Lesson 11, Task 5: Comparing & Persuading

60 seconds to select · 60 seconds to prepare · 60 seconds to speak

This is the task test-takers freeze on most often. It’s also the most learnable. Give this lesson more practice time than any other.

What this task asks you to do

You’re shown two options with some written details, prices, features, times. You choose one. Then you persuade a specific person (a friend, family member, or colleague) that your choice is better.

The trap is in that last word: better. Better than what? You can’t answer that by praising your option alone. You have to beat the other one.

The three screens

Task 5 gives you more setup time than Tasks 1–4 for a reason, there’s more to do than react.

Choosing: pick the arguable option, not your favorite

There are no marks for choosing “correctly.” There is no correct option. You’re scored entirely on how well you argue.

So during the 60-second selection, don’t ask “which would I actually pick?” Ask “which one can I attack the other side of most easily?” If Option A is genuinely better but you have three sharp things to say against Option B, choose B.

Acknowledge, counter, compare

The core move of this task, and the thing that separates a Level 7 from a Level 9+:

1. Acknowledge their option’s strength, politely.
2. Counter it: explain why it doesn’t hold up.
3. Compare yours on the same dimension.

Then repeat the same three steps on a second dimension.

“I can see why the downtown place appeals, the commute would be nothing. But you’d be paying almost four hundred dollars more a month for that convenience, whereas the suburb apartment gives you far more space for the money.”

In one breath that acknowledges, counters, and compares. That’s the exact motion raters are listening for.

Ping-pong, don’t list

Here’s the mistake that caps scores:

❌ Weak, the “list” trap All of your option first, then theirs at the end. You run out of time, and you never actually compared anything.

✅ Strong, the ping-pong Take one dimension (cost). Weigh both options on it. Move to the next dimension (space). Weigh both again.

Two dimensions developed this way beat four shallow points every time.

Add one detail of your own

The question gives you a couple of facts. If you only repeat those, you sound like you’re reading the screen. Invent one believable extra reason: a small practical benefit the question never mentioned. It proves you’re generating language rather than reciting it.

Model answer

Question: You and your partner are choosing an apartment. Option A: a downtown one-bedroom, $2,100/month, 10-minute walk to work. Option B: a suburban two-bedroom, $1,700/month, 40-minute commute. Persuade your partner. Choice: the suburban apartment (B).

“Look, Alex, I’ve thought about this properly and I really think the suburban place is the smarter call.

I completely understand the appeal of downtown, walking to work in ten minutes sounds wonderful. But we’d be paying four hundred dollars more every single month for that, which works out at nearly five thousand a year, and that’s a genuinely significant amount to spend on a shorter walk. The suburban place is considerably cheaper, and that difference would cover our car payments outright.

On top of that, the downtown option is only a one-bedroom, whereas the suburb gives us two. That means we’d finally have a proper spare room instead of working at the kitchen table every evening, which is nowhere near as comfortable as having actual space.

And honestly, there’s something the listing doesn’t mention, it’s much quieter out there, so we’d both sleep considerably better than we would above a busy street.

Sure, the commute’s longer, but I’d happily trade forty minutes for the extra room and the savings. Trust me on this one.”

Why this scores well

• Opens by acknowledging and countering the downtown option’s strength, rather than praising the suburb first.
• Ping-pongs across two dimensions: cost and space, weighing both options on each.
• An original detail (it’s quieter, better sleep) that the question never gave.
• Comparative structures throughout: considerably cheaper, nowhere near as comfortable as, much quieter, far more.
• Concedes gracefully (“Sure, the commute’s longer”) before landing the close, this reads as confident, not defensive.
• Uses the numbers from the question and does something with them ($400 → nearly $5,000/year).

The same answer at Level 6, and how to fix it

“Hi Alex. I think we should take the suburban apartment. It is cheaper, only 1700 dollars. Also it has two bedrooms, so we have more space. And it is quiet there. The downtown apartment is 2100 dollars and it has one bedroom. So it is expensive. I think the suburban apartment is better. Thank you.”

Rater’s diagnosis

Estimated level: 6.

The upgrade path

The pattern: acknowledge before you counter, alternate between the options, do arithmetic with the numbers, and add one detail that isn’t on the screen.

Grammar watch-list for this task

Comparatives are the grammar of this task, get them wrong and you lose marks in the exact place you’re trying to score.

Grade your own answer

• Both options present throughout: not one, then the other
• Opened by acknowledging their option before countering it
• Two dimensions compared, each weighing both options
• At least three distinct comparative structures
• Did something with the numbers (per-year, what it would cover)
• Added one detail the question never gave
• One graceful concession near the end
• Warm, persuasive register, no “Thank you”
• At least two complex sentences
• Finished between 55 and 58 seconds

8+ ticks = Level 9 territory. All 10 = you’re competing for 11–12.

Plug-and-play template

Template A, the full acknowledge-counter-compare (aim: Level 11–12)

“Look, [name], I’ve thought about this properly and I really think [your option] is the smarter call.

I completely understand the appeal of [their option]: [their strongest point] does sound [positive adjective]. But [counter it], whereas [your option] [advantage on the same dimension]. That difference alone would [practical benefit].

On top of that, [their option] [weakness on dimension 2], whereas [your option] gives us [advantage]. That means we’d [concrete outcome], which is nowhere near as [adjective] as [their situation].

And honestly, there’s something the [listing / question / brochure] doesn’t even mention, [your own invented detail].

Sure, [concede their one real advantage], but I’d happily trade [that] for [your benefits]. Trust me on this one, [your option] is the way to go.”

Template B, the simpler two-round variant (aim: Level 10–11)

“Hey [name], I know you’re leaning towards [their option], but hear me out, I think [your option] makes more sense.

[Their option] is [their point], I get that. The thing is, [counter]. [Your option], on the other hand, is [comparative advantage].

The same goes for [dimension 2]. With [their option] we’d [downside], whereas [your option] would mean [upside].

Plus, [your own extra detail].

So overall, I really do think [your option] is the better choice. What do you say?”

Three more sample answers

The same three steps applied to three different decisions. In every one, both options stay in play from start to finish.

Sample 2, two used cars

A: 2019 sedan, $14,000, 60,000 km, great fuel economy. B: 2017 SUV, $12,500, 95,000 km, more space, winter-ready. Choice: the sedan (A).

“Right, Jen, I’ve been going back and forth on this and I’ve landed on the sedan.

I understand why the SUV appeals, it’s fifteen hundred cheaper up front and it’d handle the winter better. But it’s also done an extra thirty-five thousand kilometers, which means we’d be looking at repairs considerably sooner, and that fifteen hundred disappears the first time something significant goes.

The running costs make the same point. The sedan’s fuel economy is far better, and over the four or five years we’d keep it, that gap alone more than covers the price difference.

And there’s something neither listing mentions, parking. The sedan is genuinely easier to get into our building’s garage, which we’d appreciate every single day.

Admittedly the SUV has more room. But we’d be paying for space we’d use twice a year. Trust me on this one.”

Sample 3, two gym memberships

A: $65/month, 5-minute walk, basic equipment. B: $40/month, 25-minute drive, full facilities and classes. Choice: the closer one (A).

“Look, Priya, I know the cheaper gym looks like the obvious answer, but I genuinely think we should take the one down the road.

I completely get the appeal, forty a month with a pool and classes included is excellent value on paper. The problem is the twenty-five-minute drive. A membership you don’t use is expensive at any price, and realistically, on a wet Tuesday in February neither of us is getting in the car.

The one nearby is a five-minute walk, which means we’d actually go, and going three times a week to a basic gym beats going twice a month to a brilliant one.

On top of that, there’s the driving itself, nearly an hour round trip each session, which is time we simply don’t have.

Sure, it’s twenty-five dollars more. But I’d rather pay for a gym we use than save money on one we don’t.”

Sample 4, two phone plans

A: $55/month, unlimited data, 2-year contract, free phone. B: $30/month, 20GB, no contract, bring your own phone. Choice: the cheaper one (B).

“Dad, I know the first plan looks better because they throw in the phone, but I’d honestly go with the second one.

That ‘free’ phone isn’t really free, you’re paying twenty-five dollars a month more for two years, which works out at six hundred dollars. You could buy a perfectly good phone outright for considerably less than that and still be ahead.

The contract is the bigger issue, though. Two years is a long time to be locked in, whereas the cheaper plan lets you walk away the moment something better comes along. Prices in this market drop constantly.

And realistically, you’ve never come close to using twenty gigabytes in a month, you’re mostly on the wifi at home.

The unlimited data sounds reassuring, I’ll grant you. But you’d be paying six hundred dollars for reassurance you don’t need.”

Notice across all three: each opens by acknowledging then countering, ping-pongs across two dimensions, does arithmetic with the numbers, adds one invented detail, and concedes gracefully before closing.

Common mistakes

Your practice

Open one set on Celpora and put today’s lesson to work.

Practice Task 5: Comparing & Persuading. 60s select + 60s prep · 60s speaking · AI feedback