Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-07-28

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 bar graph illustrates the weekly expenditure of families in one nation from 1968 and 2018.

Overall, it is clear that people expenditure change by the time period.In1968, people spend most of their income on food , however in 2018 they spend large proportion of their income on leisure while they spend least in fuel and Power.

In 1968, people spend their large proportion of money on food ,35% of their income, while least on fuel and Power, accounted for 6% of their income.however by 2018, they had reduce their expenditure of food, approximately ar 17% of their wages. In the past , people spend 8%of their income on transport, wheres in 2018, their transport expenditure had increased ,ar 14% of their income.

In 1968, housing and household goods consumed 15% and 7% pr their income however in 2018, they spend same proportion of money on household goods while on housing they increase their expenditure by 17% of their income.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response covers the main features of the chart, identifying key trends such as the decline in food expenditure and the rise in leisure and transport costs. However, the analysis is somewhat limited. The overview is slightly inaccurate, as the claim that families spent the 'least' on fuel and power in 2018 is not supported by the data (which shows clothing and footwear as lower). Additionally, some data points are presented without sufficient comparison or clear synthesis. To reach a higher band, ensure that all data points are accurately interpreted and that the overview highlights the most significant shifts rather than just listing individual changes.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a clear overall structure. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'however', 'while', and 'in the past', though some transitions feel a bit mechanical or repetitive. The progression of ideas is generally clear, but the referencing is occasionally imprecise, such as the vague use of 'they' when referring to expenditure categories. Paragraphing is used appropriately to group related information, which helps the reader follow the comparison between the two years.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks sophistication. There are several instances of awkward phrasing or word choice, such as 'people expenditure change' instead of 'expenditure patterns changed' and 'reduce their expenditure of food' instead of 'reduced their expenditure on food'. Spelling errors like 'wheres' (whereas) and 'pr' (of) also detract from the quality. To improve, focus on using more precise collocations related to data reporting, such as 'allocated a proportion of their income' rather than 'spend their large proportion of money'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Issues include incorrect verb tenses (e.g., 'people spend' instead of 'people spent' when referring to 1968), missing articles, and errors in preposition usage (e.g., 'ar 17%' instead of 'at 17%'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to be noticeable. Increasing the accuracy of basic sentence construction and subject-verb agreement would significantly improve the clarity and professional tone of the writing.

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