IELTS Writing Band Score Calculator
Writing is scored on four criteria per task, and Task 2 counts double. This calculator shows how criterion scores become your Writing band — and which criterion is cheapest to fix.
Examiners award whole bands per criterion; the Writing band is their average rounded down to the nearest half band. Task 2 counts twice as much as Task 1 in your final Writing score.
Section band
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What this tool does
The IELTS Writing Band Score Calculator combines the four criterion scores — Task Achievement/Response, Coherence & Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range & Accuracy — into a task band (their average, rounded down to the nearest half band). Your final Writing band then weights Task 2 twice as heavily as Task 1.
How to use the Writing Calculator
- 1Enter the four criterion bands for a task (whole bands, as examiners award them).
- 2Read the task band — the average rounded down to the nearest half.
- 3Repeat for your other task and remember Task 2 counts double in the final Writing score.
- 4Use the Writing checkers (linked below) to get criterion-level estimates for real essays.
How examiners build your Writing band
Each task is marked on the four criteria with whole bands, which are averaged and rounded down to the nearest half band. Then the two tasks combine with Task 2 at double weight — effectively (Task 1 + 2 × Task 2) ÷ 3. A 6.0 in Task 1 with a 7.0 in Task 2 lands at 6.5; reverse the two and you're stuck at 6.5 as well, but with far more effort wasted on the task that matters less. The practical rule: never let Task 1 overrun 20 minutes.
The cheapest criterion to raise
For most candidates, Task Achievement/Response moves fastest: it's about answering the whole question with a clear position and an overview (Task 1) — structural habits you can fix in a week — while Lexical Resource and Grammar move on months-long timescales. If your criterion profile is flat (say 6/6/6/6), structure work on TR and CC is the shortest path to 6.5; if it's spiky, the calculator makes obvious which single criterion is dragging the average below a rounding threshold.
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Create a free accountFrequently asked questions
Are the four criteria equally weighted?
Yes — each contributes 25% of a task's score. The asymmetry is between tasks, not criteria: Task 2 carries twice the weight of Task 1 in your final Writing band.
Why does the calculator round down?
Criterion averages that land between half bands resolve downward in Writing and Speaking — an average of 6.25 reports as 6.0. It's the conservative counterpart to the overall band's round-up rule, and worth knowing when a target sits just above a threshold.
Can examiners give half bands per criterion?
No — criterion scores are whole bands. Half bands appear only after averaging. That's why profiles like 7/6/6/6 (→ 6.0) versus 7/7/6/6 (→ 6.5) matter so much: one criterion band often decides the half-band result.
Why is Writing usually the lowest IELTS section?
Global statistics consistently show Writing about half a band below the other sections. It's the only fully productive task under strict format rules, and self-assessment is hardest — which is precisely why criterion-level feedback (rather than a single holistic score) is what moves it.
Related free tools
Task 2 Checker
Paste your essay and get an estimated band score with feedback on all four criteria in seconds.
Overall Band Calculator
Enter your four section scores and get your overall band, with the official rounding rules.
Speaking Calculator
Average the four Speaking criteria into a Speaking band the way examiners do.
Academic Task 1 Checker
Get your chart, graph, or process report scored against the official Task 1 criteria.