Practice tests
Twelve full General Training practice tests across all four papers, with answers and an explanation for every question. No signup, no email address.
These are complete IELTS General Training practice tests, in the real format and at the real length. Every reading and listening question has an answer and an explanation of why that answer is right, and every writing task has a model answer. Nothing here asks for an email address.
General Training is the module for work visas, migration and secondary education. Most UK, Australian, Canadian and New Zealand visa routes use it. If you are applying to a university, you almost certainly need Academic instead.
The listening and speaking papers are identical in both modules, so the six listening and speaking tests below are the same ones you will find on the Academic page.
Take a test
Reading and listening are marked for you. Writing and speaking come with model answers.
Three sections, forty questions, sixty minutes. Bus passes, workplace notices and a longer final text.
ReadingHidden treasures. Section 1 short texts through to one long general interest passage.
ReadingA request for unwanted items, with matching information and True False Not Given.
ReadingA formal letter of complaint and a Task 2 opinion essay, with model answers for both.
WritingA semi formal letter, which is the register most candidates get wrong.
WritingA personal letter to a friend, plus a Task 2 discussion essay asking for both views.
WritingAll four sections with the audio on the page. The same paper in both modules.
ListeningIncludes a map labelling task and a matching task in Section 2.
ListeningA harder Section 4 lecture with note completion and a word limit that catches people out.
ListeningCooking, photographs and transport, then a cue card about a business. Band 9 answers throughout.
SpeakingShopping, the news and holidays, then a cue card about a place you would like to live.
SpeakingWhere you live, music and visitors, then a cue card about how you relax.
SpeakingWhat to expect
Easier texts, harder marking, and a letter instead of a chart.
Notices, advertisements, timetables and leaflets. Several short texts rather than one long one, and the questions come quickly.
Job descriptions, contracts, staff handbooks and course information. The language is functional rather than academic.
The closest thing to an Academic passage, and where most of the harder question types appear.
Because the texts are easier, you need more correct answers for the same band than in Academic. Thirty out of forty is not the same band in both modules.
At least 150 words, and the register is the first decision you make. Formal, semi formal or personal changes the whole letter.
At least 250 words against the same four criteria as Academic. Topics tend to be more everyday, but the marking does not soften.
Practice
Five questions on the module and how to practise for it.
The texts are easier, so people relax. Then the band conversion catches them out.
You need more correct answers in General Training than in Academic to reach the same band.
Task 1 is a letter, and choosing the wrong register costs marks before you have written a single sentence.
1How many correct answers do you need for a given band in General Training?
More than in Academic. The reading texts are easier, so the conversion is adjusted to compensate. This surprises a lot of candidates on results day.
2You are asked to write to a manager you have never met. Which register?
Formal. You do not know them and the context is professional. Semi formal is for someone you know in a professional context, such as a colleague or a neighbour.
3Which module do you need for a UK Skilled Worker visa?
General Training, taken as IELTS for UKVI. Work routes normally use General Training. Life Skills is for family and settlement routes.
4What is in Section 1 of the General Training reading paper?
Several short everyday texts. Notices, adverts and timetables. Section 2 is workplace material and Section 3 is the single long text.
5Which papers do General Training and Academic candidates sit together?
Listening and speaking. Identical papers, same day, same criteria. Only reading and writing differ between the modules.
Register, tone and the three bullet points all have to be handled before the language is even assessed. A model answer shows you the target. It does not tell you what your own letter got wrong.
The complete General Training course on IELTStestONLINE assesses your writing and speaking against the four criteria, with video lessons on every question type and a support tutor you can ask when an answer does not make sense. Take a look at the complete course
Easier texts do not mean an easier test. The conversion makes up the difference.
IELTStestONLINE keeps every score in one place with an estimated band as you work, and marks your writing and speaking against the four IELTS criteria. See what full membership includes
Yes. Every test on this page is free, with no signup and no email address required.
Yes. Reading and listening tests are marked as you go, with an explanation for every question. Writing tasks come with model answers.
The reading texts are easier, but the band conversion is harsher to compensate, so you need more correct answers for the same band. The writing is a different task rather than an easier one.
Academic for university study and most professional registration. General Training for work visas, migration and secondary education. Check your own requirement before booking, because the test cannot be changed afterwards.
No. Both modules sit identical listening and speaking papers on the same day, which is why those tests appear on both module pages.
Yes, including the listening audio, though the longer reading texts are easier to work with on a larger screen.
Full membership
Reading and listening have right answers, so a practice test can score them. Writing and speaking are assessed by a human against four criteria, and no answer key can do that for you.
IELTStestONLINE assesses your writing and speaking against those four criteria, instantly and as often as you like, using a system built by a former IELTS examiner and examiner trainer. It keeps every score in one place with an estimated band, and it carries no advertising.
See what membership includes