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IELTS Writing Band Score Calculator

Short answer: IELTS Writing is marked on four equally weighted criteria — Task Response, Coherence & Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range & Accuracy — averaged to the nearest half band. Task 2 then counts twice as much as Task 1 in your overall Writing score.

Task 2 band

Average 6.00, rounded to the nearest half band

The four criteria

Equally weighted, averaged once

Task Response (TR)6.0

Did you answer every part of the question, with a clear position and developed ideas?

Coherence & Cohesion (CC)6.0

Logical progression, real paragraphing, and linking that guides rather than decorates.

Lexical Resource (LR)6.0

Range and precision of vocabulary — including whether an "upgraded" word is used correctly.

Grammatical Range & Accuracy (GRA)6.0

Sentence variety and error density. Frequent errors cap this criterion regardless of range.

Step 2 — combine the tasks

Task 2 counts twice

The four criteria above gave your Task 2 band. Add your Task 1 band to see the overall Writing score: (Task 1 + 2 × Task 2) ÷ 3.

Task 1 band6.0

Overall Writing band

6.0

(6.0 + 2 × 6.0) ÷ 3 = 6.00

The four IELTS Writing criteria

Each is scored on the 9-band scale and all four carry equal weight.

IELTS Writing assessment criteria and what each measures
Criterion	Code	What it measures
Task Response	TR	Did you answer every part of the question, with a clear position and developed ideas?
Coherence & Cohesion	CC	Logical progression, real paragraphing, and linking that guides rather than decorates.
Lexical Resource	LR	Range and precision of vocabulary — including whether an "upgraded" word is used correctly.
Grammatical Range & Accuracy	GRA	Sentence variety and error density. Frequent errors cap this criterion regardless of range.

How the IELTS Writing band is worked out

Each task is marked on the same four criteria, each on the 9-band scale, and the task band is their average rounded to the nearest half band. Nothing is weighted inside a task: a strong vocabulary cannot rescue a response that answers the wrong question.

The two tasks are then combined with Task 2 carrying double weight: (Task 1 + 2 × Task 2) ÷ 3, rounded to the nearest half band. This is why Task 2 deserves the larger share of your practice time, and why a weak Task 1 costs less than most candidates fear.

This calculator uses the same weighting function as the IELTSbiz Writing Checker, so an estimate here and a graded report there agree by construction.

Worked examples

TR 6 · CC 6 · LR 7 · GRA 6→Band 6.5

The average is 6.25, which rounds to 6.5. Lifting any single 6 to a 7 would move the task band to 6.5 — the cheapest half band available.

Task 1 band 6 · Task 2 band 7→Writing 6.5

(6 + 2×7) ÷ 3 = 6.67 → 6.5.

Task 1 band 7 · Task 2 band 6→Writing 6.5

The mirror image scores 6.5 — the same two bands, and Task 2's double weight decides which way it lands.

Criterion combinations and the task band they produce

Criterion combinations and the task band they produce
TR · CC · LR · GRA	Task band	The cheapest half band to buy back
5 · 6 · 6 · 5	Band 5.5	Two criteria at 5 — grammar accuracy is nearly always the limiting one here.
6 · 6 · 6 · 6	Band 6.0	The classic plateau. Any one criterion to 7 gives 6.5; two gives 6.5 as well, so pick the easiest.
6 · 7 · 6 · 6	Band 6.5	Task Response is usually the fastest of the remaining three to move, because it is structural.
7 · 7 · 7 · 6	Band 7.0	One criterion is holding a 7 back. Error density, not sentence variety, is normally the cause.
7 · 7 · 7 · 7	Band 7.0	A genuine 7. Moving to 7.5 requires two criteria at 8, not four at 7.5.
8 · 7 · 8 · 7	Band 7.5	Coherence and grammar are the pair that most often caps a band 8 attempt.

IELTS Writing scoring — common questions

How is the IELTS Writing band score calculated?

Each task is scored on four equally weighted criteria and averaged to the nearest half band. The two task bands are then combined as (Task 1 + 2 × Task 2) ÷ 3, again rounded to the nearest half band.

Is Task 2 worth more than Task 1 in IELTS Writing?

Yes — twice as much. Task 1 band 6 with Task 2 band 7 gives Writing 6.5; reversing them gives 6.5.

Can one criterion drag my whole Writing band down?

Yes. TR 7, CC 7, LR 7, GRA 5 averages to 6.5 — three criteria at band 7 cannot carry a fourth at band 5.

Does going under the word count cost marks?

Yes, and it is charged to Task Response: under 150 words for Task 1 or 250 for Task 2 is penalised directly. Going over is not penalised, but longer essays leak accuracy marks in practice.

Why is my Writing band always lower than my Reading band?

Reading is objectively marked, so it moves as soon as your technique does. Writing is criterion-marked, and the two criteria that decide it most — Task Response and Grammatical Range & Accuracy — need feedback to move, not more essays.