The word 'outweigh' is a verdict. Listing both sides and stopping answers a question that was not asked.
Read the wording carefully, because two different questions share this shape. 'What are the advantages and disadvantages' asks you to describe both. 'Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages' asks you to weigh them and deliver a verdict. Answering the first when you were asked the second is capped under Task Response.
Rephrase the situation and, if the prompt says 'outweigh', give the verdict here: 'the advantages are the greater, though the drawbacks are real.'
Whichever side you judge to be weaker, given fairly with its strongest instance. Putting it first means the essay builds towards your verdict.
The side you judge greater, developed further, ending with an explicit comparison — why this outweighs the other rather than merely existing alongside it.
Restate the verdict in comparative terms.
'Outweigh' requires a comparison in your own voice. At least one sentence must say which side is greater and why — a balanced description with no verdict is an incomplete answer to this prompt.
The first asks you to describe both sides; the second asks you to judge between them. The second requires an explicit verdict, and an essay that only describes both sides is under-answering it. Read the last line of the prompt carefully — the two look almost identical at a glance.
Two developed points beat four listed ones. Depth is scored under Task Response; length of list is not, and a paragraph of four undeveloped assertions usually scores below one with two properly supported.
No. If you judge one side clearly greater, giving it more space is consistent with your verdict. What matters is that both are represented fairly and the comparison is made explicitly.
Our IELTS mock marks Task 2 against all four criteria and shows which sentences moved each one. The first session is free.
This guide is written from the IELTS test format published by British Council, IDP and Cambridge, in our own words. For the official wording, see the official IELTS sample questions. MockLive AI is an independent practice tool and is not affiliated with the British Council, IDP or Cambridge Assessment English.