British CouncilOfficial
takeielts.britishcouncil.orgBest for: Official practice across all four skills.
Free / limits: Free public practice materials. IELTS Ready Premium is a separate benefit linked to booking a test.
Prep websites
Free websites for IELTS preparation, in general and for each section of the exam.
Free resources
Websites that help with IELTS preparation. Most have free materials and sell extras separately. What is free can change, so check each site.
IDP IELTSOfficial
ielts.idp.comBest for: Official sample questions, preparation guidance and familiarisation tests.
Free / limits: Free preparation hub and practice materials. Some additional preparation offers have conditions.
IELTS.orgOfficial
ielts.orgBest for: Official examples of exam tasks.
Free / limits: Free sample questions, recordings, answers and downloadable materials.
Best for: Practising with real exam samples for free, in a computer-based test format.
Free / limits: Practice tests are free on the website. AI band scoring and other extras come with a paid Pro plan.
Best for: Clear explanations, question-type practice and model answers.
Free / limits: Hundreds of free lessons. Advanced lessons and ebooks are sold separately.
Best for: Practice tasks, sample answers and grammar.
Free / limits: Free web practice for all four skills. Also sells books and courses.
Best for: Step-by-step lessons and videos.
Free / limits: Free lessons, questions and examples. Ebooks and courses are separate products.
Best for: Listening and Reading tests, Speaking and Writing samples.
Free / limits: Free practice pages and exercises. Personal correction is a separate service.
Best for: A large collection of questions and model answers.
Free / limits: Public practice materials for all four skills. Personal assessment is a separate service.
Best for: Online mock tests and live lessons.
Free / limits: Free practice tests and selected live classes; you may need to register. Evaluation and coaching are separate services.
Best for: Short Listening and Reading exercises.
Free / limits: Free repeated practice, no registration needed.
Best for: Listening and Reading test practice.
Free / limits: Free online exercises, plus grammar and vocabulary practice.
Best for: Speaking and Writing instruction.
Free / limits: Free introductory courses, including Speaking and a Writing challenge. Full programmes are paid.
Best for: Speaking fluency, vocabulary and topic preparation.
Free / limits: Free video lessons and lesson notes; some free courses need registration. Paid courses are optional.
Best for: Writing structure, paraphrasing and model essays.
Free / limits: Free blog lessons. Individual writing correction is paid.
Best for: IELTS Listening and General Training Reading, plus general English.
Free / limits: Public IELTS exercises and level-based practice. An optional Pro upgrade is available.
By section
Choose a section to see websites for that part of the exam.
Free materials for practising Listening. See also the Listening page for techniques and practice drills.
British Council — ListeningOfficial
takeielts.britishcouncil.orgFree materials: Official Listening practice materials.
Best use: Practising with official task examples.
IDP — practice-test hubOfficial
ielts.idp.comFree materials: Listening familiarisation tests and preparation material.
Best use: Getting used to computer-based tasks.
IELTS.org — Listening samplesOfficial
ielts.orgFree materials: Sample tasks, audio, transcripts and answers. Choose Listening on the page.
Best use: Checking how different question types work.
Free materials: Focused practice lessons, techniques and question-type advice.
Best use: Working on specific weaknesses.
Free materials: Listening sections covering bookings, talks, discussions and lectures.
Best use: Practising one part at a time.
Free materials: Free online Listening practice tests.
Best use: Extra test practice.
Free materials: A large collection of Listening mock tests.
Best use: Longer practice sessions and repeating tests.
Free materials: Short exercises organised by topic and question type.
Best use: Fitting practice into a short daily session.
Free materials: Practice organised into the four Listening parts, plus extra tests.
Best use: Simple section-by-section practice.
Free materials: Question-type lessons, vocabulary exercises and listening strategies.
Best use: Learning prediction, keyword and map-description skills.
Free materials for practising Reading. See also the Reading page for techniques and practice drills.
Free materials: Official Academic Reading practice.
Best use: Finding your starting level with official material.
IDP — practice-test hubOfficial
ielts.idp.comFree materials: Reading familiarisation and practice resources.
Best use: Practising the computer test format.
IELTS.org — sample questionsOfficial
ielts.orgFree materials: Separate Academic and General Training sample collections.
Best use: Choosing official tasks for your test version.
Free materials: Free practice lessons, tips and question-type techniques.
Best use: Learning how to approach unfamiliar question types.
Free materials: Full passages and shorter exercises aimed at common reasons for lost marks.
Best use: Combining strategy lessons with practice.
Free materials: Academic and General Training Reading samples.
Best use: Extra timed practice.
Free materials: A collection of Reading mock tests with Academic and General Training filters.
Best use: Building stamina through longer sessions.
Free materials: Single passages with questions and solutions.
Best use: Daily single-passage practice.
Free materials: Academic tests and General Training sections.
Best use: Practising either IELTS version.
Free materials: Skills lessons, question-type explanations and practice examples.
Best use: Understanding tasks such as True / False / Not Given.
Free materials: IELTS General Training Reading practice, plus separate level-based Reading exercises.
Best use: General Training preparation or extra comprehension work.
Free materials for practising Writing. See also the Writing page for techniques and practice drills.
Free materials: Official Academic Writing sample tasks.
Best use: Practising real task requirements.
IDP — practice-test hubOfficial
ielts.idp.comFree materials: Writing familiarisation and preparation resources.
Best use: Getting familiar with the writing interface and tasks.
IELTS.org — sample questionsOfficial
ielts.orgFree materials: Official Academic and General Training Writing sample materials.
Best use: Checking what each test version requires.
Free materials: Essay lessons, practice questions and model essays. Task 1 is in the site menu.
Best use: Understanding essay types and organising ideas.
Free materials: Academic Task 1, essays and General Training letter tasks, with links to model answers.
Best use: Finding varied prompts to write on your own.
Free materials: Writing lessons, strategies, sample questions and answers.
Best use: Working through an unfamiliar task step by step.
Free materials: Academic Task 1, General Training letters, Task 2 samples and exercises.
Best use: Comparing different types of response.
Free materials: Graph descriptions, letters and model essays.
Best use: Widening your range of practice topics.
Free materials: A free five-lesson course with writing challenges.
Best use: Following a structured series of lessons and tasks.
Free materials: Lessons on essay types, paraphrasing exercises and model answers.
Best use: Improving paragraph development and paraphrasing.
Free materials for practising Speaking. See also the Speaking page for techniques and practice drills.
British Council — SpeakingOfficial
takeielts.britishcouncil.orgFree materials: Official Speaking preparation and practice materials.
Best use: Getting familiar with the interview format.
IDP — Speaking practiceOfficial
ielts.idp.comFree materials: Speaking sample tasks and preparation resources.
Best use: Practising official sample questions.
IELTS.org — sample tasksOfficial
ielts.orgFree materials: Official Speaking sample materials. Choose Speaking on the page.
Best use: Understanding what the test asks you to do.
Free materials: Lessons, topic questions and advice for Parts 1–3.
Best use: Learning how to develop your answers.
Free materials: Topic-based video lessons and supporting notes.
Best use: Building fluency and usable topic vocabulary.
Free materials: 30 practice cards with 330 questions, covering all three parts.
Best use: Mock interviews with a partner or a voice recorder.
Free materials: Sample questions and model responses.
Best use: Comparing your answer with an example.
Free materials: Topic-based question sets and model answers, with useful vocabulary highlighted.
Best use: Preparing vocabulary for common topics.
Free materials: Part 1 questions, Part 2 cue cards and Part 3 discussion material.
Best use: Finding varied questions for daily practice.
Free materials: A free three-lesson course with practice homework.
Best use: Following a short, structured course.