Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-20

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 chart illustrates information about how families in a particular country spent their weekly earnings in 1968 and 2018.

Overall, both food and leisure accounted for the majority of the family’s weekly spending, while the lowest amount of money was allocated to personal goods, fuel and power throughout the period.

In 1968, majority of the family’s spending was allocated to food with 35%, 10% was spent on housing, clothing and footware were both allocated 10%, followed by leisure with approximately 9%, Household goods, personal goods and transport accounted for about 8% each. The smallest proportion of the weekly earnings was used for fuel and power.

In 2018, most of the weekly spending was allocated to leisure with about 23%, followed by housing at around 19%, food stood at approximately 17%. About 14% was used for transport. Household goods received about 8%. 5% was spent on clothing and foot ware. The smallest proportion was spent on fuel and power with 4% and personal goods at, just 4%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response covers all requirements of the task by identifying the main features and making relevant comparisons between 1968 and 2018. You successfully highlighted the shift in spending priorities, such as the decline in food expenditure and the rise in leisure costs. However, the analysis is somewhat descriptive, listing data points rather than synthesising them into a more analytical overview. To reach a higher band, ensure that comparisons are more explicit; for instance, noting that leisure spending more than doubled while food spending nearly halved would provide a stronger analytical focus. Overall, the response is accurate and addresses the prompt effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organised with a clear introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs focusing on the two specific years. The progression of ideas is clear, and you use basic cohesive devices such as 'In 1968' and 'In 2018' to structure the response. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat repetitive and mechanical. To improve, try to incorporate more varied linking phrases or transition words to connect sentences and ideas more fluidly, rather than relying on simple chronological markers. Paragraphing is used appropriately, which helps the reader follow the information easily.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'allocated', 'proportion', and 'earnings' correctly. There are some minor errors, such as 'footware' (spelled 'footwear') and the awkward phrasing 'food stood at approximately 17%'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the meaning clearly, it lacks the sophistication and precision required for higher bands. To improve, try to use more varied verbs to describe trends, such as 'surged', 'plummeted', or 'remained stable', and ensure accurate spelling of technical terms related to the chart categories.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical slips, such as missing articles ('the majority' instead of 'majority') and punctuation errors, specifically the comma splice in the final paragraph ('...fuel and power with 4% and personal goods at, just 4%'). The sentence structure is functional but lacks the variety and complexity that would demonstrate a higher level of control. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and consistent punctuation will help improve the accuracy of your writing.

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

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