Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-06

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 5.5)

In many parts of the world, it has become increasingly common that people are paying for the mobile phone apps. This development is beneficial for the cellphone companies but people have to pay numerous amount for the applications which they want to use for their needs. In my opinion, there are more disadvantages than advantages to charge for the apps.

Mobile phone companies are charging for the apps for their personal benefit and to cover the expenses which are used during the launch of the apps. To launch various applications on the cellphones there is a large number of team members behind this phenomenon who worked hard for the people to provide them convenience because due to advanced technology humans are depend on the digital platforms so there is a charge for them. As a result, companies have to pay all the expenses and payment to the people who are spending lots of time to bring ease in common public life.

Despite the obvious appeal, sometimes people have to face consequences when they download apps on the phones, add all the card details for the payment and companies keep charging them without informing them. In this case, people think that these apps are fraud and they stop using them because they are afraid of the overcharges by the companies. Consequently, these companies face repercussions and hatred from the public which is not valuable for the reputation of these organizations.

In my opinion, cellphone companies could charge people but stop deducting payments without letting them know. Most of the companies keep charging them even they are not using their apps which is not appropriate, they would track them and charge them accordingly. Companies should remove the feature of automatic payments especially for those apps which people just used once otherwise inform them while deducting money from their accounts.

In conclusion, people should also be responsible for their own actions such as while downloading the apps they must ensure to read all the policies which are provided by the companies to avoid the charges.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt regarding whether paying for mobile phone apps has more advantages or disadvantages, and a position is presented in the introduction, arguing that there are more disadvantages. However, the development of ideas is limited and at times unclear. For instance, the discussion focuses heavily on the idea that companies charge for apps to cover development costs and developer salaries, which is actually an argument for the advantages or necessity of payment, creating some confusion regarding the stance. Furthermore, the reasoning surrounding unauthorized automatic payments and subsequent public backlash is somewhat repetitive and under-developed. To reach a higher band, the response would need to present a more consistent, fully extended set of arguments with clearer examples and a more coherent line of reasoning throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement with clear paragraphing, each addressing a specific aspect of the topic, such as developer costs, unauthorized charges, and user responsibility. However, cohesion at the sentence level is occasionally mechanical or faulty. For example, transitional phrases like 'In this case' and 'Consequently' are used, but referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly with pronoun use such as 'they' and 'them' in sentences like 'companies keep charging them without informing them'. Paragraphs are generally organized around a central topic, but the logical progression between sentences could be smoother to guide the reader effortlessly through the argument. Improving the flexibility and accuracy of cohesive devices would elevate this criterion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, covering everyday topics related to mobile apps and digital platforms. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary items and phrases, such as 'phenomenon', 'repercussions', and 'automatic payments', but this is accompanied by some noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'paying for the mobile phone apps' instead of paying for apps through mobile phones, and 'numerous amount' instead of a large amount. Spelling and word-formation errors are occasional and generally do not impede communication, but they restrict the precision of the writing. To achieve a higher band, the student should expand their range of less common lexical items and refine their collocations for greater naturalness and accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writing displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, though the range of structures remains somewhat limited. The student attempts complex sentences, but these often contain structural errors, such as run-on sentences and awkward clauses, for example: 'To launch various applications on the cellphones there is a large number of team members behind this phenomenon who worked hard for the people to provide them convenience because due to advanced technology humans are depend on the digital platforms so there is a charge for them.' There are frequent errors in grammar, including subject-verb agreement issues like 'humans are depend', preposition usage, and punctuation. While these errors rarely completely impede communication, they do cause some difficulty for the reader and prevent the grammar from reaching a more controlled, error-free standard.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.