Ordering the three ways of writing a reaction from most to least detail about ions gives:

1. The molecular equation shows no ions explicitly at all. 2. Explicitly representing all dissolved ions results in a complete ionic equation, which is the most detailed. 3. Removing the spectator ions from that gives the net ionic equation, which shows only the ions that react. 4. So detail runs complete ionic, then net ionic, then molecular. 5. Each form is useful for a different question about the same reaction. _Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e (CC BY 4.0), Ch 4 'Stoichiometry of Chemical Reactions', sections 4.1-4.5_