1. IELTS Scoring
System
Herman Felani, M.A.

2. The 9 band of IELTS
9. Expert User - native speaker level of the language.
8. Very Good User - excellent command of the
language, a few mistakes only
7. Good User - handles language well, some
inaccuracies, communicates adequately
6. Competent User - reasonable control of the
language, difficulties with unfamiliar
5. Modest User - adequate in own area, difficulties with
complex structures
4. Limited User - adequate only in familiar areas, difficulty
understanding expression
3. Very Limited User - problems communicating, limited
communication abilities
2. Intermittent User - many difficulties, basic information
only
1. Non User - understands a few isolated words only

3. Overall Band Score
• Overall Band Scores are reported to
the nearest whole or half band.
• For the avoidance of doubt, the
following rounding convention applies;
• if the average across the four skills
ends in .25, it is rounded up to the next
half band (.5),
• and if it ends in .75, it is rounded up to
the next whole band. e.g. 6.75  7

4. • Thus, a candidate achieving 6.5 for
Listening, 6.5 for Reading, 5.0 for
Writing and 7.0 for Speaking would be
awarded an Overall Band Score of 6.5
(25 ÷ 4 = 6.25 = Band 6.5).
• Likewise, a candidate achieving 4.0 for
Listening, 3.5 for Reading, 4.0 for
Writing and 4.0 for Speaking would be
awarded an Overall Band Score of 4.0
(15.5 ÷ 4 = 3.875 = Band 4.0).

5. • On the other hand, a candidate
achieving 6.5 for Listening, 6.5 for
Reading, 5.5 for Writing and 6.0
for Speaking would be awarded
band 6 (24.5 ÷ 4 = 6.125 = Band
6).

6. • Click here to see a comparison of
IELTS scores with other exams.
• Or here

7. TOEIC TOEFL
Paper
TOEFL
IBT
IELTS
0 - 250
0 - 310 0 - 8 0 - 1
310 - 343 9 - 18 1 - 1.5
255 - 400
347 - 393 19 - 29 2 - 2.5
397 - 433 30 - 40 3 - 3.5
405 - 600
437 - 473 41 - 52 4
477 - 510 53 - 64 4.5 - 5
605 - 780
513 - 547 65 - 78 5.5 - 6
550 - 587 79 - 95 6.5 - 7
785 - 990 590 - 677 96 - 120 7.5 - 9
Top Score Top Score Top Score Top Score
990 677 120 9

8. -
Band
Scor
e
9
8.
5
8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5 4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5
Scor
e / 40
39-
40
3
7-
3
8
35-
36
32-
34
30-
31
26-
29
23-
25
18-
22
16-
17
13-
15
10-
12
8-
10
6-7 4-5
IELTS Listening marking schemes
For the listening test, which contains 40 questions, the approximate band scores
can be calculated using this table.

9. -
Ban
d
Sco
re
9 8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5 4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5
Sco
re /
40
39-
40
37-
38
35-
36
33-
34
30-
32
27-
29
23-
26
19-
22
15-
18
13-
14
10-
12
8-9 6-7 4-5
IELTS Academic Reading marking schemes
For the academic reading test, which also contains 40 questions,
but is more difficult, the approximate band scores can be calculated using this table.

10. The table
Number of Correct
Answers
Score
20 5.5
25 6
28 6.5
30 7
33 7.5
35 8
38 8.5
40 9

11. IELTS Writing marking
schemes
The two writing questions are
marked out of 9 according to the
following criteria:
• Task Achievement
• Coherence and Cohesion
• Lexical Resource
• Grammatical Range and
Accuracy
Click here to see the full writing

12. IELTS Speaking marking
schemes
The speaking test is also marked
out of 9 according to the following
criteria:
• Fluency and coherence
• Lexical resource
• Grammatical range and accuracy
• Pronunciation

13. • In writing Module total score for
Report writing is 3.6 and for
Essay writing is 5.4. This score
depends on your ability to write a
report and an essay.
• Similarly, speaking module covers
total of 9 score. You will never get
the score of speaking in decimal.

14. 4 criteria of writing
Task response How well you answer the question
Coherence and cohesion How well your writing links together
Lexical resource How good your vocabulary is
Grammatical range and
accuracy
How good your grammar is

15. IELTS writing – coherence
and cohesion explained
Paragraphs
• Paragraphs need to have a
clear, central topic and be used
logically. If your writing does not
have paragraphs or the
paragraphs are confusing, your
coherence score will be no more
than 5.

16. coherence and
cohesion explained
• Common mistake: candidates do
not develop their paragraphs and
put together a series of unrelated
points. One reason they do this is
that they forget it is a language
exam and not a knowledge exam.
They select their best ideas and
not the ideas that are easiest to
write about.

17. coherence and
cohesion explained
• Solution: Make sure that each paragraph is
about one idea. In the planning stage make
sure you have enough to say about an idea
before you start writing about it. This means
that you may choose the ideas that are
easiest to write about and not the ones that
are the most intelligent.
• Another solution is to think of reasons and
examples for each of your main points. Many
candidates forget to use examples. This is a
mistake because examples are often easier
to write about than reasons.

18. Logical organisation of
essay
• There needs to be a clear progression of ideas
throughout the essay. This means that your
paragraphs need to link in to each other.
• Common mistake: There is no overall plan for
the essay and the paragraphs do not link in to
each other.
• Solution: One solution is to make sure you state
your position clearly in the introduction paragraph
and make sure that each following paragraph
links to that. Another solution is to focus on the
first sentence in each paragraph and state clearly
what the purpose of that paragraph is.

19. Cohesive devices need
to be used well
• This means that you need to link the parts of
your sentences and your sentences together.
• Common mistake: to overuse linking words
such as “so” “furthermore” “moreover”. It is
not enough to use linking words, you need to
use linking words correctly.
• Solution: Learn to use a range of linking
words and phrases, not just a few. Also learn
to do the simple things well; some of the best
linking words are the simplest. “This” and
other pronouns are excellent ways to link
your writing together.

20. Punctuation
• This one might surprise you.
However, if you do not learn to
use punctuation, your writing will
soon become incoherent as you
will not be writing sentences. This
can mean that your band score
here will be no more than 5.

21. IELTS writing – grammatical range
and accuracy explained
• Accuracy of grammar
• Accuracy is not a simple idea and it can be though about in 2
ways.
• How many mistakes
• One key here is to understand that examiners look at how
many error free sentences you write. For example, to get
band 7, you need to be able to write “frequent” error free
sentences. This means that basic grammar such as articles
which you need for every sentence is very important.
• What kind of mistakes
• Not all mistakes are equal. The basic rule is that you need to
be more accurate with simple grammar than complex
grammar. For example, to get band 5 in the writing, you
need to attempt more complex structures, but these do not
have to be as accurate as simple structures.

22. Range of grammar
• This is as important as accuracy. It is
important to use not just a range of structures
but also to use more complex structures too.
It is important to understand that this
grammar is not just about tenses, but also
about how you organise your sentences.
• Two suggestions for more complex
grammar:
• If clauses are very useful for explaining and
giving examples
• Relative clauses (who/that/which/when etc.)
will also impress the examiner and are a
good example of more complex grammar.

23. Speaking Grading
Fluency and coherence How fluently you speak and how well
you link your ideas together
Pronunciation How accurate your pronunciation is
Lexical resource How accurate and varied your
vocabulary is
Grammatical range and
accuracy
How accurate and varied your
grammar is

24. Fluency and coherence
Fluency is a combination:
• speed of speech
• length of answer
• pausing correctly
Coherence is the ability to:
• expand your answers
• answer the questions directly
• add relevant detail to explain or illustrate your
answers
• connect your sentences by using tenses and
connectors

25. Common mistakes
• You should note that very fast or very
long answers are not necessarily
good, as you may be penalised for
poor pronunciation or lack of
coherence. In the speaking the main
point is that you are able to express
yourself clearly.
• Another common mistake is to not
answer the question. This is where you
will be penalised.

26. Pronunciation
• The main point here is that your
pronunciation is easy to understand and
whether your are able to make your meaning
clear.
Features of good pronunciation include:
• basic word pronunciation
• linked speech sounds
• correct sentence stress
• correct use of intonation (rising and falling)
• You should note that there is no need to have
a “British” or “American” accent.

27. Lexical Resource
(Vocabulary)
• Once again the key concept here
is clarity: do you have enough
words to express yourself clearly?
This is judged by your ability to:
• have enough vocabulary to
discuss a range of topics
• to use vocabulary accurately
• be able to explain yourself when
you do not have the right word

28. Common Mistake
• A common mistake here is to use
long words without really knowing
what they mean.