Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-05

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below gives information about how families in one country spent their weekly income in 1968 and in 2018.

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

1968 and 2018: average weekly spending by families

Student answer (Band 6.5)

The given bar chart gives information about average weekly spending of families in a country and gives a comparison of its percentage in two years of 1968 and 2018.

Overall, a highest percentage of the money was being used for food and lowest percentage for fuel and power in 1968. However, in 2018 leisure was the category on which a significant amount was being used and two categories of fuel and power along with personal goods remained at lowest.

To begin with, in 1968 food was the top priority of families and they were spending a significant proportion (35%) of their money on it and least spending category was fuel and power which was almost 6%. Similarly, after food people were mostly spending their money on housing, clothing and footware and their percentage was 10% in both categories. Additionally, same percenatge (8%) of earning was being used on household goods, personal goods and transport. Priority wise, leisure was the third category on which 9% of the total amount was being used.

Moreover, in 2018, focus of people shifted towards leisure and it surpassed all the other categories in terms of money being spent on it. The highest percatnage was being spent on leisure as 22% and least on fuel and power along with personal goods as 4%. On the other hand, housing became the second most focused area for families and they started spending almost 19% of their money on it. Similarly, 17% of weekly spending was on food and 14% on transport. However, for houshold goods percentage remained same as it was in 1968 and a significant drop to 5% was observed for clothing and footware in 2018.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The response selects the main contrasts accurately and gives a clear overview: food was the largest category in 1968, while leisure led in 2018, and fuel and power was among the smallest in both years. Most reported figures match the chart, including food at 35% and 17%, leisure at 9% and 22%, and housing at 10% and 19%. You also identify useful changes, such as the fall in clothing and footwear and the unchanged household-goods share. This is a well-supported account of the key features. To make the reporting more precise, avoid saying fuel and power was the single lowest category in 1968: clothing and footwear and housing were both 10%, while fuel and power was indeed lowest. The overview could also state more directly that spending shifted away from food towards leisure and housing.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The response is organised effectively into an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for each year. The progression from the broad pattern to supporting figures is easy to follow, and comparisons such as “However” and “Similarly” help connect information. The year-by-year structure is clear, although it sometimes leads to a list-like presentation rather than grouping the most important changes across the two years. Some transitions, including “Priority wise” and repeated uses of “Similarly,” feel mechanical or do not express the relationship precisely. For stronger cohesion, group related changes—for example, the decline in food and clothing alongside the rise in leisure and housing—and use linking phrases that make those contrasts explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for describing the chart, including “proportion,” “surpassed,” “remained same,” and “significant drop.” These choices communicate the main trends, but some expressions are imprecise or unnatural for data reporting. “Top priority” and “focus of people shifted” suggest motives that the chart does not establish, while “percentage of the money was being used” is wordy. There are also spelling errors in “percenatge,” “percatnage,” “houshold,” and “footware,” which reduce accuracy. Aim for concise, neutral reporting language and check spelling carefully; terms such as “accounted for,” “share,” and “rose/fell” would make the descriptions more precise and natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response includes a mix of simple and more complex sentences, with clauses introduced by “while,” “however,” and “as.” Most meanings remain clear, but some grammatical patterns are not controlled consistently. For example, “a highest percentage” needs the article “the,” and “lowest percentage for fuel and power” is missing a verb or a clearer construction. In “their percentage was 10% in both categories,” the plural reference is awkwardly matched to a singular noun. The phrase “percentage remained same” also needs an article before “same.” Review articles, agreement, and complete sentence structures, and prefer direct forms such as “Housing and clothing each accounted for 10%.” This would improve accuracy while preserving your range of sentence forms.

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.