IELTS Speaking Band Descriptors: Student Guide and Free PDF

How to use this guide: read your current band and target band, then choose one improvement in each criterion. These are simplified Master English explanations, not the official IELTS descriptors. Band 9: This does not mean perfect English. Very rare small mistakes can still happen.

The two-page PDF has a single-page comparison table followed by a glossary. It is A3 landscape; use the online version for comfortable reading on a phone.

Band 9

Fluency And Coherence

Can you keep speaking clearly?

You speak very smoothly.
You almost never repeat or correct yourself.
If you pause, it is to think about your ideas, not because you cannot find the English.
You give full answers with clear explanations, details and examples.

Lexical Resource

Do you have enough words to express yourself?

You use a very wide range of words naturally and correctly.
You can express exactly what you mean on any topic.
You use natural expressions and idioms correctly.

Grammatical Range And Accuracy

Can you use different sentences correctly?

You use many different sentence structures naturally and correctly.
Your grammar is consistently correct.
Only very rare small slips occur.

Pronunciation

Are you easy to understand?

You are effortless to understand.
You pronounce sounds and words clearly.
You use word stress, sentence stress, rhythm and the rise and fall of your voice naturally.
Your words connect naturally when you speak.

Band 8

Fluency And Coherence

Can you keep speaking clearly?

You speak smoothly with only occasional repetition or self-correction.
You usually pause to think about your ideas, not because you cannot find the English.
You give full answers and explain your ideas clearly.

Lexical Resource

Do you have enough words to express yourself?

You use a wide range of words naturally and correctly.
You can choose specific words that express exactly what you mean.
You use less common words and idioms well.
If you do not know a word, you can explain the meaning another way.

Grammatical Range And Accuracy

Can you use different sentences correctly?

You use a wide range of sentence structures.
Most sentences have no grammar errors.
Only occasional grammar mistakes occur.

Pronunciation

Are you easy to understand?

You are easy to understand all the time.
You pronounce individual sounds and words clearly.
You use stress and the rise and fall of your voice well.
You can still have an accent. It rarely makes you difficult to understand.

Band 7

Fluency And Coherence

Can you keep speaking clearly?

You can give longer answers without much difficulty.
Your answers remain clear and easy to follow.
You may sometimes pause, repeat yourself or correct your English.
You use different linking words to connect your ideas.

Lexical Resource

Do you have enough words to express yourself?

You have enough vocabulary to discuss many different topics.
You can use some less common words and natural expressions.
You usually choose words that naturally go together.
If you do not know a word, you can usually explain it another way.

Grammatical Range And Accuracy

Can you use different sentences correctly?

You use different types of complex sentences.
Many sentences have no grammar errors.
Some grammar mistakes still occur, but your meaning is generally clear.

Pronunciation

Are you easy to understand?

You are generally easy to understand.
You show the clear pronunciation described at Band 6 and some of the stronger control described at Band 8.
Your sounds, stress and the rise and fall of your voice are becoming more natural.

Band 6

Fluency And Coherence

Can you keep speaking clearly?

You can give longer answers, but your speaking is not always smooth.
You may pause, repeat yourself or correct yourself.
You use different linking words, but not always correctly.

Lexical Resource

Do you have enough words to express yourself?

You have enough vocabulary to talk about everyday topics and more general topics.
You sometimes choose the wrong word.
If you do not know a word, you can usually explain it another way.

Grammatical Range And Accuracy

Can you use different sentences correctly?

You use both simple and complex sentences.
Your complex sentences contain more grammar mistakes.
These mistakes rarely stop the listener understanding you.

Pronunciation

Are you easy to understand?

People can generally understand you.
Some words or sounds are not clear.
Your word stress or sentence stress is sometimes wrong.
The rise and fall of your voice may sometimes sound unnatural.

Band 5

Fluency And Coherence

Can you keep speaking clearly?

You can usually keep speaking, but you may speak slowly, repeat yourself or correct yourself often.
Short, simple answers can be smooth.
Longer or more difficult answers cause more problems.
You may use the same linking words again and again.

Lexical Resource

Do you have enough words to express yourself?

You have enough vocabulary for everyday topics, but your vocabulary is limited for more general or abstract topics.
You may struggle to say exactly what you mean.
Sometimes you can explain an unknown word another way, but not always.

Grammatical Range And Accuracy

Can you use different sentences correctly?

You can make basic sentences with reasonable accuracy.
You use only a limited range of complex sentences.
Complex sentences usually contain mistakes and can sometimes be difficult to understand.

Pronunciation

Are you easy to understand?

Your pronunciation is between Bands 4 and 6.
Some parts are clear, but pronunciation problems happen often enough to affect understanding.
See Bands 4 and 6 to understand the difference.

Band 4

Fluency And Coherence

Can you keep speaking clearly?

You cannot keep speaking smoothly without noticeable pauses.
You speak slowly and often repeat or correct yourself.
You can connect simple ideas, but your linking is basic and repetitive.
Your answers can be difficult to follow.

Lexical Resource

Do you have enough words to express yourself?

You can talk about everyday topics with basic vocabulary.
You have difficulty finding words for more general or abstract topics.
You often choose the wrong word.
You rarely manage to explain an unknown word another way.

Grammatical Range And Accuracy

Can you use different sentences correctly?

You mainly use basic sentence structures.
You use very few complex sentences.
Grammar mistakes are frequent.
Some mistakes cause misunderstanding.

Pronunciation

Are you easy to understand?

People sometimes have difficulty understanding you.
You often pronounce words or individual sounds incorrectly.
Word stress and the rise and fall of your voice are often unclear or incorrect.
Pronunciation problems frequently make your meaning harder to understand.

Below the lowest band shown: Pauses, limited vocabulary, grammar mistakes and pronunciation problems become more serious and increasingly make communication difficult.

What do these words mean?

Plain-English explanations of the assessment language used above.

Linking words: Words and phrases that connect your spoken ideas, such as and, but, because, so, however, for example, also and on the other hand. Use different ones naturally rather than repeating the same one.
Give a full / longer answer: Say more than one short sentence when the question allows it. Explain why, add a detail, give an example or describe an experience. It does not mean talking for as long as possible.
Develop your answer: Say more about your answer: explain why, give a reason, add a detail, give an example or describe an experience.
Everyday / familiar topics: Subjects you probably know well, such as your family, home, work, studies, hobbies, food, transport and hometown.
More general / less familiar topics: Subjects you may not talk about every day or that need more thought, such as technology, advertising, education, the environment, society or the future. You do not need expert knowledge.
Less common words: More specific or less basic words. Instead of always saying good, you might use useful, enjoyable, effective, convenient or beneficial when one of these gives the meaning you want. It does not mean using strange or extremely difficult words.
Idioms / natural expressions: Expressions whose meaning is not always the same as the individual words, for example once in a while, a waste of time or get the hang of it. Do not force idioms into every answer.
Correctly / accurately: Using a word or grammar structure correctly: the correct meaning, form and natural word combination.
Precisely: Choosing a word that expresses exactly what you mean. For example, exhausted is more precise than tired if you mean very tired.
Explain a word another way: If you cannot remember a word, describe it using other English words. This is called paraphrasing.
Individual sounds: Producing English sounds clearly enough for the listener to recognise the word.
Word stress: Making the correct part of a word stronger, for example TAble and imPORtant.
Sentence stress: Making the important words in a sentence stronger so your meaning is clear.
Rise and fall of your voice / intonation: How your voice moves up and down when you speak. Natural intonation helps show meaning and attitude.
Connected speech: How words naturally join together when people speak.
Accent: The way your pronunciation is influenced by where you come from or the languages you speak. You do not need a British or Australian accent; you need to be easy to understand.

Questions about IELTS band scores

How is my score assessed?

The examiner assesses your performance across the Speaking test using four equally weighted criteria: Fluency and Coherence, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy, and Pronunciation. There is no separate reported band for each Speaking part.

Does Band 9 mean perfect English?

No. Very rare slips can still occur. Look at the complete descriptor across all four criteria, rather than counting individual mistakes.

Will advanced vocabulary automatically improve my band?

No. Words need to express the intended meaning accurately and naturally. Precise, appropriate language matters more than inserting difficult words or memorised expressions.

Can I use this guide to predict my exact band?

Use it to understand feedback and plan practice, not to guarantee a score. An examiner applies the official descriptors to your complete performance; strengths in one criterion do not cancel every weakness in another.

Put the criteria into practice

Use feedback to choose what to practise next, rather than trying to improve everything at once.

Explore Speaking preparation Check the Speaking test format

More band guides and downloads

Source: IDP IELTS Australia — official Speaking band descriptors. Consult the official descriptors for the full assessment wording.

© 2026 Master English Australia — original explanations and layout. Official IELTS descriptors belong to their respective rights holders. This independent study guide is not an official IELTS publication.