IELTS Writing correction online: your letter and essay marked on the four criteria
Write an IELTS General Training Writing test here — the letter and the essay, on a 60-minute clock — and get back an estimated band for each of the four official criteria on each task, the combined Writing band, and notes on what held each band down. Your first Writing practice test is free and fully marked. After that, one Writing test costs CA$3.49, or a pass opens every IELTS General Training test from CA$12.49 for 7 days.
One-time payment in CAD, no auto-renewal · single Writing tests and every price
On this page
What gets marked
IELTS assesses each Writing task on the same four criteria. The left column is how ielts.org describes each one; the right is what our marker looks for when it gives the band.
Task achievement (Task 1) / Task response (Task 2)
IELTS: How accurately, appropriately and relevantly the answer covers the task — in the letter, whether it achieves its purpose; in the essay, how well the argument is developed with evidence and examples.
Our notes cover: Did the letter cover all three bullet points in a tone that fits the reader? Does the essay answer the question that was set, with a clear position and support for it?
Coherence and cohesion
IELTS: How clear and fluent the writing is and how ideas are organised: a logical order and a range of linking devices used appropriately.
Our notes cover: Paragraphing, the order of ideas, and linking words that are doing real work rather than decorating the sentence.
Lexical resource
IELTS: The range of vocabulary and how accurately and appropriately it is used.
Our notes cover: Repeated words, words used in the wrong sense, collocations that do not fit, spelling.
Grammatical range and accuracy
IELTS: The range of grammar and how accurately and appropriately it is used.
Our notes cover: Articles, verb tenses and agreement, sentence boundaries, and whether complex sentences are attempted and controlled.
A marked test: sample report
The numbers and notes below are made up to show the layout of a report. They are not a real learner's.
| Criterion | Task 1 · letter | Task 2 · essay |
|---|---|---|
| Task achievement / response | 7.0 | 6.0 |
| Coherence and cohesion | 6.5 | 6.5 |
| Lexical resource | 6.5 | 6.0 |
| Grammatical range and accuracy | 6.0 | 5.5 |
- Letter: all three bullet points are covered, but the request in the last paragraph comes without a reason, so the reader cannot act on it.
- Essay: the position is clear in the introduction; the second body paragraph gives a reason with no example to back it.
- Grammar, both tasks: articles before countable nouns are dropped, and past and present tenses mix inside one story.
- What to do next: one more essay, aiming only at the grammar notes, before the next full test.
How our marking compares with an IELTS examiner
The official column says only what ielts.org's Writing page says. The other column is ours.
| The official test | ExamStep | |
|---|---|---|
| Who marks | Certificated IELTS examiners assess each Writing task. | Our AI marker. The band is an estimate to study from, not an official result. |
| Criteria | Four: Task achievement/response, Coherence and cohesion, Lexical resource, Grammatical range and accuracy. | The same four, with a band and notes for each, on each task. |
| Weighting | Task 2 contributes twice as much as Task 1 to the Writing score. | The same rule, then rounded to the nearest half band. |
| Length | At least 150 words for the letter and 250 for the essay; an answer that is too short may not show enough to award the higher bands. | The marker is told your word count and weighs it inside Task achievement/response. An answer of 20 words or fewer gets Band 1 on every criterion. |
| Notes and bullets | Answers must not be written as notes or bullet points. | An answer in notes or bullets has its Coherence and cohesion band capped. |
| Time | 60 minutes for both tasks: about 20 for the letter and 40 for the essay. | 60 min · a letter and an essay, marked on the official criteria. |
Official column: ielts.org, General Training Writing, checked 28 September 2026. ExamStep is not affiliated with the British Council, IDP IELTS or Cambridge University Press & Assessment.
Taking IELTS Academic instead?
Academic Task 1 is not a letter: ielts.org describes it as putting visual information — a graph, table, chart or diagram — into your own words in at least 150 words (ielts.org, Academic Writing, checked 28 September 2026). Our Academic Writing tests are marked on the same four criteria, and one costs CA$3.49 on its own. Start from the IELTS Academic practice tests.
Questions people ask
Is there a free IELTS writing checker?
Yes, once: the first Writing practice test here is free and fully marked — both tasks, a band for each of the four criteria and notes on each. After that each Writing test costs CA$3.49, or a pass from CA$12.49 for 7 days opens every test. All prices are one-time, in CAD, with no auto-renewal.
How accurate is AI marking for IELTS Writing?
Treat it as an estimate, not an examiner's mark. Our marker scores each criterion against band descriptions written in our own words to the published standard, is told your word count, and returns notes with each band. It is most useful for finding which criterion holds you back; only an IELTS test gives you an official band.
Can I paste in my own essay to be corrected?
No. You write to one of our tasks, on the clock, in a typing box like the computer-delivered test. Marking a known task is what lets the marker judge Task achievement and Task response properly.
Is Writing Task 2 the same in General Training and Academic?
Very nearly. In both, you discuss a point of view, argument or problem in at least 250 words in about 40 minutes (ielts.org, checked 28 September 2026). Task 1 is what differs: a letter in General Training, a description of a graph, table, chart or diagram in Academic.
How is the IELTS Writing band worked out?
Each task is judged on four criteria, and Task 2 counts twice as much as Task 1 in the Writing score (ielts.org, checked 28 September 2026). Our report shows the band for each criterion of each task and the combined Writing band, rounded to the nearest half band.
Do I need an account to buy?
No. Type your email and pay; a new account is made for you and signed in straight away. If that email already has an account, you are asked to log in to it.
More for IELTS General Training
- Full IELTS General Training practice tests — all four skills in one sitting, with a band report.
- IELTS General Training overview
- Prices — passes and single tests, one-time, in CAD.