Best IELTS Speaking App (2026)
- Checked 2026-09
- 4 tools compared
How this list is actually scored
What we compared them on
Does it run real Part 1/2/3 timing (1-minute prep, 2-minute cue card), or just generic Q&A?
All 4 IELTS criteria, or a subset (e.g. pronunciation + fluency only)?
Per-phoneme feedback, or a general fluency score?
What's usable before paying?
The 4 that actually fit
sayit
Runs IELTS-format speaking practice with prep and speaking timers and a band estimate — built honestly on 2 of the 4 official criteria (pronunciation + fluency), not a full 4-criteria score.
- Price
- Free; Pro $9/mo, Max $13.50/mo (see pricing)
- Free tier
- 1 guest take, then a free account with 30 min/mo
- Platforms
- Web (Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox), Chrome/Edge extension, iOS (waitlist)
Praktika
IELTS-themed scenario lessons inside its 1,000+ lesson library, though it's conversation practice rather than a timed, scored mock test.
- Price
- Free (3 AI avatars); paid plans from ~$8/mo
- Free tier
- Yes — 3 AI avatars free; paid plans typically start with a trial (card requirement reported inconsistently by users)
- Platforms
- iOS, Android, Web
ELSA Speak
IELTS-oriented lesson content plus a CEFR level prediction, inside its fixed lesson structure.
- Price
- Free; Pro from ~$13.33/mo billed annually
- Free tier
- Yes — limited daily lessons
- Platforms
- iOS, Android, Web (placement assessment)
Speechling
Not exam-specific, but a human coach reviewing a Part 2 cue-card answer can give nuanced feedback an AI band estimate can't.
- Price
- Free; Unlimited plan from $19.99/mo
- Free tier
- Yes — full curriculum + voice comparison + limited monthly human coaching, no card
- Platforms
- iOS, Android, Web
Compare at a glance
| sayit | Praktika | ELSA Speak | Speechling | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free; Pro $9/mo, Max $13.50/mo (see pricing) | Free (3 AI avatars); paid plans from ~$8/mo | Free; Pro from ~$13.33/mo billed annually | Free; Unlimited plan from $19.99/mo |
| Free tier | 1 guest take, then a free account with 30 min/mo | Yes — 3 AI avatars free; paid plans typically start with a trial (card requirement reported inconsistently by users) | Yes — limited daily lessons | Yes — full curriculum + voice comparison + limited monthly human coaching, no card |
| Platforms | Web (Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox), Chrome/Edge extension, iOS (waitlist) | iOS, Android, Web | iOS, Android, Web (placement assessment) | iOS, Android, Web |
| Feedback depth | Per-phoneme heatmap, target IPA vs. your sound, articulation tips | AI-avatar conversation practice across 1,000+ lessons, including IELTS/TOEFL prep | Per-phoneme percentage scores across 8,000+ fixed lessons | Human coach corrections on your recordings — no AI phoneme scoring |
| Exam fit | IELTS + TOEFL speaking practice with a band estimate from 2 of 4 criteria | IELTS/TOEFL-themed lesson content (not a scored mock exam) | IELTS/TOEFL-oriented lesson content + CEFR level prediction | Not exam-focused |
| Privacy | Processed for feedback only; not sold or shared; raw audio not kept long-term | Standard cloud app (no public on-premise option found) | Standard cloud processing (no public on-premise option found) | Nonprofit; recordings reviewed by human coaches rather than scored by a model |
Match the tool to your actual goal
You want timed Part 1/2/3 practice with a band estimate
sayit
It runs the real exam timing and estimates the pronunciation/fluency side of the band.
You want IELTS-flavored content inside a broader course
Praktika or ELSA Speak
Both include IELTS-themed lessons as part of a bigger curriculum.
You want a human's opinion on a specific cue-card answer
Speechling
A real coach can judge coherence and content the way an examiner does, which no AI band estimate fully replicates.
Straight answers
Can an app give me a real IELTS Speaking band score?
No app can certify a band — only a licensed examiner can. Apps like sayit estimate a partial band from what audio alone can measure (mainly pronunciation and fluency), which is useful for tracking progress but isn't your official score.
Does sayit cover all four IELTS Speaking criteria?
No — sayit's band estimate is built on 2 of the 4 (pronunciation and fluency). Lexical Resource and Grammatical Range need a transcript-grading layer sayit doesn't currently run for exam scoring.
What's the difference between IELTS Speaking practice and general conversation practice?
IELTS Speaking has a fixed structure — a short interview, then a monologue after exactly one minute of prep, then a discussion — so practice that mirrors that timing is more useful than open-ended chat close to the exam date.
Where these facts came from
- praktika.ai — homepage (pricing, platforms) — checked 2026-09
- Praktika Help Center — free plan (3 avatars) — checked 2026-09
- elsaspeak.com — pricing & platforms — checked 2026-09
- SoftwareFinder — ELSA Speak pricing (third-party; saasworthy.com 403'd this session) — checked 2026-09
- speechling.com — pricing — checked 2026-09
Facts about sayit come from its own pricing, features and product pages, not a third party, so they carry no separate source link above. Every competitor fact was checked 2026-09; prices and features change, so treat this as a snapshot, not a guarantee.
See exactly which sound to fix
Record one sentence — free, no card — and get the per-phoneme verdict most of the tools above can't show you.