IELTS Reading practice tests 81 complete tests, every answer explained
41 Academic and 40 General Training tests, 3,240 questions in total. Each one is a full paper: three passages, 40 questions, 60 minutes. Free, no signup.
Written by Manish Sharma · CELTA and DELTA qualified · 8 years teaching IELTS
Take one timedWhy every answer here has a reason attached
An answer key tells you that you were wrong. It does not tell you why, and being wrong for a reason you cannot name is the thing that repeats on test day. Every one of the 3,240 questions in these tests carries a written explanation: which part of the passage decides it, and where the wrong answer was designed to look right. Mark yourself first, then read the explanation for everything you got wrong AND for everything you guessed correctly. The guesses are the ones that will not survive.
How to use a full test
Sixty minutes, all three passages, no dictionary and no pausing. A test taken in pieces measures your reading; a test taken against the clock measures what you will actually score, and the gap between those two is usually a band. Transfer time is included in the hour on the paper test and not added afterwards, so practise writing your answers straight into the answer sheet rather than planning to copy them at the end.
Academic and General Training are different papers
Academic passages come from journals, books and broadsheets, and get harder across the three. General Training opens with short workplace and everyday texts, then a longer general-interest passage last. The question types are the same and the raw-score-to-band conversion is not: General Training needs more correct answers for the same band. Practise the paper you are entered for.
Academic tests 1 to 10
Full tests. Three passages, 40 questions, 60 minutes. Every answer carries a written explanation rather than a bare key.
Academic tests 11 to 20
More complete academic tests in the same format.
Academic tests 21 to 30
More complete academic tests in the same format.
Academic tests 31 to 40
More complete academic tests in the same format.
Academic tests 41 to 41
More complete academic tests in the same format.
General Training tests 1 to 10
Full tests. Three passages, 40 questions, 60 minutes. Every answer carries a written explanation rather than a bare key.
General Training tests 11 to 20
More complete general training tests in the same format.
General Training tests 21 to 30
More complete general training tests in the same format.
General Training tests 31 to 40
More complete general training tests in the same format.
Frequently asked questions
Are these real IELTS reading tests?+
They are full-length tests written in the exact format of the exam: three passages, 40 questions, 60 minutes, and the same question types in the same proportions. Real exam papers are copyright and no site can publish them, which is why most IELTS sites have no complete tests at all. We wrote ours, so we can.
How many questions do I need for Band 7?+
It depends on the paper and on the track. General Training requires more correct answers than Academic for the same band. The band calculator converts a raw score for either paper.
Should I read the passage or the questions first?+
Questions first, then locate. Reading a 900-word passage closely before you know what you are looking for spends minutes you need later, and the questions follow passage order on most types, which narrows every search after the first.
Do these tests come with answers?+
Yes, and with an explanation for every answer rather than a bare key. The explanation names the part of the passage that decides it and the trap the wrong option was built from.
Reading about it is not practising it. Get a band in seconds.
Write an answer to any question above, paste it in, and get a band for each criterion with the sentences that cost you marks.
Take one timed