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About this tool
Count words against the IELTS Task 1 (150) and Task 2 (250) minimums with paragraph and sentence structure analysis.
This counter checks an IELTS Writing answer against the official minimums — 150 words for Task 1 and 250 words for Task 2 — counting the way examiners do: every word counts, and hyphenated compounds like “well-known” count as one word. It also breaks the answer into paragraphs and sentences with per-paragraph word counts, so candidates can see structure problems (a bloated body paragraph, a one-line conclusion) alongside the raw count.
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Hyphenated compounds count once and numbers count as words, matching IELTS practice.
Switch between Task 1 (150 words) and Task 2 (250 words) and see shortfall or surplus instantly.
Paragraph and sentence counts with averages expose essays that are one giant block of text.
You lose marks under the Task Response criterion — the test instructions state a 250-word minimum for Task 2 and 150 for Task 1, and under-length answers are penalised. There is no automatic band cap, but a clearly short answer usually cannot fully develop the task.
Yes — a hyphenated compound such as “state-of-the-art” is counted as one word by examiners. Numbers and dates also count as words, and every article and preposition counts, so “the” fifty times is fifty words.
No maximum exists, but writing far beyond the minimum is usually counterproductive — around 150–200 words for Task 1 and 250–300 for Task 2 fits the 20 and 40 minutes available. Longer answers create more opportunities for errors and leave no time to check.
They count actual words on the answer sheet when length looks borderline, so line-estimation tricks do not change the outcome. Practising with a counter like this teaches you how many of your handwritten lines equal 150 or 250 words, which is the only reliable way to judge length in the exam.