IELTS General Training · Band 0–9
IELTS General Training practice tests — the module IRCC accepts
The same four skills, the same screen and the same clock as the Academic paper — with the Reading and Writing that General Training actually sets: everyday and workplace texts, and a letter instead of a report. Listening and Reading are marked the moment you finish; Writing and Speaking come back as an estimated band on the four published criteria.
- 10
- full tests
- 40
- single-skill tests
- 45
- question-type drills
- 2,185
- questions & tasks
Free with an account, no card: 1 full test and 4 single-skill tests.
Four skills, one sitting
Practise it the way you will sit it — same order, same clock, same tools on screen.
Listening is about 30 minutes of recording plus the two-minute check; Speaking runs 11–14 minutes and ends on the clock, as the examiner would end it. On the real test Listening, Reading and Writing come back to back and Speaking may be the same day or up to a week before or after.
Practise one skill at a time
Start with the one holding your band back — moving a single skill is usually the fastest route to the score you need.
Listening
Four parts played once, British voices, then the two minutes the computer test gives you to check.
Practise listening →Reading
Three sections, 40 questions, 60 minutes. Section 1 carries short everyday texts — notices, advertisements, timetables; two or three, on the real test and in ours — Section 2 two texts about work, and Section 3 one long text of general interest. The Reading practice tests are papers of their own, never the Reading of a full test.
Practise reading →Writing
Task 1 is a letter of at least 150 words to a reader the task names, covering three given points, in the register the situation calls for. Task 2 is an essay of at least 250 words and counts twice as much. Both on one 60-minute clock.
Practise writing →Speaking
Three parts with a recorded examiner — face to face on the real test: interview, a two-minute talk from a cue card, then discussion.
Practise speaking →Which module is yours?
General Training is the module for Canadian permanent residence and citizenship — IRCC accepts it for Express Entry — and for a good deal of work and training. Academic is the one universities ask for. The two share Listening and Speaking exactly; Reading and Writing Task 1 are different papers.
General Training Reading has its own band table, and it is the stricter one: 30 correct out of 40 is Band 6.0 here and Band 7.0 in Academic Reading, because the texts are easier. Listening is the same paper, and the same table, in both modules.
Requirements vary by programme and change. Confirm what your own stream asks for before you book or apply.
See IELTS Academic →Questions people ask
- Which module does Express Entry need?
- General Training. IRCC accepts IELTS General Training for Express Entry and for citizenship; IELTS Academic is not accepted for those. Check the requirement for your own programme before you book — university and professional routes usually want Academic.
- What is Writing Task 1 here?
- A letter of at least 150 words. The task gives you the situation, who to write to and three points to cover, and tells you how to begin. It may be personal, semi-formal or formal depending on the reader, and you do not need to write any addresses. Our marker judges it as a letter: whether all three points are covered, whether the purpose is clear, and whether the tone fits.
- Is the Reading paper easier?
- The texts are — they are the English of notices, handbooks and staff guidance rather than journal articles. The band table corrects for it, so an easier paper does not mean an easier band. Section 3 is a long text and sits closer to the Academic level.
- Are these real IELTS questions?
- No. Every text, recording and task is written for ExamStep to the published test specification. IELTS is a registered trademark of the British Council, IDP IELTS and Cambridge University Press & Assessment; ExamStep is not affiliated with them.