Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-14

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries, paying for things using mobile phone (cellphone) apps is becoming increasingly common. Does this development have more advantages or more disadvantages?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

In majority of the countries, an increasing number of people use their mobile phones to pay for the expenses. This has been an arguable debate among the people of the society. In my opinion, I see this as a positive development. This essay will discuss both views.

On the one hand, using phone for the payment has more advantages. First, one does not need to carry heavy, bulky wallets everywhere they go. With a tap of button, a transaction can happen seamlessly and effortlessly. Second, it would be easier to keep track of their spending. Merchants who accepts digital payments would not able to escape from paying their taxes since the overall income are recorded. Third, the convenience. People can pay their monthly expenditures easily. To illustrate, instead of visiting electricity stations to pay their monthly bills, individuals can pay from the comfort of their homes. Another reason to add that stealing of money will be almost impossible, since digital payments apps are extremely secure.

On the other hand, elderly people would find it difficult to pay with their mobile phones, since they lack basic knowledge of using the cell phones. Other people believe that physical notes will eventually be completely eradicated, resulting in difficulties for blind people to make payments. Since cash notes have identification marks especially for blind people. Payment apps also started to imply hidden charges for payments. For example, adding convenience fees with additional to the price of mobile data packs for using their platform.

To sum up everything that has been stated so far, while there are few drawbacks especially for elderly and disabled people, this does not outweigh the number of benefits that digital payments have.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both advantages and disadvantages, and a clear position is maintained throughout. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. While the advantages are listed clearly, the disadvantages section is slightly less developed. The essay structure is logical, but the introduction states the essay will discuss 'both views' when the prompt asks for an opinion on whether there are more advantages or disadvantages. This creates a slight mismatch between the introduction and the body paragraphs. To reach a higher band, ensure that the thesis statement directly reflects the prompt's requirement to weigh the advantages against the disadvantages.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized into clear paragraphs. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'On the one hand', 'First', 'Second', and 'To sum up', which help guide the reader. However, some transitions are a bit mechanical or repetitive. For example, 'Another reason to add that' is slightly awkward. Referencing is generally clear, though some sentences within paragraphs could be linked more fluidly to improve the flow of ideas. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate and the progression of ideas is easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to express ideas clearly. There are some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as 'eradicated' and 'seamlessly', which are used correctly. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'arguable debate' (a debate is inherently arguable) and 'adding convenience fees with additional to the price'. The range is sufficient to convey meaning, but more precise and varied vocabulary would be needed for a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'In majority of the countries' (missing article), 'Merchants who accepts' (subject-verb agreement error), and 'would not able to' (missing verb 'be'). Additionally, 'since digital payments apps' contains a minor error. These errors do not impede communication, but they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of complex structures while focusing on accuracy would improve this score.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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