Guides
One page per question people actually type into a search box. Each guide answers its own title first, in plain sentences, then shows the one thing in the app that solves exactly that problem, and only then goes into the full detail. Start with the group that matches the situation you are in.
35 guides · each one answers its question in the first hundred words
Problems
One thing that is going wrong in your preparation, and what to do about it.
Is Duolingo good for IELTS Speaking? An honest answer for 2026
Duolingo never mentions IELTS in its own listings. What it is genuinely good for, what IELTS Speaking needs that it does not claim, and what to add alongside it.
How billing works in IELTS Mentor AI: credits, renewal and cancelling
How IELTS Mentor AI billing actually works — credits, when you're charged, how renewal works, and how to cancel on iPhone or Android.
Paid, but the app still looks locked? How to restore your purchase
Paid for an app but premium isn't unlocked? Here's why that happens and the exact steps to restore your purchase on iPhone or Android.
Before you pay for an IELTS app: a 10-point checklist
A 10-point checklist to run through before paying for any IELTS speaking or writing app, covering subscriptions, refunds, support, scope and what its feedback actually shows.
Does your accent lower your IELTS Speaking score?
What the Pronunciation criterion actually measures, why a first-language accent alone doesn't cap your band, what genuinely reduces clarity, and how some apps mis-grade accents.
An IELTS speaking app that explains your mistakes, not just marks them
What a real explanation of an IELTS Speaking mistake needs to include, why being marked wrong with no reason doesn't help on test day, and how to check any app's feedback yourself.
IELTS Speaking Band 5 to Band 6: what has to change
What actually has to move to go from IELTS Speaking Band 5 to Band 6: the exact criterion arithmetic, the rounding rule behind it, and which criterion most often carries the step.
IELTS Speaking Band 6 to Band 6.5: what has to change
What actually has to move to go from IELTS Speaking Band 6 to Band 6.5: the exact criterion arithmetic, the rounding rule behind it, and which criterion most often carries the step.
IELTS Speaking Band 6.5 to Band 7: what has to change
What actually has to move to go from IELTS Speaking Band 6.5 to Band 7: the exact criterion arithmetic, the rounding rule behind it, and which criterion most often carries the step.
IELTS Speaking Band 7 to Band 7.5: what has to change
What actually has to move to go from IELTS Speaking Band 7 to Band 7.5: the exact criterion arithmetic, the rounding rule behind it, and which criterion most often carries the step.
IELTS Speaking Band 7.5 to Band 8: what has to change
What actually has to move to go from IELTS Speaking Band 7.5 to Band 8: the exact criterion arithmetic, the rounding rule behind it, and which criterion most often carries the step.
IELTS Speaking at Band 4–5: why 'beginner-friendly' apps aren't, and what works
What Band 4–5 IELTS Speaking actually sounds like, why so many "beginner-friendly" apps discourage real beginners, and what to look for instead of a difficulty jump that assumes fluency.
How to practise IELTS Speaking alone (without a partner)
Practise IELTS Speaking on your own with recordings, a real cue-card timer, a full browser mock, question banks and an honest self-check.
Speaking app not picking up your voice? Fixes that work on iPhone and Android
A working-through-the-list guide to fixing a speaking app that won't detect your voice, covering mic permissions, Bluetooth, silent mode, background noise and when it isn't your phone.
Alternatives and comparisons
What to use instead, and how the options genuinely differ once you try them.
italki alternatives for IELTS Speaking in 2026
italki is a human-tutor marketplace, not an IELTS scorer. Six alternatives compared on what each listing claims - a human in the loop, band scoring, or both.
Preply alternatives for IELTS Speaking in 2026
Preply is a human-tutor platform, not an IELTS scorer. Six alternatives compared by how many IELTS papers each product's own pages claim to score.
SmallTalk2Me alternatives for IELTS Speaking in 2026
SmallTalk2Me runs in a browser with no app to install. Six IELTS Speaking alternatives compared by how completely their listings cover iPhone and Android.
Stimuler alternatives for IELTS Speaking in 2026
Stimuler covers Speaking, Writing and Reading on both phone stores. Five alternatives compared on how precisely each names the official IELTS criteria.
TalkDrill alternatives for IELTS Speaking in 2026
TalkDrill mixes AI practice, peer rooms and human coaches on Android and web. Five alternatives compared on which describe one continuous, timed Parts 1-3 mock.
Cambly alternatives for IELTS Speaking practice
Cambly is live human-tutor conversation, not an AI IELTS scorer. Compare it fairly against IELTS-specific apps that run a full scored Speaking mock today.
ELSA Speak alternatives for IELTS Speaking
ELSA Speak is a general AI pronunciation coach, not an IELTS scorer. Compare honest, fact-checked alternatives built specifically for IELTS Speaking prep.
Praktika alternatives for IELTS preparation
Praktika is a general AI avatar conversation app that lists IELTS as one topic among many. Here are honest alternatives built for IELTS specifically today.
Speak app alternatives for IELTS
Speak: Language Learning is a general AI conversation app for six languages, not an IELTS scorer. Here are honest alternatives built for the exam itself.
TalkPal alternatives for IELTS Speaking
Talkpal is a general AI conversation app across 130+ languages, not an IELTS scorer. Compare honest, IELTS-specific alternatives for Speaking practice.
Roundups
Everything worth knowing on one question, gathered into a single page.
AI IELTS Speaking mock test apps in 2026, compared by what they claim
Which AI tools claim a full, timed IELTS Speaking mock across Parts 1-3, what a real mock has to include, and which of them you can actually run on an iPhone.
Apps for IELTS cue card practice in 2026, and what Part 2 really needs
Which apps and sites describe cue-card or Part 2 practice in their own listings, what proper Part 2 practice has to include, and where each one runs.
The best IELTS Speaking practice websites in 2026
The IELTS Speaking tools that run in a browser in 2026 — five with no app at all, six that pair a site with an app, and what each one's own website claims.
IELTS pronunciation apps in 2026, and what the criterion actually marks
What the IELTS Pronunciation criterion assesses, which apps claim pronunciation feedback in their own listings, and why accent training is a different job.
IELTS Speaking apps that give a band score, compared in 2026
Which IELTS Speaking apps claim a band score in their own listings, what a trustworthy band estimate actually looks like, and where each one can be used.
The best IELTS Speaking apps in 2026, compared honestly
An honest comparison of 19 IELTS Speaking apps and web tools in 2026 — what each one's own listing claims, and which platforms it actually runs on.
For a situation like yours
Written for one kind of candidate, timeline or goal rather than for everybody.
The best IELTS Speaking apps for Android in 2026
Which IELTS Speaking apps actually have a Google Play listing in 2026, what each one's listing claims, and which well-known tools you can't get on Android.
The best IELTS Speaking apps for iPhone in 2026
The IELTS Speaking apps that actually have an App Store listing in 2026, what each one claims, and the well-known tools with no iPhone app at all.
IELTS Speaking practice for working adults with 20 minutes a day
A realistic 20-minute daily IELTS Speaking session for people preparing around a full-time job, plus a weekly structure and when to fit in a full timed mock.
Retaking IELTS Speaking: why the same preparation gives the same score
Why repeating the same IELTS Speaking preparation tends to produce the same score again, what a band range actually explains about a near-miss, and what to change before you resit.
Preparing for IELTS Speaking without a tutor: a self-study plan that gets feedback
A self-study plan for IELTS Speaking without a tutor, built around feedback loops you can actually run alone — recording against the descriptors, vocabulary self-tests, and a scored mock every two weeks.
Practise this with instant AI feedback
Record your answer in the app and get your grammar, vocabulary, fluency and pronunciation analysed in seconds.
