How IELTS Listening is scored
The Listening test has four parts and 40 questions, each worth one mark. Your raw score — the number of correct answers — is converted to a band from 1 to 9 using a conversion table. Academic and General Training candidates sit the same Listening test, so the same table applies to both.
Reading the conversion table
The table next to the calculator shows the range of raw scores for each band. The steps are not even: at the top of the scale you need almost every answer correct for band 9, while in the middle of the scale three or four extra correct answers can move you up a whole band. That is why small improvements in accuracy matter so much for candidates aiming at 6.5 or 7.
Worked example
You finish a practice test with 28 correct answers. That falls in the 26–29 range, which is band 6.5. Two more correct answers (30/40) would give you band 7.0. Looking back at the questions you missed — often spelling, plural endings or ignoring the word limit — is usually the fastest way to find those two marks.
Tips for a higher Listening band
- Use the time before each part to read the questions and predict the type of answer (a number, a name, a noun).
- Check spelling and singular/plural forms — a correct idea with a spelling mistake scores zero.
- Follow the word limit exactly: “NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS” means a three-word answer is wrong.
- Practise with different accents; IELTS uses British, Australian, North American and other English accents.
Once you know your Listening band, add your other sections in the overall band score calculator.