The short answer: online lessons with Mike, not lessons in Ho Chi Minh City
Mike is based in Hanoi and teaches online. Every lesson is a one-to-one video call on Google Meet, taught in English (see online IELTS tutoring in Vietnam). Band Booster IELTS has no classroom, office or in-person lessons in Ho Chi Minh City, or anywhere else.
Your clock does not change: the IANA time zone database has a Ho Chi Minh entry at UTC+7 and says it suffices for most purposes because it agrees with all of Vietnam since 13 June 1975, so Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are on the same time all year.
Online one-to-one or a class in Ho Chi Minh City?
Online one-to-one may suit you if you want corrections during the lesson and choose your own times from a live calendar. A local in-person class may suit you better if you concentrate better in a room than on a screen, need explanations in Vietnamese from the beginning or want a fixed course timetable. In that case you do not need to book with Mike. The page on private tutor or group course can help you weigh it up (written for Hanoi, but the trade-offs are not specific to one city).
What a session and the paid trial involve
A regular IELTS session lasts 60 minutes and costs 500,000 ₫. The paid trial lasts 30 minutes and costs 150,000 ₫, once per student, on the first booking. You book session by session, with no package.
Mike holds the Cambridge CELTA (July 2017), has taught English and IELTS for more than twelve years and has taught more than 500 one-to-one sessions. His own IELTS result is 7.5 overall with 8.5 in Speaking. Band Booster promises no band and no timeline. More on the about Mike page.
Taking IELTS in Ho Chi Minh City: what the test providers say
Band Booster IELTS is a private tutoring service, not a test provider: it does not register candidates, set fees or choose your venue. What follows summarises IDP Vietnam, British Council Vietnam and ielts.org as they stood in October 2026; details change, and no fees or dates are quoted here. Before you pick a venue, check four things: the address, how Speaking is delivered, the Writing format and, if a retake could matter to you, One Skill Retake.
Venues: two providers, two lists that do not match
IDP's test-dates page, which says it lists 37 test centres across Vietnam, files five venues under Ho Chi Minh City. Three carry the IDP name: IDP Hai Bà Trưng (which IDP gives as the former District 3), IDP Lê Văn Sỹ and IDP Nguyễn Thị Thập. The other two do not carry the IDP name; they are in the Chợ Quán and Tân Phú areas.
IDP's filter also has groups headed Ho Chi Minh City (Bà Rịa), (Bình Dương) and (Vũng Tàu), with addresses that also end in Ho Chi Minh City. British Council Vietnam likewise lists venues in Bình Dương and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu under its Ho Chi Minh City heading. Because the lists include venues with those labels, read the address before you book.
British Council Vietnam's venue page lists nine entries under Ho Chi Minh City, including the first floor of the Viettel building at 285 Cách Mạng Tháng Tám, Hòa Hưng ward, one venue in District 1 and venues in the Thủ Đức area. The ielts.org finder shows 22 entries, some duplicated, covering both providers.
The three sources do not match. For example, British Council Vietnam lists a venue in District 1 that the ielts.org finder does not show, and ielts.org names an IDP venue in the Đồng Hưng Thuận area that is not on IDP's own list. The names above are examples, not a complete list; check the live pages: IDP test dates in Ho Chi Minh City, British Council Vietnam test venues and the ielts.org test centre finder.
Speaking: at IDP, face to face or video call depends on the venue
IDP's Ho Chi Minh City page says Speaking is delivered in two ways, depending on the venue. IDP gives the format in a note on that page and on its venue pages, so read those, or ask IDP, before you choose.
| IDP venue | Speaking, according to IDP |
|---|---|
| IDP Hai Bà Trưng, IDP Nguyễn Thị Thập | Face to face with an examiner |
| The two venues without the IDP name (Chợ Quán and Tân Phú areas), and one more that IDP's note names without an area | Video call with an examiner |
| IDP Lê Văn Sỹ | IDP's city page lists it under video call, but IDP's own Lê Văn Sỹ page says face to face; confirm with IDP before booking |
British Council Vietnam says in general that candidates can choose their Speaking slot and format, face to face or video call. That is its general statement for Vietnam, not one venue's, so confirm with the venue you choose.
Writing: on computer or on paper
Both providers run IELTS on computer in Vietnam, with very few exceptions (see the computer-delivered IELTS page, written for Hanoi). For Ho Chi Minh City, the ielts.org finder shows the venue it calls "IOC - IDP Ho Chi Minh City, District 3" (the same Hai Bà Trưng street address as IDP Hai Bà Trưng) with both "Computer" and "Computer (Writing on Paper)". Among the nearest sessions on IDP's listing when this page was written, nearly all at that venue said "Writing on computer" and a few said "Writing on paper". That was a snapshot, so read the Writing line on the session you select.
British Council Vietnam lists both options (IELTS on computer, and on computer with Writing on Paper), but it is not clear which Ho Chi Minh City venues offer Writing on Paper, so confirm before you book.
One Skill Retake
The general conditions are on our One Skill Retake page. The 60-day rule is worded differently by each provider: IDP says to register within 60 days of the original test, while British Council Vietnam says to sit the retake within 60 days of the full test, with registration deadlines that apply.
Which Ho Chi Minh City venues offer it is where the sources disagree, even within IDP's own pages. IDP's venue cards flag One Skill Retake at only its three IDP-named venues, but IDP's session listings for the other two also say "One Skill Retake available", and the ielts.org finder lists it for those two as well. ielts.org says to check with your test centre. If a retake could matter to you, check before you choose the venue for your first test.
Registering
- IDP Vietnam: book online by choosing the test, location and date, then signing in and paying. It also takes registrations in person at three Ho Chi Minh City offices (161-161A Hai Bà Trưng; 14th floor, 77 Trần Nhân Tôn; 2 Nguyễn Thị Thập) or through IDP partners.
- British Council Vietnam: register online or through its registration partners. You can pay online or at the exams service desk on the first floor of the Viettel building, 285 Cách Mạng Tháng Tám, and registration is confirmed only after payment.
For fees and dates, see IELTS test dates and fees (written for Hanoi).
Booking lessons with Mike
Open the booking page, choose an open slot (times show in your own time zone) and pick the 30-minute trial or a 60-minute session. Payment options are shown on that page. After payment, an email brings the Google Meet link and a calendar invite. To ask something first: mkcenter007@gmail.com.