How an IELTS Writing band is put together
Four criteria, equal weight
Each Writing task is marked against four criteria. For Task 2 they are Task Response, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. Task 1 swaps Task Response for Task Achievement. Every criterion receives a whole band from 0 to 9, and within a task the four criteria carry equal weight. The public IELTS Writing band descriptors describe what each band looks like for each criterion.
So a Task 2 essay marked 7 for Task Response, 6 for Coherence and Cohesion, 7 for Lexical Resource and 6 for Grammatical Range and Accuracy averages 6.5. This calculator adds the four bands and divides by four to give each task score.
Why Task 2 counts double
IELTS states that Task 2 contributes twice as much as Task 1 to the Writing score. Task 2 is longer (at least 250 words rather than 150) and is given more of the hour. The calculator therefore weights the two tasks one to two: Writing = (Task 1 + 2 × Task 2) ÷ 3. If Task 1 averages 6.0 and Task 2 averages 7.0, the unrounded result is 6.67.
Because of that weighting, one extra band on a Task 2 criterion moves the result twice as far as the same gain in Task 1. It is one reason many candidates spend more of their practice time on the essay. Our guide to Task Response in Task 2 is a good place to start.
How the result is rounded
IELTS reports bands in whole and half steps. For the overall band score, IELTS publishes this rule: an average ending in .25 rounds up to the next half band, and one ending in .75 rounds up to the next whole band. Put another way, a fractional part below .25 rounds down to the whole band, from .25 up to (but not including) .75 becomes .5, and .75 or above becomes the next whole band.
IELTS does not publish the exact arithmetic examiners use to combine criteria and tasks inside the Writing test, so this calculator applies that same published half-band rule to the Writing average. It shows the unrounded figure too, so you can see how close you are to the next half band. Some tools and teachers round Writing down to the half band below instead. Task scores are combined before rounding, so tools that round each task first may differ by half a band. Treat the result as an estimate, not as the band you will be awarded.
How to use this calculator
Start with Task 2. Choose a whole band for each of the four criteria. The tool averages them and rounds to the nearest half band using the rule above. The unrounded average sits beside the estimate so you can see how close you are to the next half band. Criterion half bands are not allowed: examiners award whole bands only.
To include Task 1, turn on Include Task 1 and enter the four Task 1 bands the same way. The Writing estimate then applies the one-to-two weighting. When nearest-half rounding lifts the average (for example from 6.25 to 6.5), a conservative estimate that rounds down appears too. Nothing you select is sent to Band7 or stored.
Worked examples
The three examples below use the same arithmetic as the tool. Each lists the criterion bands, the averages, any weighting, and the final half band.
01
Example 1: Task 2 only
Task Response 7, Coherence and Cohesion 6, Lexical Resource 7, Grammatical Range and Accuracy 6. Task 1 is left off.
- Sum: 7 + 6 + 7 + 6 = 26. Average: 26 ÷ 4 = 6.5.
- Rounded estimate: 6.5. No lift from rounding, so no conservative row.
Estimated Task 2 band: 6.5
02
Example 2: Task 1 and Task 2
Task 2 averages 7.0 (all four criteria at 7). Task 1 averages 6.0 (all four at 6).
- Writing = (Task 1 + 2 × Task 2) ÷ 3 = (6.0 + 2 × 7.0) ÷ 3 = 6.67.
- Fractional part is between .25 and .75, so the half-band rule gives 6.5.
Estimated Writing band: 6.5 (unrounded 6.67)
03
Example 3: a .25 case and the conservative estimate
Task 2 only: Task Response 6, Coherence and Cohesion 6, Lexical Resource 6, Grammatical Range and Accuracy 7.
- Average: (6 + 6 + 6 + 7) ÷ 4 = 6.25.
- Under the published overall rule, .25 rounds up to 6.5. Tools that always round Writing down would show 6.0.
- This calculator shows 6.5 as the estimate and 6.0 as the conservative estimate.
Estimate 6.5 · unrounded 6.25 · conservative 6.0
Common mistakes when reading a Writing estimate
These four mix-ups explain most of the confusion around Writing calculators. They change how people read a practice number, not what an examiner does on test day.
Treating the average of four criteria as the whole Writing score. Four Task 2 bands averaged give a Task 2 score. Writing also needs Task 1, with Task 2 counting double. If you only practised the essay, leave Task 1 off and read the result as a Task 2 band.
Ignoring that Task 2 counts double. A one-band gain on a Task 2 criterion moves the combined Writing figure twice as far as the same gain on Task 1.
Confusing .25 round-up with round-down. Under the published overall rule, 6.25 becomes 6.5. Tools that always round Writing down would show 6.0. When this calculator lifts the average, it shows both figures.
Treating the estimate as an official score. Only an IELTS test awards an official Writing band. This page is arithmetic on the bands you enter. Band7 is not affiliated with British Council, IDP or Cambridge.
How it pairs with the Task 2 checker
The calculator needs criterion bands as input. If you are guessing, paste a Task 2 essay into the Band7 Task 2 Checker. It returns a band for each Task 2 criterion with feedback quoted from your sentences; bring those four numbers back here, and add Task 1 if you have it.
Read the public IELTS Writing band descriptors beside either tool. If you are sitting around 6.0, how to move from 6.0 to 6.5 on Task 2 covers the usual next steps. Neither tool replaces an examiner; both help you decide what to fix next.