Reports and essays are quite similar in that they both require:
- plenty of planning and preparation
- a formal style
- neat presentation
- careful proofreading
- an introduction, main body and conclusion
- some analytical thinking.
However, there are some distinctions between the two:
| Reports | Essays |
| Presents information | Presents an argument |
| Is often scanned quickly by the reader to find the pertinent points/information | Is read carefully by the reader |
| Uses short, concise paragraphs and sentences. Dot points are used where applicable | Ideas are linked cohesively into paragraphs, rather than breaking them into lists or dot-points |
| Uses numbered headings and sub-headings | Uses minimal sub-headings, if any. Often only has a title and maybe a handful of headings |
| Uses illustrations wherever possible (e.g. graphs, figures, maps) | Rarely uses illustrations |
| Often requires an abstract (also called an Executive Summary) | Only requires an abstract if very long |
| Generally contains recommendations | Rarely contains recommendations; rather concludes with the viewpoint of the author |
| Has appendices | Seldom have appendices |