What is the difference between grammatical range and accuracy in IELTS Speaking?

Range is the variety of structures you produce across a performance, and accuracy is how many errors those structures contain. The band descriptors put them in one column because the examiner hears both at once, but they behave differently in practice: a safe answer full of short sentences can be accurate and still score low on range, while an ambitious answer can show real range and lose marks because the complex sentences do not land. Separating the two when you review a recording is what makes the column actionable.

Range is counted across a whole performance, so it cannot be judged from one good answer. A practical way to keep the two apart while you revise is to score them separately on the same recording: list every structure you produced, then mark which of those structures contained an error. A short performance can be accurate and still score low on range, and a long one can be full of structures and still score low on accuracy. The descriptor is written as one column because examiners hear both at once, not because the two behave the same way in practice.

IELTS Speaking Band Descriptors: What Grammatical Range Actually Costs You →