IELTS Writing Band Descriptors Explained (Band 5 to 9)

The four criteria examiners use

IELTS examiners do not give a single holistic score. They assess your writing against four separate criteria, each worth 25 percent of the task mark. These criteria are published by IELTS as official band descriptors, and they are the same criteria used for Academic and General Training writing.

• Task Achievement (Task 1) or Task Response (Task 2): whether you fully answer the question and cover everything asked.
• Coherence and Cohesion: how logically your ideas are organised and connected.
• Lexical Resource: the range, precision, and accuracy of your vocabulary.
• Grammatical Range and Accuracy: the variety and correctness of your sentence structures.

Your task score is the average of these four criterion scores. Because Writing is one of the four IELTS modules alongside Listening, Reading, and Speaking, and because the global mean Writing score sits among the lowest of the four modules at roughly 5.5 to 6.0, understanding these descriptors is genuinely worth your time. Around 3.98 million IELTS tests are taken each year, and Writing is where a large share of candidates lose the marks that stop them reaching their target.

Criterion 1: Task Achievement / Task Response

In Task 1 this is called Task Achievement, and it measures how accurately and completely you report the data, process, or map. In Task 2 it is called Task Response, and it measures how well you address every part of the question, develop a clear position, and support your ideas.

• Band 5: You address the task only partially. In Task 1 there may be no clear overview and details can be inaccurate or irrelevant. In Task 2 your position is unclear and ideas are underdeveloped or repetitive.
• Band 6: You address all parts of the task, though some parts may be covered more fully than others. A position is present but conclusions can be unclear or repetitive.
• Band 7: You address all parts and present a clear position throughout. Main ideas are extended and supported, though there may be a tendency to over-generalise.
• Band 8: You cover all requirements sufficiently, present a well-developed response with relevant, extended, and supported ideas.
• Band 9: You fully address all parts of the task with a fully developed position and relevant, fully extended, well-supported ideas.

Criterion 2: Coherence and Cohesion

This criterion is about organisation, not vocabulary. It looks at whether your ideas flow logically, whether you paragraph appropriately, and whether you use linking devices and referencing naturally rather than mechanically.

• Band 5: Information is organised but there may be a lack of overall progression. Cohesive devices are used but can be inaccurate, overused, or mechanical. Paragraphing may be missing or unhelpful.
• Band 6: Information is arranged coherently and there is clear overall progression. Cohesive devices are used effectively but cohesion within or between sentences can be faulty. Paragraphing may not always be logical.
• Band 7: You logically organise information and ideas with clear progression. You use a range of cohesive devices appropriately, and paragraphing is used well, with only occasional under- or over-use of devices.
• Band 8: You sequence information and ideas logically, manage cohesion well so it attracts no attention, and paragraph sufficiently and appropriately.
• Band 9: Cohesion is used in such a way that it attracts no attention, and paragraphing is skilfully managed.

Criterion 3: Lexical Resource

Lexical Resource assesses the range of vocabulary you use, how precisely you use it, and how well you control collocation, word formation, and spelling. Examiners reward natural, less common vocabulary used correctly, not long words forced into the wrong place.

• Band 5: You use a limited range of vocabulary that may be minimally adequate. There are noticeable errors in spelling and word formation that may cause some difficulty for the reader.
• Band 6: You use an adequate range of vocabulary and attempt less common words with some inaccuracy. There are some errors in spelling and word formation, but they do not impede communication.
• Band 7: You use a sufficient range of vocabulary with some flexibility and precision, use less common items with some awareness of style and collocation, and make only occasional errors.
• Band 8: You use a wide range of vocabulary fluently and flexibly to convey precise meanings, use uncommon items skilfully with occasional inaccuracies, and produce only rare errors in spelling or word formation.
• Band 9: You use a wide range of vocabulary with very natural and sophisticated control of lexical features, with only very rare minor errors as slips.

Criterion 4: Grammatical Range and Accuracy

This criterion looks at the variety of sentence structures you can produce and how accurately you produce them. Both halves matter: using only simple correct sentences caps your score, and so does attempting complex sentences that are full of errors.

• Band 5: You use only a limited range of structures, attempt complex sentences but they tend to be less accurate than simple ones, and make frequent errors that can cause some difficulty for the reader.
• Band 6: You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms. You make some errors in grammar and punctuation, but they rarely reduce communication.
• Band 7: You use a variety of complex structures, produce frequent error-free sentences, and have good control of grammar and punctuation with only a few errors.
• Band 8: You use a wide range of structures, the majority of sentences are error-free, and you make only occasional errors or inappropriacies.
• Band 9: You use a wide range of structures with full flexibility and accuracy, with only very rare minor errors as slips.

Band-by-band comparison at a glance

The table below summarises the practical difference between each band across all four criteria. Use it to locate roughly where your current writing sits and what the next band expects.