The order of the test
On test day you sit Listening, then Reading, then Writing, one after another with no breaks. Together they take about 2 hours 30 minutes. Speaking is a separate appointment of 11 to 14 minutes. It may be on the same day, or up to seven days before or after the other sections. If you take IELTS Online, Speaking is usually scheduled first.
| Section | Time | Questions | Structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Listening | About 30 minutes, plus 2 minutes to check | 40 | 4 parts of 10 questions. Each recording is played once. |
| 2. Reading | 60 minutes | 40 | 3 sections of increasing difficulty. |
| 3. Writing | 60 minutes | 2 tasks | Task 1: at least 150 words. Task 2: at least 250 words, and worth twice as much. |
| 4. Speaking | 11–14 minutes | 3 parts | A recorded interview with a human examiner. |
No breaks between Listening, Reading and Writing
Plan for about two and a half hours of continuous concentration. Build that stamina by sitting full practice tests, not only single sections.
Listening: about 30 minutes
Four recordings, ten questions each. Parts 1 and 2 are set in everyday social situations, and Parts 3 and 4 in education and training. Part 1 is a conversation between two people, Part 2 is one person speaking, Part 3 is a discussion, and Part 4 is an academic talk. You hear a range of accents, including British, Australian, New Zealand and North American.
Every recording is played once only. The questions follow the order of the recording. Each correct answer earns one mark, and the total out of 40 is converted to a band. Listening is the same test for Academic and General Training.
Reading: 60 minutes
Three sections and 40 questions in one hour, with no extra time at the end. Academic Reading uses three long texts. General Training Reading starts with short everyday texts, moves to workplace documents, and ends with one longer text. The question types include multiple choice, True / False / Not Given, several kinds of matching, several kinds of gap-filling, and short answers.
Each correct answer earns one mark. Spelling counts, and an answer that breaks the word limit scores zero.
Writing: 60 minutes
Two tasks, and you must complete both. The question paper advises about 20 minutes for Task 1 and about 40 minutes for Task 2, but that split is only advice. The single limit is 60 minutes for the two together. Task 2 contributes twice as much as Task 1 to your Writing band.
An examiner rates each task on four equally weighted criteria: how well you answered the task, how well the text is organised, your vocabulary, and your grammar.
Speaking: 11–14 minutes
A one-to-one interview with a certificated examiner, which is recorded. Part 1 (4–5 minutes) covers familiar topics such as home, work and interests. In Part 2 (3–4 minutes) you get a task card, one minute to prepare, and then speak for up to two minutes. Part 3 (4–5 minutes) is a deeper discussion of issues linked to the Part 2 topic.
The examiner rates fluency and coherence, vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation, each worth a quarter of the Speaking band. Speaking is the same test for Academic and General Training.
Academic and General Training compared
| Section | Academic | General Training |
|---|---|---|
| Listening | 4 parts, 40 questions, about 30 minutes | Identical |
| Reading texts | 3 long texts, 2,150–2,750 words in total, written for a non-specialist audience. At least one contains a detailed logical argument. | Section 1: two or three short everyday texts. Section 2: two workplace texts. Section 3: one longer text. 2,150–2,375 words in total. |
| Reading questions | 40 questions, 60 minutes | 40 questions, 60 minutes, same family of question types |
| Reading scoring | About 30 correct answers for band 7 | About 34 correct answers for band 7 |
| Writing Task 1 | Summarise a graph, table, chart or diagram in at least 150 words | Write a letter of at least 150 words |
| Writing Task 2 | Essay of at least 250 words | Essay of at least 250 words, on a more general topic |
| Speaking | 3 parts, 11–14 minutes | Identical |
What to expect on the computer
Since mid-2026 IELTS is delivered on computer at the test centre. The content and the scoring are the same as they were on paper. The experience differs in a few ways that matter.
- You wear headphones for Listening and type or click each answer as you hear it.
- There is no answer sheet. Listening ends with 2 minutes to check your answers, not 10 minutes to copy them.
- You can highlight text and make notes on screen in Reading. You are still given paper and a pencil for notes.
- In Writing you type, and the screen shows your word count.
- A clock on screen shows the time remaining. When it reaches zero the section closes, whether or not you have finished.
Practise the way you will be tested
Typing speed, reading long texts on a screen and working against a visible countdown are all skills you can train. If you usually study from books, do some of your practice on a computer.