IELTS Reading Band Score: Academic and General Training Converter
Choose your test, enter how many of the 40 Reading questions you answered correctly, and get your band from 0 to 9, using the same conversion as our IELTS Band Calculator.
📖 Reading raw score to band
📊 Need your overall band?
Your overall IELTS band is the average of Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking, rounded to the nearest half band. Add all four in the IELTS Band Calculator.
🎧 Converting Listening too?
Listening uses one chart for Academic and General Training. Use the IELTS Listening band score converter.
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IELTS Reading band score charts (raw score out of 40)
In IELTS Academic Reading, 30 correct answers out of 40 is about band 7.0 and 35 is about band 8.0. General Training Reading needs more: 35 out of 40 is about band 7.0 and 30 is about band 6.0. Both tests have 40 questions worth one mark each, and IELTS grades them on the same 9-band scale. The General Training chart sits higher because, as IELTS puts it, Academic texts can carry more difficult vocabulary and a more complex style, so fewer correct answers earn the same band.
IELTS Academic Reading band score chart
| Correct answers (out of 40) | Academic Reading band | Published by IELTS |
|---|---|---|
| 39–40 | 9.0 | — |
| 37–38 | 8.5 | — |
| 35–36 | 8.0 | Band 8: average 35 marks |
| 33–34 | 7.5 | — |
| 30–32 | 7.0 | Band 7: average 30 marks |
| 27–29 | 6.5 | — |
| 23–26 | 6.0 | Band 6: average 23 marks |
| 19–22 | 5.5 | — |
| 15–18 | 5.0 | Band 5: average 15 marks |
| 13–14 | 4.5 | — |
| 10–12 | 4.0 | — |
| 8–9 | 3.5 | — |
| 6–7 | 3.0 | — |
| 4–5 | 2.5 | — |
| 0–3 | 2.0 or below | — |
IELTS General Training Reading band score chart
| Correct answers (out of 40) | General Training Reading band | Published by IELTS |
|---|---|---|
| 40 | 9.0 | — |
| 39 | 8.5 | — |
| 37–38 | 8.0 | — |
| 36 | 7.5 | — |
| 35 | 7.0 | Band 7: average 35 marks |
| 32–34 | 6.5 | — |
| 30–31 | 6.0 | Band 6: average 30 marks |
| 27–29 | 5.5 | — |
| 23–26 | 5.0 | Band 5: average 23 marks |
| 19–22 | 4.5 | — |
| 15–18 | 4.0 | Band 4: average 15 marks |
| 12–14 | 3.5 | — |
| 9–11 | 3.0 | — |
| 6–8 | 2.5 | — |
| 0–5 | 2.0 or below | — |
Source: IELTS, IELTS scoring in detail, which gives the average number of marks for Academic Reading bands 5 to 8 (15, 23, 30 and 35 out of 40) and General Training Reading bands 4 to 7 (15, 23, 30 and 35 out of 40). Checked 28 October 2026. The other rows are Galvanize estimates on the same scale.
How is IELTS Reading scored?
Both Reading tests have 3 sections and 40 questions and last 60 minutes. Every correct answer receives 1 mark. The Academic texts total 2,150 to 2,750 words and come from books, journals, magazines, newspapers and online sources. The General Training texts total 2,150 to 2,375 words and move from everyday and workplace material to a longer general-interest text. IELTS converts your mark out of 40 to a band in whole or half bands.
How many correct answers do you need for band 6, 7 or 8?
On the charts above, these are the fewest correct answers for each band:
| Band | Academic Reading | General Training Reading |
|---|---|---|
| 6.0 | 23 out of 40 | 30 out of 40 |
| 6.5 | 27 out of 40 | 32 out of 40 |
| 7.0 | 30 out of 40 | 35 out of 40 |
| 7.5 | 33 out of 40 | 36 out of 40 |
| 8.0 | 35 out of 40 | 37 out of 40 |
The gap matters most at the top: a General Training candidate aiming for band 7.0 can afford only 5 wrong answers, while an Academic candidate can miss 10.
Reading and Listening use different charts
Listening is also marked out of 40, with one chart for both tests: IELTS gives 16 marks as the average for band 5, 23 for band 6, 30 for band 7 and 35 for band 8. To convert a Listening score, use the IELTS Listening band score converter.
What to do with your band
- Add your Reading band to the other three in the IELTS Band Calculator to see your overall band.
- Not sure which test you need? Read our IELTS band score guide for what universities and visas ask for.
- Take the free IELTS Diagnostic to see which skill is costing you the most marks.
Frequently Asked Questions
About 30 out of 40. IELTS gives 30 marks as the average for band 7 in Academic Reading. On our chart, 30 to 32 correct answers is band 7.0 and 33 or 34 is band 7.5.
About 35 out of 40, the average IELTS gives for band 7 in General Training Reading. That is 5 more than Academic Reading needs for the same band. On our chart, 36 is band 7.5 and 37 or 38 is band 8.0.
IELTS grades both Reading tests on the same 9-band scale, but the Academic test may use texts with more difficult vocabulary or a more complex style. So an Academic candidate reaches a given band with fewer correct answers than a General Training candidate.
IELTS says the number of marks needed for a band varies slightly from one test version to another. The marks it publishes are averages, so on some versions a band needs slightly fewer correct answers and on others slightly more.
Yes. IELTS's own General Training Reading guide warns that you lose marks for incorrect spelling and grammar in your answers, so check every word you write. Each correct answer is worth 1 mark, out of 40.
Your overall band is the average of your four section bands, rounded to the nearest whole or half band. For example, Listening 7.5, Reading 6.0, Writing 6.0 and Speaking 7.0 average 6.625, which rounds to an overall 6.5. The IELTS Band Calculator does this for you.