Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-29

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)

Yes with the time technology is getting advanced and feasible to use for everyone. The one thing which I would like to discuss today is paying for your things or bills online via cell phones rather than paying cash.

As we see the world is moving rapidly towards technology and the thing I discussed above is the part of this rapid growth. Now it's easy for people's to pay through their mobile phones at any time without any difficulty. Nowadays people's are not carrying cash them due to many reasons which also includes snatching in many countries.

The payment through mobile phones and different apps give the people's the solution of protecting their cash from any type of snatching. These are the advantages of this thing. But if we talk about the disadvantage of this thing we can say,

The online scam has increased these days just because of this. Some people make a fake screenshot and make shopkeeper fool by showing them as they have sent the payment to their account. Moreover, the apps have started charging taxes and seevice charges on every single transactions which is directly affecting the person who is sending the money.

I also have used this technology many times and it's really help me. The incident I'll nevery forget is that one day I don't have cash in my wallet because I have spend it on grocery purchasing. When coming back to home from the market my car suddenly stops. Fortunately, the car mechanic is near who check it frequently and start it again in some minutes by solving the issue. I don't have any cash to pay him for the service and maintenance. I asked him, would they accept online payment and after getting answer in yes I send him moeny via my bank mobile app.

This is the biggest case of the advantage of this technology and I'm totally in favour of this technology. The Policy makers and government should do something or take action on the scammer's, so people can use this technology safely and comfortably.move

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address the question by presenting both benefits and drawbacks, then make your position clear: you are “totally in favour” of mobile payments. The points about avoiding cash theft, fraudulent payment screenshots and transaction charges are relevant, and the mechanic anecdote gives a specific example of convenience. This meets the task well overall. However, the advantages receive more explanation than the disadvantages, which are mentioned briefly without exploring their wider effects or possible safeguards. The opening also takes time to establish the topic rather than stating your view directly. To strengthen the response, develop each main point with a clear explanation and example, and compare the overall importance of the benefits and risks before concluding.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, discussion of benefits and drawbacks, a personal example, and a concluding opinion. Paragraphing generally helps the reader follow this progression, and linking expressions such as “Moreover” and “Fortunately” show how ideas relate. At times, however, cohesion is mechanical or unclear. “These are the advantages of this thing” is vague, while “But if we talk about the disadvantage … we can say” leads into an incomplete sentence and an abrupt paragraph break. The personal story is relevant but lengthy compared with the discussion around it. Use clearer topic sentences and refer back to specific ideas rather than “this thing”; also connect the example explicitly to your argument about convenience.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “online scam,” “fake screenshot,” “service charges,” and “mobile app.” There are also attempts at more specific phrasing, such as “protecting their cash” and “snatching.” However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or repetitive, which limits precision: “paying for your things,” “make shopkeeper fool,” and “the biggest case of the advantage” do not sound natural in this context. Spelling and word-form slips such as “seevice,” “moeny,” and “people’s” also reduce control. Build a more precise range of expressions for digital payments and fraud, and check spelling and possessives carefully. These improvements would make your meaning more fluent and natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a relative clause in “the mechanic … who check it frequently” and a conditional idea about using the technology safely. The main message remains understandable, but errors in verb forms, agreement, articles and sentence construction are frequent enough to limit accuracy. For example, “Nowadays people’s are not carrying cash them” has problems with the subject and sentence structure, while “I have spend it” and “I send him” use incorrect verb forms for the past events described. The sentence beginning “But if we talk about the disadvantage” is left incomplete, and punctuation around the anecdote is sometimes difficult to follow. Practise accurate past-tense narration and subject–verb agreement, then proofread each sentence for a complete clause.

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