How do IELTS bands work?

Your IELTS results will be expressed in bands, ranging from 0 to 9. You will get a band for each skill (listening, reading, writing and speaking) and an overall band, which is the average score. For example, if you get a 6 in listening, 6 in reading, 5 in writing and 5 in speaking, your overall score will be 5.5 (average calculation 6+6+5+5=22:4=5.5).

The table below gives you a breakdown of what each band means:

Band	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1	0
Skill	Expert user	Very good user	Good user	Competent user	Modest user	Limited user	Extremely limited user	Intermittent user	Non-user	Did not answer any questions

How does that translate into English level?

Skill	Level	IELTS
Proficient user	C1 – C2	7 or above
Independent user	B1 – B2	4 to 6.5
Basic user	A1 – A2	Below 4

The IELTS is designed to provide a level from intermediate (B1) to proficient (C2). Anything from 4 indicates the level of the test taker is at least intermediate. As an example, if you are applying for a course in the UK and will need a student visa, this will probably be a tier 4 visa. For courses below degree level and pre-sessional courses, it is necessary to prove your English level is at least intermediate (B1). Therefore, you would need a minimum of 4 in all skills in the IELTS. For courses degree level or above (Bachelor’s, Master’s, etc…), the minimum is B2, or upper-intermediate. In the IELTS, that would mean a 5.5 minimum in all parts of the test.

However, keep in mind that different visas have different requirements, and that different courses and universities may have different minimum IELTS scores to accept a student. The Tier 4 visa requirements described above are the minimum by law, but universities and learning centres can set a higher score as a minimum requirement for their courses.

For more information, follow the link:

https://www.ielts.org/for-test-takers/how-ielts-is-scored

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