Free IELTS mock tests: what is free, what is a PDF and what costs

Free IELTS practice does exist, and it comes from the test owners: IDP Australia's free computer Familiarisation test, practice tests by skill on IDP's Prepare hub, and the British Council's free mock tests with answer keys. IDP Australia's full mock of all four skills with a band estimate is a paid product, and IDP says its results are indicative only; the British Council says that when you book your test with it, you can get access to free score practice tests.

There are real free IELTS practice tests, and the people who own IELTS publish them. They come as separate skill tests, so you build your own mock from them. This table uses the owners' own words.

IDP Australia says most of its official mock tests, practice tests and sample questions are free: "Most of these are free!" It also says its tests help across all four skills: "Our free online IELTS mock tests help you improve in IELTS Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking." The free computer test, though, has three parts and no Speaking part. IDP's list of parts is Listening, Academic Reading and Academic Writing.

People search for a mock test PDF. The owners publish PDFs, but mostly for answers and sample tasks, because a full test needs audio and a screen. This is the list of downloads on their pages.

Our reading: use the PDFs for marking. Print the Reading sample tasks and write your answers on the answer sheet, then mark with the Answer Key PDF the British Council lists under each Reading task type, and read the Listening transcript after you listen. For Speaking, use a phone to record yourself. Beware any site that sells a whole mock test as a PDF with no audio, because a Listening test without sound is not a Listening test.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment publishes practice books. Its page for its latest book says: "Prepare for the exam with official Cambridge practice tests, developed by the same team that creates the IELTS exam."

IDP Australia sells a Full IELTS Mock Test, made with a partner company, E2Language. IDP says it covers all four skills and gives you a band estimate. Here is what IDP's page says.

IDP's page also says it has partnered with E2Language. It describes E2 as "a global leader in English test preparation". We cannot check that claim, so we show it as IDP's own. IDP's page shows the discount code. We do not repeat codes here: if you want it, get it from IDP's own page.

Our reading: a paid mock is worth it for one reason, an instant estimate of all four skills including Writing and Speaking that you did not mark yourself. IDP's page says the estimate uses IELTS band descriptors and is available immediately; it does not say who or what does the marking. If you only want practice on question types, the free material is enough. Either way, remember the owners' own warning that a mock result is indicative only.

To build a mock from free parts, follow the timing of the real test. The owners give these times.

IDP says its computer practice is untimed, so at home you must supply the clock yourself. For Writing and Speaking, the owners publish the marking descriptors. Use them to check your own work, then ask a teacher to mark it.

• The IELTS Writing band descriptors can help you understand how an examiner will assess your Writing Task 1 and Task 2 responses.
• The IELTS Speaking band descriptors can help you understand how an examiner will assess you during the Speaking test.

Our home mock plan

1. Choose a quiet slot of about three hours, and switch off your phone, except to record Speaking.
2. Do Listening first, with the audio played once. Then Reading, then Writing, in that order, with no breaks, as the real test runs.
3. Record Speaking separately, on the same day or within a few days, and play it back.
4. Mark Listening and Reading by the answer keys, and write down the reason for every lost mark.
5. Read your Writing against the descriptors, and ask a teacher to mark it. Your own band for your own Writing will usually be too kind.
6. Ignore the band. Use the mock to decide where to spend the next two weeks of study.

This is a taster, not a full mock. It has a reading passage with five questions, a Writing prompt and four Speaking prompts. The passage is invented, so use only what the text says. Give the reading 8 minutes.

Questions 1 to 5

Do the following statements agree with the information in the passage? Write TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.

1. The scheme was paid for mainly by fees from users.
2. Most riders used the bicycles to travel between the railway station and the university.
3. The council employed extra staff to repair damaged bicycles.
4. The council had to move bicycles from the hill back down to the town.
5. The council has decided to raise the fee next year.

Answer key and the reason for each answer

Writing taster: Task 2 prompt

Some people think cities should make bicycle sharing free for everyone. Others think the people who use it should pay. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Plan for five minutes, then write for thirty-five, so the whole task takes 40 minutes, the time the test allows for Task 2. Aim for a clear position, two body paragraphs and a conclusion. Read your essay against the descriptors above, and give it to a teacher to mark.

Speaking taster: record yourself

1. Do you prefer to travel by bicycle, by bus or on foot? Why?
2. Tell me about a journey you often make.
3. Is it easy to find your way around the place where you live?
4. Describe a time when transport made you late. What happened, and how did you feel? (Take a minute to think, then speak for up to two minutes.)

Common questions