Closed 21 June 2024
Looking for an IELTS Progress Check alternative?
IELTS Progress Check was the official practice test marked by official IELTS markers. The partnership closed it, and the announcement names no replacement. If you came here after finding a dead product page, this is what it did, and what honestly can and cannot take its place.
What happened to IELTS Progress Check
The IELTS partnership published a closure notice stating: “You can still take an IELTS Progress Check test until 21 June 2024.” The notice directs readers to IELTS preparation materials in general. It does not name a replacement for the service, and it does not give a reason for the closure.
While it ran, IDP described it as available in “IELTS Academic and IELTS General Training, both versions include components of all four communication skills”, said the tests were “assessed and scored by official IELTS markers”, and stated that your report “including your indicative IELTS band score and marker feedback, will be ready within five days of completing the test”. The listed price on that page is HK$393.8.
Closure notice: ielts.org. Product description and price: ielts.idp.com. Both read on 20 September 2026. Prices are quoted in the currency the source used.
The part most pages will not tell you
Progress Check was marked by official IELTS markers. We are not, and no AI tool is. Anything promising you examiner marking for a few dollars is selling you something it does not have. What an AI scorer can genuinely replace is the practice and the feedback loop, at a speed and price the official service never offered.
| IELTS Progress Check | BandNine | |
|---|---|---|
| Who marks it | Official IELTS markers | AI, against the public descriptors |
| Still available | Closed 21 June 2024 | Yes |
| Wait for feedback | Within five days | About a minute |
| How you pay | A fee for each test | A free tier, then plans by period. See pricing |
| Accuracy published | No figure published | Measured and republished weekly. See the numbers |
Frequently asked questions
Is IELTS Progress Check still available?+
No. The IELTS partnership announced its closure and stated that the last day to take a test was 21 June 2024. The announcement points readers to general preparation materials but does not name a replacement for the service itself.
Why was IELTS Progress Check discontinued?+
The official announcement confirms the closure and the final test date but does not give a reason. Anyone telling you why is guessing, and we are not going to guess on a page like this.
What did IELTS Progress Check actually do?+
It was an official practice test in both Academic and General Training, covering all four skills. IDP's page states the tests were assessed and scored by official IELTS markers, and that a report with an indicative band score and marker feedback arrived within five days of finishing.
What is the closest alternative to IELTS Progress Check?+
Nothing replaces marking by an official IELTS marker, and no AI tool including ours should claim to. What can be replaced is the practice test and the feedback loop. BandNine scores writing and speaking against the public band descriptors in about a minute rather than five days, and you can score an answer free before paying anything.
Is an AI band score as accurate as an official IELTS marker?+
No, and we publish the gap rather than hiding it. Progress Check was marked by official IELTS markers. Our reference bands are labelled in house against the public descriptors, and no script in our set has been marked by a certified IELTS examiner. We publish the measured error, the sample size and who did the labelling on our quality page, which is more than any competitor we could find publishes about itself.
Do I get my money back if the score is wrong?+
We publish our accuracy measurement openly and re-run it every week, good or bad. See the quality page for the current figure, the size of the reference set, and its limits.
Practise now, not in five days.
Write one answer and see a band with the descriptor lines behind it. No account needed to try.
Score an answer free