A huge number of IELTS candidates now ask ChatGPT or another AI to check their Writing Task 2 essay — but most get back generic, overly-positive feedback (“great essay, well structured!”) that doesn’t actually tell them their real band score or what’s costing them marks. The problem usually isn’t the AI, it’s the prompt. Here’s a real, coach-built prompt that gets genuinely useful, band-specific feedback — free, no signup.
Why generic “check my essay” prompts fail
IELTS Writing Task 2 is graded against four specific official criteria — Task Response, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy — each worth 25% of the Writing band. A plain “is this good?” prompt gives the AI no framework to evaluate against, so it defaults to generic encouragement instead of criterion-by-criterion analysis. The fix is giving the AI the actual examiner framework to work from.
The prompt: paste this into ChatGPT, Claude, or your AI of choice
Copy this prompt, then paste your full essay directly underneath it:
“You are an experienced IELTS examiner. Assess the following IELTS Writing Task 2 essay strictly against the four official band descriptors: Task Response, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. For each criterion, give a band score estimate (out of 9) with 2-3 specific sentences explaining exactly what is limiting the score — quote the specific phrase or sentence from my essay that illustrates the issue. Then give an overall band estimate. Finally, list the 3 highest-impact changes I could make to raise my score, in priority order. Be honest and specific, not encouraging — I want accurate feedback, not reassurance. Here is my essay: [paste your essay here]”
The key differences from a generic prompt: it names the four real criteria, forces criterion-by-criterion scoring instead of one vague overall impression, demands specific quoted evidence instead of generalities, and explicitly asks for honesty over encouragement — which most AI models default away from unless told otherwise.
What AI checking is genuinely good at — and where it still falls short
AI feedback is genuinely useful for catching grammar patterns, flagging repetitive vocabulary, and giving you a rough directional sense of where you stand. Where it’s still limited: it can’t fully replicate a trained human examiner’s judgment on nuanced Task Response (does the essay actually address every part of the question with a clear position?) or catch the subtler Coherence issues a real examiner is trained to weigh — AI band estimates are a useful signal, not a certified score, and can vary noticeably between models and even between runs of the same model.
Want feedback that’s actually calibrated to real IELTS scoring, not just AI estimates? The ActuallySpeak Writing toolkit pairs structured essay practice with real band-aware feedback. Explore the Writing toolkit →
FAQ
Can ChatGPT actually give me an accurate IELTS Writing band score?
It can give you a reasonable estimate when prompted correctly (using the official 4 criteria), but it’s not a certified score — treat it as a useful directional signal, not a guarantee of your real exam result.
Why does AI feedback feel too positive by default?
Most AI models default toward encouraging, agreeable responses unless explicitly told to prioritize accuracy over reassurance — the prompt above specifically asks for honesty, which noticeably changes the quality of feedback you get back.
Is it against IELTS rules to use AI to check my practice essays?
No — using AI tools to check practice essays before your exam is completely fine; this only concerns preparation, not the actual test itself, which has its own strict rules against any outside assistance.
Should I trust an AI band score over a real teacher’s feedback?
Use both if you can — AI is fast and free for catching obvious issues and getting a rough sense of level; a trained human examiner or coach is still better at nuanced Task Response judgment and the nuances an AI model can miss or score inconsistently.