What is the difference between a band 6, 7 and 8 in IELTS Writing?
The short answer
IELTS Writing is marked on four criteria of equal weight: Task Response (did you answer the actual question, with a clear position and developed ideas), Coherence and Cohesion (is it organised and does it flow without mechanical linking words), Lexical Resource (precise vocabulary used naturally, with few errors) and Grammatical Range and Accuracy (a mix of sentence types, mostly error-free). The jump from 6 to 7 is mostly about accuracy and relevance: band 7 needs the majority of sentences error-free, a position held throughout, and paragraphs with one central idea. The jump from 7 to 8 is about precision: ideas fully extended, vocabulary that is exact rather than impressive, and errors that are rare slips. Most candidates stall at 6.5 because they add vocabulary and connectives when what the examiner wants is fewer errors and a tighter answer.
How is IELTS Writing actually marked?
An examiner scores each of the four criteria on a whole band from 0 to 9 using the public band descriptors, and your task score is the average, rounded to the nearest half band. Task 2 counts twice as much as Task 1. So a Task 2 scored 7, 6, 7, 6 across the criteria gives 6.5 for that task, and a weak Task 1 drags the overall writing band down less than a weak Task 2.
Two consequences that candidates miss. First, the criteria are independent: a band 8 vocabulary does not lift a band 5 task response. Second, a single criterion held at 6 caps you at 6.5 overall, which is exactly the pattern behind the very common "stuck at 6.5" result.
Task Response: what separates a 6 from a 7?
| Band | What the examiner sees |
|---|---|
| 6 | Addresses all parts of the task, but some parts more fully than others. A position is present but not always clear or consistent. Ideas are relevant but under-developed or generalised. The conclusion may be a restatement. |
| 7 | Addresses all parts. A clear position throughout. Main ideas are extended and supported, though one may over-generalise or lose focus. The reader never wonders what the writer thinks. |
| 8 | Sufficiently addresses all parts. A clear, well-developed position. Ideas are relevant, extended and supported with almost no lapses. Nothing is padding. |
The word that decides this criterion is position. A band 6 essay on "do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages" lists both sides and concludes "there are advantages and disadvantages". A band 7 essay says in the introduction which side is heavier and why, and every paragraph serves that verdict. A band 8 essay also explains the relationship between the two sides, which is what "outweigh" was asking for. The essay types and the position each needs are in IELTS Task 2 essay types.
Coherence and Cohesion: why do connectives hurt at band 7?
| Band | Example | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Firstly, working from home has many advantages. Moreover, it saves time. In addition, it is good for the environment. However, it also has disadvantages. | Every sentence starts with a connective and the connectives do not match the logic ("however" opens a new topic, not a contrast). Cohesive devices are used but mechanically. Ideas are not grouped into one central point. |
| 7 | The clearest gain from working at home is time. A worker in Lahore can spend two hours a day in traffic, and recovering that time changes how the rest of the day is spent. This is also why the benefit is felt most by parents. | One central idea, developed. The link words are inside the sentences ("this is also why") rather than bolted onto the front. Referencing ("that time", "this") does the cohesion. |
| 8 | The clearest gain is time, and it is a gain nothing else in the debate matches. Two hours a day in traffic is roughly ten working weeks a year; recovered, that time goes to family, rest or study, and the effect on wellbeing is immediate. | Progression is carried by the argument. Cohesion is almost invisible, done with punctuation, reference and sentence order. The paragraph could not be reordered without breaking it. |
The band 6 trap
Coaching lists of "linking words for band 7" produce band 6 writing, because the descriptor for 6 says cohesive devices are used but with mechanical overuse or errors, and that is precisely what a memorised list causes. Band 7 needs a range used appropriately; the fastest route there is to remove half of the connectives you were taught and let the logic carry the sentence.
Lexical Resource: is a bigger vocabulary the answer?
| Band | Example | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Pollution is a very big problem in the modern world and governments should take strict actions to solve it. | Adequate range for the task. Some inexact collocation ("take strict actions"). Meaning is clear; the vocabulary is general. |
| 7 | Air pollution in large cities is now a public health problem, and it is one that governments can measurably reduce through regulation. | Sufficient range with some precision and awareness of collocation ("public health problem", "measurably reduce"). Occasional errors are allowed here. |
| 8 | Urban air quality has deteriorated to the point where it is a public health issue rather than an environmental one, and unlike many such problems it responds quickly to regulation. | Wide range used fluently and precisely. Uncommon items ("deteriorated", "responds to regulation") are exactly right, not decorative. Rare slips only. |
Precision beats rarity. The examiner is checking whether the word you chose is the right word, used in the right collocation, and whether the errors are rare. "Utilise" instead of "use" earns nothing; "public health issue" instead of "big problem" earns the criterion, because it is more exact. Memorised academic word lists produce the band 6 pattern: less common words used slightly wrongly.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: the criterion that caps most candidates
| Band | Range | Accuracy |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | A mix of simple and complex sentences. | Some errors in grammar and punctuation, but they rarely reduce communication. |
| 7 | A variety of complex structures. | Frequent error-free sentences. Good control; a few errors. |
| 8 | A wide range of structures. | The majority of sentences are error-free; only very occasional slips. |
This is the criterion that holds most Pakistani candidates at 6, and the reason is accuracy, not range. Articles, subject-verb agreement, prepositions and comma splices are small errors that appear in most sentences of a band 6 script, and "frequent error-free sentences" is the band 7 line. The fastest gain in the whole test is to write slightly simpler sentences with no errors, then add complexity back one structure at a time. The free writing workspace counts your sentence length and repetition as you type; grammar accuracy has to be checked by reading your own work aloud.
What actually moves a 6.5 to a 7?
Find which criterion is at 6
Get one essay marked criterion by criterion, by a teacher who uses the public descriptors. If they give you one overall number, they have not marked it. Most 6.5 scripts have grammar or task response at 6 and the other criteria at 7.
If it is grammar: cut errors before adding range
Write for a week using only sentences you can control. Check articles and agreement in every sentence. Then reintroduce one complex structure per paragraph.
If it is task response: put the position in the introduction and every topic sentence
State the verdict, then make each paragraph's first sentence say how it supports the verdict. Cut anything that does not.
Remove half of your connectives
Read the essay and delete every "moreover", "furthermore" and "in addition" that begins a sentence. If the paragraph still makes sense, it is better; if it does not, the ideas were not connected in the first place.
Practise on real prompts with model answers marked by criterion
Every writing prompt on TestUstad carries a top-band model answer with a note on each criterion explaining why it scores. Compare your own paragraph with the model one criterion at a time, not as a whole.