What is 15 out of 40 in IELTS Reading?
Quick answer
IELTS.org lists 15 marks as the average for Academic Reading band 5, so 15 out of 40 sits exactly on that point and 18 is three marks above it. The indicative table the site's band calculator uses reads 15 to 18 as an estimated 5.0 in Academic and 4.0 in General Training.
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Part of The IELTS test, answered
Fifteen out of 40 is the one score in this row where a published point and the start of an indicative row coincide. This page covers 15 to 18 marks, the row that begins there.
Where 15 to 18 sits on the published points
IELTS.org gives Academic Reading band 5 at 15 marks and band 6 at 23. A score of 15 is therefore on the band 5 point, and 16, 17 and 18 are one to three marks above it, still five to eight short of band 6. General Training is listed one band lower for the same marks: band 4 at 15 and band 5 at 23. The same 15 to 18 is on or above the General Training band 4 point and well short of band 5. IELTS.org describes its points as the average number of marks scored at each level.
The estimated band
The indicative table the site’s band score calculator uses reads the row as 5.0 in Academic and 4.0 in General Training. That is an estimate. IELTS.org says: “The precise number of marks needed to achieve these band scores will vary slightly from test version to test version.” So at either end of the row the band on a given test version can be the neighbouring one, and a 14 is already read as 4.5 in Academic. For the band itself, see what level IELTS 5.0 is.
What it does to your overall
Reading is one of four section bands. The overall band is their average, rounded to the nearest half band, with .25 rounding up and .75 rounding up. A 5.0 in Reading pulls the average down if your other sections are stronger, and the calculator shows by how much.
Moving up a row
To reach the indicative 5.5 row you need 19 marks, so 1 more than 18 or 4 more than 15. The 19 to 22 page covers that row. The general answer on how the Reading score is calculated sets out the published points in full.
Practising
The site’s Reading practice test is marked in the browser and shows an indicative band from the same table.
What this means for your score
A candidate answers 16 of 40 questions correctly in a timed Reading practice test. On the Academic points that is one mark above the 15 listed for band 5 and seven short of the 23 listed for band 6. The indicative row reads it as 5.0. On General Training points the same 16 is above the band 4 point of 15, so the indicative reading is 4.0.
Frequently asked questions
Is 15 out of 40 a good Reading score?
It gives an estimated band 5.0 on Academic, and whether that is enough depends on the band you need. Universities, employers and immigration services each set their own requirement, so read it before judging a practice score.
Which table is the official one?
Only the four points IELTS.org publishes for each version, with the note that the marks needed vary slightly between test versions. The row 15 to 18 and its half bands come from an indicative table, which is an estimate.
How many marks for the next band?
The next indicative row, 19 to 22, reads as 5.5 in Academic, so 4 more marks than 15. The next point IELTS.org lists is band 6 at 23 marks, 8 more than 15.
What is 15 to 18 out of 40 in General Training?
The indicative table reads all four scores as 4.0, and 15 is the very point IELTS.org lists for General Training band 4. Band 5 is listed at 23 marks, five more than 18.
Sources
- IELTS scoring in detail: band scores explained — IELTS.org
- IELTS Academic: Reading test format — IELTS.org
- IELTS General Training: Reading test format — IELTS.org
Last verified 11 Nov 2026
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