IELTS Speaking Tips: How to Improve Your Score in Parts 1, 2 and 3
Updated: Oct 1
Speaking is the part of IELTS that makes candidates most nervous, and it is also where I see the fastest improvement once students understand what the examiner is actually listening for. It is not a test of your accent, your general knowledge or how impressive your opinions are. It is a test of how well you communicate in English, judged against four published criteria.
This guide explains how the test works, what each criterion means in practice, and how to approach each of the three parts. It finishes with the mistakes I hear most often and a four-week practice plan.
How the IELTS Speaking test works
The Speaking test is a live conversation with a certified examiner, and at some test centres the examiner joins by video call. It lasts 11 to 14 minutes, it is recorded, and it is the same for IELTS Academic and IELTS General Training. There are three parts:
Part 1, introduction and interview (4 to 5 minutes): questions about familiar topics such as your home, family, work, studies and interests.
Part 2, long turn (3 to 4 minutes): you receive a task card with a topic and some points to cover. You have one minute to prepare, with pencil and paper for notes, and then speak for up to two minutes. The examiner may ask one or two questions afterwards.
Part 3, discussion (4 to 5 minutes): a more general and abstract discussion of issues connected to the Part 2 topic.
Depending on the test centre, Speaking may be on the same day as Listening, Reading and Writing or on a different day, so check your booking confirmation.
What the examiner is assessing
Your Speaking band is based on four criteria:
Fluency and coherence: speaking at length without long pauses, and organising what you say so it is easy to follow, with natural linking words.
Lexical resource: the range and accuracy of your vocabulary, including less common words and collocations used appropriately, and your ability to paraphrase when you do not know a word.
Grammatical range and accuracy: using a mix of simple and complex structures, and how many of your sentences are free of errors.
Pronunciation: how easy you are to understand, including individual sounds, word and sentence stress, rhythm and intonation.
Two points surprise many candidates. First, you are not marked down for having an accent; what matters is how clearly you can be understood. Second, the examiner assesses your language, not whether your ideas are correct or clever. A simple, honest answer delivered fluently scores better than a sophisticated one you struggle to express. To see how your Speaking band combines with your other scores, read how IELTS band scores are calculated.
Part 1 tips: short answers, fully developed
Part 1 questions are simple, which tempts candidates to give one-word or one-sentence answers. Aim for two or three sentences: answer the question, then add a reason, an example or a contrast. For example, to “Do you enjoy cooking?”:
Too short: “Yes, I do.”
Better: “Yes, I really do, especially at weekends when I have more time. Recently I've been trying dishes from different countries, although my attempts at baking haven't been very successful so far.”
The better answer is not long, but it shows a range of tenses, natural linking and some precise vocabulary. Avoid memorised answers: examiners are trained to spot them, they tend to sound unnatural, and they often do not answer the exact question you were asked.
Part 2 tips: use the minute and keep talking
Plan with keywords, not sentences. Use the minute to note four or five ideas: one for each point on the card, plus an extra detail or story.
Follow the points on the card in order. They give your talk a ready-made structure.
Tell a story. Specific details, such as when, where, who, what happened and how you felt, are easier to talk about than general statements, and they naturally bring in past tenses and descriptive vocabulary.
Keep going until the examiner stops you. If you run out of things to say after 50 seconds, you give the examiner less evidence of your fluency and range. When you have covered the points, add how you feel about the topic now or what you would do differently.
Practise with a timer. Most students underestimate how long two minutes is until they have tried it a few times.
Part 3 tips: discuss, do not just answer
Part 3 is often where higher bands are decided, because the questions ask you to compare, speculate, evaluate and explain. Useful moves include:
Give a view and justify it: “I'd say..., mainly because...”
Consider both sides: “On the one hand..., but on the other...”
Speculate: “It's likely that..., although it depends on...”
Generalise, then give an example: “In many countries..., for instance...”
Buy thinking time naturally: “That's an interesting question. I haven't thought about it much, but I suppose...”
It is fine to ask the examiner to repeat or rephrase a question, and it is fine to say you are not sure, as long as you can explain why.
Common mistakes that hold scores back
Memorised answers and “showy” vocabulary used in the wrong context. Natural, accurate language scores better than rare words used incorrectly.
Very short answers in Parts 1 and 3, which give the examiner too little language to assess.
Long silences. Use natural fillers such as “let me think” or “well, actually” rather than stopping completely.
Overusing the same linking words, such as starting every sentence with “and” or “so”.
Speaking too fast in an attempt to sound fluent. Clear, steady speech with good stress and intonation is easier to understand.
Using only the present simple. Look for natural chances to use past, future, conditional and perfect forms.
A four-week practice plan
Week 1, diagnose: record yourself answering a full practice test. Listen back and note your three biggest weaknesses, such as hesitation, repeated words, grammar errors or unclear sounds.
Week 2, build Part 1 and 2 habits: answer ten Part 1 questions a day using the answer-plus-reason pattern, and practise two Part 2 cue cards a day with a one-minute timer.
Week 3, develop Part 3: practise discussing abstract questions on common topics such as education, technology, work, the environment and cities, focusing on justifying and comparing.
Week 4, simulate the test: do complete timed tests, ideally with a teacher or partner acting as the examiner, and get feedback against the four criteria.
The most valuable part of this plan is feedback. Recording yourself helps, but an experienced teacher will notice patterns that you cannot hear yourself.
Frequently asked questions
How long is the IELTS Speaking test?
Between 11 and 14 minutes, in three parts: an introduction and interview, a long turn of up to two minutes, and a discussion.
Does my accent affect my IELTS Speaking score?
No. You are assessed on how easy you are to understand, not on whether you sound British, American or anything else. Clear sounds, word stress and intonation matter far more than accent.
Can I ask the examiner to repeat a question?
Yes. Asking for a question to be repeated or clarified is natural, although you should not need to do it for every question.
Should I memorise answers for IELTS Speaking?
No. Examiners are trained to recognise memorised language, and memorised answers often do not fit the exact question. Prepare ideas and vocabulary for common topics instead, and practise expressing them spontaneously.
What happens if I stop before two minutes in Part 2?
The examiner may encourage you to continue. Stopping early gives the examiner less evidence of your fluency and range, which usually makes a high score harder to achieve.
I prepare candidates for all four IELTS skills in one-to-one online sessions, including mock Speaking tests with detailed feedback against the band descriptors. You can find out more and book on my IELTS Preparation page. If you are still choosing a test, my comparison of IELTS vs TOEFL may help, and for the Writing paper, see 5 IELTS Writing Task 2 mistakes.
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