Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-15

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows how frequently people in the USA ate in fast food restaurants between 2003 and 2013.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The given bar graph depicts the information about the fast food restaurants that has been visited by the locals in United States of America frequently. The given data is of year 2003, 2006 and 2013. The given data is in the percentage.

To begin with, the least numbers are recorded for the people consuming meals at restaurants on daily basis for all three years the percentage was between 3-4%. Which was also followed by, the individuals who never eat meals outside the also share the exact same numbers. However, the number of the people consuming food outside several times a week was highest in 2006 which was about 20% and for the rest of the two years it was between 12-13%.

However, the number of the locals consuming the food outside once a week was higher at that time. The numbers where 31%, 33% and 27% for all the three years 2003, 2006 and 2013 respectively which was also followed by, the people having food outside once or twice a month which where 30%, 25% and 33% respectively.

Overall, for all the three years the maximum numbers where recorded for the people consuming food outside once a week a or once or twice a month. However, the least number where recorded for the people who never eat outside and for the people who are depended on the outside food.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the three years and report several relevant comparisons, including the low daily-eating figures and the high proportions eating weekly or monthly. However, the account is only partial and some figures or categories are misreported. For example, the 2013 weekly figure is given as 27%, whereas the chart shows about 28%; more importantly, the people eating several times a week were at 17% in 2003 and 16% in 2013, not “12–13%.” The overview also says the least figures were for never eating out and relying on outside food, but daily eating is similarly low and the chart’s “a few times a year” category is largely omitted. Include that category and summarise the shift from weekly to monthly eating.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has an introduction, two detail paragraphs and a concluding overview, so the reader can recognise a basic structure. However, progression is not consistently clear: the second paragraph moves from daily eating to never eating and then to several-times-weekly eating, while the next paragraph begins with “However” without a clear contrast. Repeated linking phrases such as “However” and “which was also followed by” make connections feel mechanical, and the final overview repeats earlier points rather than drawing the main trends together. Grouping the categories more systematically—for example, frequent eating in one paragraph and weekly/monthly or occasional eating in another—would make the comparisons easier to follow. Use fewer, more precise transitions and ensure each pronoun or reference clearly identifies its category.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-related vocabulary, including “percentage,” “daily basis,” and “once or twice a month,” and the meaning is generally recoverable. However, the range is limited and several expressions are inaccurate or awkward, which sometimes makes the reader work to understand the intended meaning. “The least numbers” and “maximum numbers” are not natural ways to describe proportions; use “the lowest percentages” and “the highest proportions.” “Consuming meals at restaurants” is repeated, while “people who are depended on the outside food” is unclear and does not accurately describe a chart category. Prefer concise, precise terms such as “ate at fast-food restaurants” and “never ate there.” Also use the chart’s category labels consistently rather than substituting vague phrases such as “food outside.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts longer sentences and some subordinate clauses, but the range is limited and complex constructions are often faulty. For example, “Which was also followed by” is a sentence fragment, and “the people consuming food outside once a week was higher” has a subject–verb agreement error. In “the numbers where 31%, 33% and 27%,” the verb form is incorrect, and the sentence beginning “To begin with, the least numbers…” runs into a clause introduced by “Which.” Articles and sentence boundaries also need attention, as in “on daily basis” and the comma before “the individuals.” These errors recur and can interrupt clarity. Build more reliable simple comparison sentences first, then add subordinate clauses with correct agreement and punctuation.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.