Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-02

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 5.5)

The given bar graph compares how average families in one country spent their weekly income in 1968 and in 2018 in terms of percentage. It is also clear that average spending has been significantly decreased compared to 1968 in 2018.

Overall, the graph demonstrates that families in 1968 used to spent their capital in food while only spending very few amount in personal goods, fuel power. However, families in 2018 have high proportion of their spending in leisure.

Looking at the average spending of families in 1968, they used to aggressively spent on food which is 35% of their weekly spending. For housing, clothing and footwear they used to spent exactly 10%. Fuel and power had lowest spending as only around 6% was spent for it. Other expenses like: Household goods, Personal goods and Transport, the spending was similar around 8%.

Turning around to average spending of families in 2018, it is seen that families spend roughly 22% of their income in leisure while for food they spend around 16%. Weekly spending for housing was approximately 19% and for transport was 14%. Coincidently, the percentage of spending for personal goods, fuel and power was roughly same around 4%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main features of the chart and provided a clear comparison between the two years. You highlighted the shift from food-centric spending in 1968 to leisure-focused spending in 2018. However, the overview is slightly inaccurate; the graph shows percentages of weekly income, not total spending amounts, so stating that 'average spending has been significantly decreased' is a misinterpretation of the data. To reach a higher band, ensure your overview focuses on the trends in proportions rather than absolute values. You have included relevant data points to support your descriptions, which is a strength.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is logically organized into paragraphs, with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'However' and 'Looking at', to guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical or unnatural, such as 'Turning around to average spending'. Additionally, the referencing is sometimes unclear; for example, in the second paragraph, you mention 'fuel power' without a clear connection to the previous sentence. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions between sentences would enhance the flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'proportion', 'leisure', and 'weekly income'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'used to spent their capital' (should be 'spent their income') and 'very few amount' (should be 'a very small amount'). The phrase 'fuel power' is also imprecise. To improve, focus on using more natural collocations and ensuring that your vocabulary is used accurately in context. You have enough vocabulary to convey your meaning, but it lacks the precision required for higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Common issues include tense inconsistencies, such as 'used to spent' (should be 'used to spend'), and subject-verb agreement errors, such as 'fuel and power had lowest spending' (missing 'the'). There are also punctuation errors, such as the colon usage in 'Other expenses like: Household goods'. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your main points, they occur frequently enough to impact the overall fluency of the response. Focusing on verb forms and articles will help improve your accuracy.

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

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