Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-01

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In the future, people may no longer be able to pay for things in shops using cash. All payments may have to be made by card or using phones. Do you think this will happen one day? Why do you think some people might not be happy to give up using cash?

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

 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

While it is widely believed that shops would prefer card payments as compare to cash, I consider that it is not possible to replace cash transactions completely becasue of possibility of technical errors and resistance by some individuals. In my opinion, a majority of people will continue using cash because of unwillingness to change their shopping habits and lack of trust on digital payments.

On the one side, I cannot imagine that entire world will be doing cashless transactions. The most compelling reason for believing this is that digital payment system may have some technicial difficulties which may delay the transactions. Due to these issues, businesses would accept cash payments as it may affect their sales if they make people wait for payments. Moreover, paying with cash is highly comfortable for many shoppers. The complexities of using electronic devices for making payments leads to unacceptance among society members. For example, old age people find it difficult to use thei phone wallets due to which they make payments in traditional way. Therefore, it is predictable that although card payments would be common in many areas, a lot of businesses will still be accepting cash.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response is significantly under the 250-word minimum requirement, which severely limits your ability to fully develop your ideas. While you address both parts of the prompt—the likelihood of a cashless future and the reasons for resistance—the development is superficial. The arguments regarding technical errors and the elderly are relevant but lack sufficient depth or illustrative examples to reach a higher band. Because the response is only 193 words, it fails to meet the basic task requirements, which necessitates a lower score regardless of the quality of the content provided.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into two paragraphs, which is insufficient for a standard task response. While there is a logical progression of ideas, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and repetitive (e.g., 'On the one side', 'Moreover', 'Therefore'). The transition between the introduction and the body paragraph is functional, but the overall structure lacks the complexity expected at higher levels. Referencing is generally clear, but the limited length prevents the demonstration of more sophisticated paragraphing or a more nuanced flow of arguments.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'compelling reason', 'transactions', and 'unwillingness'. However, there are several spelling errors ('becasue', 'technicial', 'thei') and some awkward phrasing, such as 'unacceptance among society members'. The vocabulary is functional but lacks the precision and variety required for a higher band. To improve, you should focus on using more sophisticated collocations and ensuring accuracy in spelling, as these minor errors currently detract from the overall professional tone of your writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While you attempt complex sentences, there are persistent grammatical errors, such as 'as compare to' instead of 'compared to' and 'old age people' instead of 'elderly people'. Additionally, there are minor punctuation and article usage issues throughout. While these errors do not typically impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Increasing the variety of your sentence structures and proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and prepositional accuracy would significantly improve your performance.

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

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