20 out of 40 in IELTS Academic Reading: what band is it?
20 out of 40 in IELTS Academic Reading is band 5.5. 3 more correct answers would make it 6.0. One fewer would still be band 5.5.
Band 5.5 covers 19 to 22 correct answers. This row comes from the table printed with Cambridge’s official practice tests. It fits the four cut-offs IELTS publishes (15, 23, 30 and 35 marks), but no official IELTS page prints it, so treat it as an estimate.
Correct answers
Your Academic Reading band: 5.5
Your Academic Reading band
20 of 40 correct
3 more correct answers would make it 6.0.
20/40 in IELTS Academic Reading is about band 5.5.
20 out of 40 in the other papers
- IELTS Academic Reading5.53 more correct answers would make it 6.0.
- IELTS Listening5.53 more correct answers would make it 6.0.
- IELTS General Training Reading4.53 more correct answers would make it 5.0.
What 5.5 in Reading meets
Universities ask for an overall band and a minimum for every skill. 5.5 in Reading meets the per-skill minimum at, for example:
- Abertay UniversityUnited Kingdom · undergraduate · at least 5.5 in each skill
- Aberystwyth UniversityUnited Kingdom · undergraduate · at least 5.5 in each skill
- Arizona State UniversityUnited States · undergraduate · at least 5.5 in each skill
- California State University, FresnoUnited States · undergraduate · at least 5.5 in each skill
- Algonquin CollegeCanada · undergraduate · at least 5.5 in each skill
- British Columbia Institute of TechnologyCanada · undergraduate · at least 5.5 in each skill
You also need their overall band. Search university requirements
Frequently asked questions
What band is 20 out of 40 in IELTS Academic Reading?
Band 5.5. In the table, 19 to 22 correct answers are band 5.5.
How many more correct answers do I need for band 6.0?
3 more. Band 6.0 starts at 23 correct answers out of 40.
What is 20 out of 40 in the other IELTS papers?
IELTS Listening: band 5.5. IELTS General Training Reading: band 4.5.
Sources
- IELTS: IELTS scoring in detail
- British Council: IELTS scoring in detail (Taiwan)
- IDP IELTS: IELTS Reading band scores (Bangladesh)
- IELTS: IELTS and the CEFR
- British Council: Understanding and explaining IELTS scores
All accessed on 10 October 2026. GoPrep is not affiliated with IELTS.
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