Free IELTS Mock Test Online: Full Timed Test with Answers
Quick answer: You can take a free IELTS mock test online with Band Ready Practice Series 1. There are four full tests. Each has a 40-question Listening paper, a 60-minute Academic or General Training Reading paper and a 60-minute Writing paper with two tasks. Check your Listening and Reading answers on the page, then convert your mark to an approximate band with the table below.
Last updated: 29 October 2026
What is in each free Band Ready mock test?
Band Ready Practice Series 1 has four complete IELTS-style tests. Each test has a Listening paper, an Academic Reading paper, a General Training Reading paper, an Academic Writing paper and a General Training Writing paper. Every passage, recording and task was written for this site.
Listening is the same for Academic and General Training, so everyone takes the same Listening test. You then choose the Reading and Writing papers that match the version of IELTS you are booked for.
| Test | Listening (Parts 1 to 4) | Academic Reading passages | GT Reading Section 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Test 1 | Cycle hire booking form; wetland centre volunteer talk; student project on food waste; lecture on the history of street lighting | The standard box (shipping containers); The teenage body clock; Paper or screen? | Bamboo: the grass that builds |
| Test 2 | Community hall room booking; Ashcombe Mill visitor talk and site plan; students discuss a tourism survey report; lecture on seed banks | The humble pencil; Cooling the city; In defence of boredom | Dry-stone walls |
| Test 3 | Removals company quote request; wetland centre talk for new volunteers; research project on note-taking; lecture on noise pollution in the ocean | Charting the deep; Underground connections; The wisdom and folly of crowds | The return of the night train |
| Test 4 | Walking holiday booking form; science museum reopening; students discuss a survey of local shops; lecture on the natural ice trade | The lines that changed shopping; The return of the beaver; A longing for the past | Britain's canals |
Here are the direct links to every paper. Each one is free and opens in your browser.
| Test | Listening | Academic Reading | GT Reading | Academic Writing | GT Writing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Test 1 | Listening 1 | Academic Reading 1 | GT Reading 1 | Academic Writing 1 | GT Writing 1 |
| Test 2 | Listening 2 | Academic Reading 2 | GT Reading 2 | Academic Writing 2 | GT Writing 2 |
| Test 3 | Listening 3 | Academic Reading 3 | GT Reading 3 | Academic Writing 3 | GT Writing 3 |
| Test 4 | Listening 4 | Academic Reading 4 | GT Reading 4 | Academic Writing 4 | GT Writing 4 |
How do you take a full IELTS mock test at home?
A mock test is only useful if you treat it like the real exam. Plan for close to three hours, switch off your phone and do the papers in the same order as the real test.
- Listening first. Press "Start listening" and play the recording straight through. The page lets you pause and replay, but a replay is practice, not a mock test. Type your answers as you listen.
- Reading next. Start the 60-minute timer on the Reading page. There is no extra time to transfer answers, so type each answer as you go.
- Writing last. Use the 60-minute timer and the live word counter. Spend about 20 minutes on Task 1 and about 40 minutes on Task 2.
- Mark your work. Use "Check answers" for Listening and Reading. Then read the Writing sample response and commentary only after you have finished your own answer.
| Section | Time | Questions or tasks | Key point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listening | About 30 minutes | 4 parts, 40 questions | The computer test gives 2 minutes to review answers at the end |
| Reading | 60 minutes | 3 sections, 40 questions | No extra transfer time |
| Writing | 60 minutes | Task 1 (at least 150 words) and Task 2 (at least 250 words) | Task 2 is worth twice as much as Task 1 |
| Speaking | 11 to 14 minutes | 3 parts | May be on the same day or up to about 7 days before or after the other sections |
Try it now: five Reading questions from Test 1
These questions come from Academic Reading Test 1, "The standard box: how the shipping container changed world trade". Read the extract, decide whether each statement is TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN, then check the answers below.
Extract
Goods arrived at the docks in an enormous variety of packages, and each one had to be lifted separately into the ship's hold. This was done by teams of dock workers, known in Britain as dockers and in the United States as longshoremen. Experienced workers packed the cargo tightly and carefully, because a load that shifted during a storm could damage the goods or even make the ship unstable.
McLean had spent his whole working life in road transport and had no experience of running ships. In April 1956, a converted oil tanker named the Ideal X sailed from Newark, New Jersey, to Houston, Texas, carrying 58 metal boxes on its deck.
McLean did not invent the idea of carrying goods in boxes. Railway companies in Britain and elsewhere had used wooden containers in the early twentieth century.
- Before containers were introduced, cargo had to be arranged carefully so that it would not move during the voyage.
- Dock workers in Britain earned more than dock workers in the United States.
- McLean had worked in the shipping industry before he became interested in containers.
- The Ideal X was a ship that had been built specially to carry containers.
- McLean was the first person to transport goods in containers.
Answers and explanations
- TRUE. Workers packed cargo "tightly and carefully" because a load that "shifted" could cause damage.
- NOT GIVEN. Both groups are named, but the extract says nothing about pay. Do not use your own knowledge.
- FALSE. He had "no experience of running ships". That directly contradicts the statement.
- FALSE. It was "a converted oil tanker", so it was not built for containers.
- FALSE. "McLean did not invent the idea", and railway companies used containers earlier.
In the full test, these are Questions 1, 2, 4, 5 and 7.
How do you turn your mock test mark into a band score?
The test pages give you a practice mark out of 40, not an official or predicted IELTS band. To estimate a band, find your mark in the table below. Use the column for the Reading paper you took.
| Approximate band | Listening (correct out of 40) | Academic Reading (correct out of 40) | General Training Reading (correct out of 40) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 39–40 | 39–40 | 40 |
| 8.5 | 37–38 | 37–38 | 39 |
| 8 | 35–36 | 35–36 | 37–38 |
| 7.5 | 32–34 | 33–34 | 36 |
| 7 | 30–31 | 30–32 | 34–35 |
| 6.5 | 26–29 | 27–29 | 32–33 |
| 6 | 23–25 | 23–26 | 30–31 |
| 5.5 | 18–22 | 19–22 | 27–29 |
| 5 | 16–17 | 15–18 | 23–26 |
| 4.5 | 13–15 | 13–14 | 19–22 |
| 4 | 10–12 | 10–12 | 15–18 |
These conversions are approximate; the exact conversion can vary slightly between test versions.
Your overall band is the average of the four skills, rounded to the nearest half band. An average ending in .25 rounds up to the next half band, and one ending in .75 rounds up to the next whole band. For example, 6.25 becomes 6.5, 6.75 becomes 7.0 and 6.125 becomes 6.0.
How do you check your Writing without an examiner?
No website can give you a reliable Writing band automatically, and the Band Ready Writing pages do not try to. Instead, each test has a sample response with commentary. The samples are estimated at roughly Band 7.5 to 8, based on the public band descriptors. They are a guide, not an official score.
Compare your answer with the sample under the four Writing criteria: Task Achievement (Task 1) or Task Response (Task 2), Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. Ask yourself these questions:
- Did I answer every part of the question, and is my position clear in Task 2?
- Does my Academic Task 1 answer have a clear overview of the main trends?
- Did I reach 150 and 250 words within the 60 minutes?
- Can a reader follow my paragraphs without rereading?
Is there a free IELTS Speaking mock test?
Practice Series 1 does not include a Speaking test. To practise Speaking, use the full examiner-style script on our IELTS Speaking mock test page. Record yourself, then use the self-assessment guide on that page to judge your answers.
Where can you find more Listening mock tests?
Our YouTube channel has six full IELTS Listening mock tests with all 40 questions on screen. Mock Tests 1 to 4 are the same recordings as Listening Tests 1 to 4 on this site. Mock Tests 5 and 6 come from Band Ready Book 2 and are on YouTube only for now. See our guide to all six Listening mock tests.
What should you do after your mock test?
Your score tells you where you are. Your mistakes tell you what to fix. Write every wrong answer in a simple log and look for patterns before your next test.
| Type of mistake | Example | What to do next |
|---|---|---|
| Word limit | Writing "half past nine" when the limit is two words | Write times and numbers as digits, for example 9.30 |
| Spelling | A misspelt name or place | Practise names that speakers spell out letter by letter |
| NOT GIVEN confusion | Choosing FALSE when the text is silent | Ask: does the text say the opposite, or say nothing? |
| Running out of time | Leaving Passage 3 unfinished | Aim for about 20 minutes per passage |
| No overview | Listing every number in Task 1 | Write two sentences on the biggest changes first |
Practise now: Start with Listening Test 1, then take Academic Reading Test 1 or General Training Reading Test 1, and finish with Academic Writing Test 1 or GT Writing Test 1 in one sitting.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Band Ready IELTS mock test really free?
Yes. All four tests in Practice Series 1 are free to take on the site. Your answers stay in your browser unless you choose to save an attempt online, which asks for your name and email.
Does the mock test give me an IELTS band score?
The Listening and Reading pages give you a practice mark out of 40, not an official or predicted band. You can convert that mark to an approximate band with the table on this page. Writing is not given an automatic band.
Are these mock tests the same as the real IELTS?
They follow the IELTS format, timing and question types, but they are original practice material. They are not produced or endorsed by IELTS, the British Council, IDP or Cambridge University Press & Assessment.
Should I take the Academic or General Training mock test?
Take the version you are booked for. Listening is the same for both. Reading and Writing are different, so choose the Academic or General Training papers that match your test.
How long does a full IELTS mock test take?
Listening takes about 30 minutes, Reading 60 minutes and Writing 60 minutes, so allow close to three hours with short breaks. The real Speaking test takes 11 to 14 minutes and may be on a different day.
How many mock tests should I take before the exam?
There is no fixed number. A sensible plan is to take one full test at the start to find your level, then use the other tests one at a time and review every mistake before the next one.