How many words should I write in the IELTS Writing exam ?



This is one of the most common questions my students ask me and it is always interesting to hear how many different opinions there are.

Unfortunately, there is some really bad advice and misconceptions surrounding this question. The two worst pieces of advice I’ve heard are ‘You don’t have to write 250 words in writing part 2, 10% below this is OK.’ and ‘You should write as much as possible to get a good mark.’ These two statements are simply wrong and will lead to lost marks.

What happens if I write under the word count?

The only advice you should listen to is this- If you want to answer the question properly, you must write at least 250 words in part 2 and at least 150 words in part 1. If you write less than these totals you will lose marks under ‘Task Achievement’ because you haven’t answered the question properly.

IELTS examiners have to sit and count all of your words for this reason. It is really heart breaking when a good candidate produces a great answer and only writes 249 words in part 2. Unfortunately, we have to mark them down.

Should I write more words to get a good mark?
 No! This is a bad idea for a few reasons.

Firstly, you only have a set amount of time to answer both questions. Time management is one of the most important things to learn in the IELTS writing exam. If you spend too much time on one question you are sacrificing marks on the other part.

Secondly, you are more likely to make grammar mistakes if you keep writing over the word limit and this will bring your overall mark down.
Finally, you are being judged on quality, not quantity. Focus on making your answer the best it can be, rather than the longest it can be. Remember you should allocate time to planning and checking, as well as writing.

🧐 How many words should I write?

In the exam you won’t have time to count all your words. I therefore suggest that you aim to write about 10% over what you are expected to write. In other words aim to write around 160-170 words for task 1 and 270-280 words for task 2. If you aim for this amount, you are far more likely to go over the required word limit.

Further I am going to explain

How to count the words in Your essay. This method is going to....

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