Writing is the section where most IELTS candidates score lowest — and it is also the section where the gap between "good English" and "a good band" is widest. I regularly meet students who speak at band 7.5 and write at band 6, not because their English collapses on paper, but because nobody ever showed them what the examiner is actually marking. They write essays. The examiner marks criteria. Those are different games.
This overview fixes that. It covers both tasks, the four marking criteria in plain language, the paragraph structures that satisfy them, and the timing plan that stops Task 2 eating Task 1's minutes. Master this map first; the detailed guides for each task and essay type build on it.
IELTS Writing at a Glance
| Format | 2 tasks in 60 minutes total — you manage the split yourself |
| Task 1 | At least 150 words. Academic: describe a chart, table, process or map. General Training: write a letter |
| Task 2 | At least 250 words. An essay responding to a point of view, argument or problem — for both Academic and General Training |
| Weighting | Task 2 counts roughly twice as much as Task 1 toward your Writing band |
| Marking | Four criteria, 25% each — task response, coherence and cohesion, vocabulary, grammar |
Task 1 (Academic): Describing Data Without Drowning in It
You get a visual — a line graph, bar chart, pie chart, table, process diagram, map, or a combination — and 20 minutes to describe it. The task is not to explain why the numbers moved. It is to select the main patterns and report them clearly and accurately.
The four-paragraph structure that works
- Introduction: paraphrase the task description in your own words. One or two sentences. Never copy the prompt.
- Overview: the single most important paragraph in Task 1. Two or three sentences summarising the main trends — the biggest, the smallest, what rose, what fell, what stayed flat. No numbers here. Missing or weak overview is the most common reason Task 1 stalls below band 7.
- Details, paragraph one: support the overview with figures, grouped logically (highest with highest, or the first time period). Every claim carries data.
- Details, paragraph two: the remaining data, same discipline. Compare as you go — the examiner is watching for comparisons, not a list.
For process diagrams, the same skeleton holds: paraphrase, overview of the stages (how many, where it begins and ends, man-made or natural), then the stages in order with sequencing language. For maps, describe the main changes between the two time points, grouped by area.
Task 1 (General Training): The Letter
GT candidates write a letter instead: a complaint, a request, an application, an invitation, an apology. You are given a situation and three bullet points — cover all three, or task response suffers. The real skill is tone: formal for officials and employers, semi-formal for neighbours and colleagues, informal for friends. Choose your opening, closing and vocabulary to match, and keep it consistent from "Dear Sir or Madam" to "Yours faithfully."
Task 2: The Essay, and Its Five Faces
Task 2 is the same essay task for everyone, and it comes in five recurring shapes. Identifying the shape in the first minute decides your whole structure:
| Essay type | What it asks |
|---|---|
| Opinion | "To what extent do you agree or disagree?" — one clear position, held from introduction to conclusion |
| Discussion | "Discuss both views and give your own opinion" — both sides examined, then your position stated; students lose marks by forgetting the third part |
| Advantages & disadvantages | Balanced treatment, usually ending with your judgement on which side is stronger |
| Problem & solution | Problems in one paragraph, matching solutions in the next — keep them paired |
| Two-part questions | Two direct questions, two body paragraphs, one per question, in order |
The structure examiners reward
- Introduction: paraphrase the question, then state your position in one unambiguous sentence. The examiner should never have to guess what you think.
- Body paragraph one: one main idea, built properly — topic sentence, explanation, example, small conclusion. One idea per paragraph, fully developed, beats three ideas sketched.
- Body paragraph two: your second main idea (or the other view, in a discussion essay), built the same way.
- Conclusion: restate your position and main points in new words. No new ideas, no new examples — this is a summary, not a surprise.
The Four Marking Criteria, in Plain Language
Every examiner scores your writing four times, once per criterion. Knowing what each one really means is half the battle:
- Task Achievement / Task Response (25%): Did you answer this question, fully, with a clear position and developed ideas? Under-length scripts, missing overviews and drifting positions all bleed marks here.
- Coherence and Cohesion (25%): Is it organised so the reader glides? Paragraphs with one job each, ideas in a logical order, linking words used accurately — not stuffed into every sentence.
- Lexical Resource (25%): Vocabulary range and precision. Topic vocabulary used naturally, good collocations ("a dramatic increase", "pose a threat"), and accurate spelling. Rare words used wrongly score worse than common words used well.
- Grammatical Range and Accuracy (25%): A mix of sentence types — conditionals, relative clauses, passives, complex sentences alongside simple ones — with errors that don't strain the reader. Band 7 does not mean error-free; it means varied and mostly clean.
The 60 Minutes: A Timing Plan
| Task | Time | How to spend it |
|---|---|---|
| Task 1 | 20 minutes | 3 to plan and note the main trends, 15 to write, 2 to check figures and spelling |
| Task 2 | 40 minutes | 5 planning (position, two main ideas, examples), 30 writing, 5 checking |
- Order: many strong writers do Task 2 first while fresh, then Task 1 — either order is allowed. What is not negotiable is the split: never let Task 1 run past 25 minutes.
- Planning is not optional. Five unplanned minutes produce a wandering essay that no amount of vocabulary can rescue. The plan is the cheapest marks in the whole test.
What Band 7 Writing Actually Looks Like
Students imagine band 7 means fancy words. Examiners will tell you it means control:
- A position you can find in ten seconds — stated in the introduction, maintained throughout, restated at the end.
- Paragraphs that do one job each, opened by a sentence that announces that job.
- Ideas developed, not listed — claim, because, for example, so. Every main point earns its space.
- Vocabulary that serves the topic rather than showing off — collocations over rarities.
- Sentence variety with a safety net — complex sentences attempted regularly, simple ones used for clarity, errors occasional and never blocking meaning.
- An overview in Task 1 that truly summarises — trends, not data.
5 Mistakes That Cap You at Band 6
- No overview in Task 1 — or an "overview" that just repeats the introduction. This alone can hold Task 1 at band 5.5–6 however good the details are.
- Copying the question wording in the introduction. Copied words don't count toward your word total and earn nothing. Paraphrase — it's the first vocabulary you get to show.
- A hidden position in Task 2. "Some people think… other people think…" for four paragraphs and no view of your own. The question asks what you think. Say it, early, and don't change sides mid-essay.
- Memorised essays and template stuffing. Examiners recognise prepared text instantly; it scores poorly for task response even when the English gleams. Learn structures and phrases — write the essay in the room.
- Linking-word soup. "Firstly, secondly, moreover, furthermore, in addition" in every sentence reads as mechanical, not cohesive. Cohesion is mostly paragraph logic and reference words (this, these, such) — the signposts are seasoning, not the meal.
How to Practise Writing (So It Actually Improves)
- Write, compare, rewrite. Finish an essay, study a strong sample answer for the same task, note five specific things it does better — then rewrite your essay using them. The rewrite is where the learning is.
- Keep an error log by criterion. Grammar slips in one column, vocabulary misses in another. Most students discover two or three repeated errors account for most of their losses — fix those first.
- Practise planning separately. Ten questions, five minutes each, plan only. Fast, clear plans are a trainable skill, and they make timed writing calmer.
- Always practise timed. Untimed essays are rehearsals for a test that doesn't exist. Twenty and forty minutes, as the real thing demands.
- Get human feedback if you can. Writing is the one skill where self-marking barely works — you cannot see your own blind spots. Even occasional correction from a teacher redirects months of practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is IELTS Writing Task 1 worth compared to Task 2?
Task 2 carries roughly twice the weight of Task 1 in your Writing band. That's why the standard advice is 20 minutes on Task 1 and 40 on Task 2 — your time should follow the marks.
What happens if I write fewer than 150 or 250 words?
Under-length answers are penalised under task response, so always reach the minimum with a small margin. Count roughly by lines as you write so the end never surprises you.
Is it better to write more than the minimum?
Only slightly above it. Around 170–190 words for Task 1 and 270–300 for Task 2 is a comfortable range. Far beyond that, errors multiply, time runs out, and examiners do not award extra marks for length.
Can I use personal examples in Task 2?
Yes, briefly — a concrete example strengthens a point. But the essay should reason generally ("in many countries", "for most families") rather than becoming a personal story. One short example per body paragraph is plenty.
Should I do Task 1 or Task 2 first?
Either is allowed. Many candidates prefer Task 2 first because it's worth more and they're freshest; others like Task 1 first as a warm-up. What matters is protecting the 20/40 split, whichever order you choose.
Does handwriting matter in IELTS Writing?
On the paper test, yes — if the examiner can't read it, it can't be marked. You may write in capital letters if that's clearer for you, but never for whole essays unless your capitals are genuinely more legible. On the computer test this concern disappears, though spelling and typing accuracy still count.
Writing completes the four skills. Prepare the others with our IELTS Reading guide, IELTS Listening guide and IELTS Speaking Part 3 guide — and watch this site for the detailed Task 1 and Task 2 guides that build on this overview.
