An IELTS result or Test Report Form is issued to all candidates with a score from 1 (no knowledge) to 9 (expert user). Students must aim for 6 bands as it the most acceptable band score in most of the cases.
Test takers receive a Test Report Form including or listing their overall band score and their sub-scores on each of the four components: Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking. Each of the component scores is equally weighted. The overall band score is calculated by taking the mean of the total of the four individual component scores.
| Band | Category |
| 9 | Expert User |
| 8 | Very Good User |
| 7 | Good User |
| 6 | Competent User |
| 5 | Modest User |
| 4 | Limited User |
| 3 | Extremely Limited User |
| 2 | Intermittent User |
| 1 | Non user |
| 0 | Did not attempt the test |