Grammar · Commonly confused words · A2 · Elementary

Its vs It's

Last updated 21 July 2026

In short

Its is a possessive determiner meaning 'belonging to it': 'The company changed its logo.' It's is a contraction of 'it is' or 'it has': 'It's raining' (it is), 'It's been a long day' (it has). Expand the word to 'it is' or 'it has' — if that makes sense, write it's; if not, write its.

Its vs it's at a glance

	Its	It's
Function	Possessive determiner — belonging to it	Contraction of 'it is' or 'it has'
Apostrophe	Never has an apostrophe	Always has an apostrophe
Expansion test	Cannot expand to 'it is' — the sentence breaks	Expands cleanly to 'it is' or 'it has'
Followed by	A noun: its colour, its price, its owner	A verb-ing, adjective, or past participle: it's raining, it's late, it's finished
Example	The bakery raised its prices.	It's been raised twice this year.
Memory trick	Its behaves like his/her/their — no apostrophe	It's = it is/it has — expand it to test

What's the difference between its and it's?

Its, without an apostrophe, is a possessive determiner that shows something belongs to 'it' — exactly like his, her, and their. It always sits directly in front of a noun: its colour, its owner, its history.

It's, with an apostrophe, is always a contraction — a short form of 'it is' or 'it has'. Whenever you write it's, you should be able to expand it back into two words without changing the meaning.

The museum extended its opening hours.(possession — belongs to the museum)
It's closed on Mondays.(= it is closed on Mondays)
It's been renovated recently.(= it has been renovated recently)

How do you test which one you need?

The fastest check is the expansion test: mentally replace the word with 'it is' or 'it has'. If the sentence still makes sense, the apostrophe version is correct. If the sentence sounds wrong or nonsensical, you need the possessive its with no apostrophe.

This test works because 'it is/has' and 'belonging to it' are completely different grammatical jobs — one is a subject-plus-verb, the other is a determiner in front of a noun — so there is no overlap to worry about.

Its raining outside, so take an umbrella.(expand: 'It is raining' works → It's raining)
The company reported a fall in it's profits.(expand: 'a fall in it is profits' fails → its profits)
The dog buried its bone in the garden.(expand test fails ('it is bone') → possessive is correct)

Why doesn't 'its' follow the usual apostrophe rule?

Regular nouns show possession with an apostrophe-s: the dog's bone, Maria's flat. Learners naturally expect its to follow the same pattern, but its is a possessive pronoun, not a noun — and English possessive pronouns (his, hers, its, ours, theirs) never take an apostrophe.

Keeping this one exception in mind removes almost all of the confusion: apostrophes show either possession on a noun or a missing letter in a contraction, and its is neither — it is simply the possessive form of 'it'.

The team celebrated its victory, just like his victory or their victory.(its patterns with his/their — no apostrophe)
The team celebrated it's victory.(→ its victory)

Common mistakes with its vs it's

Real learner errors, corrected and explained — the fastest way to stop repeating them.

The team lifted the trophy to celebrate it's victory.

The team lifted the trophy to celebrate its victory.

This shows possession (the team's victory), so the possessive its with no apostrophe is needed.

Its going to rain later, so bring a coat.

It's going to rain later, so bring a coat.

This is a contraction of 'it is', so it needs an apostrophe: it's.

The cat licked it's paw clean.

The cat licked its paw clean.

'Paw' belongs to the cat, so the possessive its (no apostrophe) is correct.

Its been three years since I visited Hanoi.

It's been three years since I visited Hanoi.

This expands to 'it has been three years', so the contraction it's is required.

Its vs It's in IELTS

Grammatical Range and Accuracy is 25% of your Speaking and Writing scores — here is where this structure earns marks.

Speaking

Contractions like it's sound natural in Speaking and are expected in an informal, conversational register: 'It's been a while since I tried something new.' Avoiding all contractions can sound stiff and memorised.
When describing an object, place, or organisation in Part 2, its is the natural possessive: 'The café is small, but its coffee is excellent.' Getting this right signals basic accuracy control.

Writing

In Writing Task 1 and 2, prefer its over it's — formal academic writing generally avoids contractions altogether, so 'it's' rarely belongs in your essay at all.
When it does slip in, check it with the expansion test before submitting: if 'it is' or 'it has' doesn't fit, change it's to its. This single check removes one of the most common Band 5–6 accuracy errors.

Practise its vs it's now

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Check this rule in your own writing

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Frequently asked questions

How do I know when to use its or it's?

Expand the word mentally to 'it is' or 'it has'. If the sentence still makes sense, use it's. If it doesn't, use its — the possessive form meaning 'belonging to it', which never takes an apostrophe.

Why doesn't 'its' have an apostrophe if 'the dog's bone' does?

Because its is a possessive pronoun, like his or their, and English possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe. Apostrophe-s marks possession only on nouns, not on this small set of pronouns.

Is 'it's' ever correct in formal IELTS writing?

It's technically correct wherever 'it is' or 'it has' fits, but formal academic writing generally avoids contractions altogether. In Task 1 and Task 2, write 'it is' or 'it has' in full, and reserve it's for informal contexts.

What does 'it's' stand for?

It's is a contraction of either 'it is' ('It's cold today') or 'it has' ('It's been a long week'). Context tells you which meaning is intended — both expand from the same short form.

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