation Books and Materials
Start with the free official tests. If you want a book, the test owners name a study guide, practice-test books and a course. Pick by what you need and by your test.
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IELTS vs TOEFL: Key Differences in 2026
The updated TOEFL takes about 2 hours, adapts to your answers and is scored from 1 to 6. IELTS Academic takes 2 hours 45 minutes and is scored from 0 to 9. TOEFL changed in January 2026, so check the date of any comparison.
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General
IELTS vs PTE Academic: Key Differences
PTE Academic takes about 2 hours, only at a test centre, and its results usually come within 48 hours. IELTS Academic takes 2 hours 45 minutes. The two also differ in who marks you.
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IELTS vs Duolingo English Test
The Duolingo English Test takes about an hour at home and adapts to your answers. IELTS Academic takes 2 hours 45 minutes, and its Speaking is a face-to-face interview. Check which test your organisation accepts.
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General
IELTS Test Format and How Long It Takes
Listening, Reading and Writing take 2 hours 40 minutes in one session with no breaks. Speaking is a separate interview of 11 to 14 minutes. Reading and Writing take 60 minutes each.
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Is IELTS Hard? What Makes It Hard
IELTS has no pass mark, so how hard it is depends on the score your organisation asks for. Every version of the test is built to be about equally hard. Each skill is hard in its own way.
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How Long Does It Take to Prepare for IELTS?
There is no fixed figure. The ranges the IELTS owners publish run from a few weeks to several months. The time depends on your level, your target and how often you study.
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General
How to Prepare for IELTS
Learn the format first, then use the free official practice tests. Learn how each section is marked and practise under the real time limits. Give the most time to your weakest skill.
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IELTS Remark (Enquiry on Results): How It Works and How Long It Takes
A re-mark, officially an Enquiry on Results, is a second marking of one or more sections of your test. The answer comes within 21 days at most. With the British Council and IDP, you apply within six weeks of your test date.
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What Is IELTS UKVI? How It Differs From Academic and General Training
IELTS for UKVI is the Academic or General Training test, taken at an approved centre under extra security. What changes is the centre you sit it at and your Test Report Form. Life Skills is a separate Pass or Fail test of Speaking and Listening.
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What to Expect on IELTS Test Day
You sit Listening, Reading and Writing in one sitting with no breaks. Speaking may be on the same day or up to a week before or after. Bring the ID you booked with, and leave every electronic device outside the room.
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How Long Does It Take to Get Your IELTS Results?
Computer results take 1 to 5 days, IELTS Online 6 to 8 and paper up to 13. A One Skill Retake takes 3 to 5 days. A re-mark takes up to 21 days.
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How Long Are IELTS Results Valid?
Two years is advice for the organisations that accept results. It is not an expiry date on your form. Some organisations accept older results with proof of your English. UK visa applications use a hard two year rule.
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How to Send Your IELTS Results to Universities
You do not post your own Test Report Form. You ask for it to be sent, through your booking portal or your test centre. Each organisation picks postal mail or e-delivery. Postal is free for up to five organisations, and e-delivery has no limit.
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IELTS Academic vs General Training: Which Test Do You Need
Listening and Speaking are the same on both tests. Only Reading and Writing differ, and the organisation asking for your score decides which one you take.
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Computer or Paper IELTS: What Is Changing and What It Means
IELTS announced that from mid-2026 it would stop offering a paper test. It also announced a Writing on Paper option for selected countries. A paper result you already hold is not affected.
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IELTS One Skill Retake: Who Can Use It and How It Works
You can sit one section again instead of the whole test. Your full test must have been IELTS on computer, and you must retake within 60 days, once only.
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Improvement planGeneral
How to Get Band 7 in IELTS When You Are Stuck at 6.5
An overall 6.5 is an average of four section bands. This plan shows how to find the section and the criterion that hold yours down. Then it shows what band 7 asks for there.
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Band 6 vs 6.5 vs 7: What Actually Changes in the Descriptors
There is no band 6.5 descriptor. This guide shows what changes between band 6 and band 7 in each skill, and where a score of 6.5 comes from.
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IELTS Band Scores Explained: What Your Score Actually Means
IELTS reports each section and your overall result as a band from 0 to 9. This guide explains what each band means and how the overall band is calculated. It also covers pass marks and CEFR levels.
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