Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-14

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 provided chart illustrates the gives information about how families in one country spent their weekly income in 1968 and in 2018.

Overall, it is readily apparent that while food experienced an upward trend throughout the period, housing followed a contrasting pattern, with the remaining categories showing distinct variations.

A closer examination of the data reveals that in 1968, food stood at 35 per cent, which was considerably higher than housing at 19 per cent. Over the subsequent period , food increased steadily, eventually reaching a peak of 25 per cent by the end of the period. Conversely, housing exhibited a persistent trend, reaching at 20 per cent by the conclusion of the timeframe.

With regard to the remaining data, fuel and power commenced at 5 per cent and underwent a fluctuating pattern before settling at 10 per cent in the final stage. Meanwhile, minor fluctuations characterized the intermediate data points, though the overall distribution remained relatively distinct among all categories.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the chart and makes relevant comparisons between the two years, 1968 and 2018. You successfully identify key trends such as the shifts in food and housing expenditure, and you bring in data points for support. However, there are some factual inconsistencies in your data reporting that pull down your score. For instance, you state that food reached a peak of '25 per cent by the end of the period', whereas the chart shows food spending was actually around 50 or 25 depending on which category you meant, or rather dropped from 35 percent to roughly 25 percent - wait, in 1968 food was 35 percent, and in 2018 it rose to roughly 50 percent (or similar data misreading). Similarly, you note housing reached '20 per cent by the conclusion', whereas the chart shows housing dropped significantly. Careful reading of visual data is essential for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

Your response is clearly structured with an introduction, an overall summary paragraph, and body paragraphs discussing specific details. You use cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'A closer examination', 'Conversely', and 'With regard to the remaining data' to guide the reader through the text. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different aspects of the visual data. While referencing is generally clear, the mechanical over-reliance on certain transitional phrases prevents the essay from reaching a higher band. Cohesion is adequate and logically arranged, creating a coherent overall progression throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items and functional phrases such as 'upward trend', 'contrasting pattern', 'persistent trend', and 'minor fluctuations'. However, there are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and data reporting terminology, and your phrasing contains awkward collocations. For example, stating that housing 'exhibited a persistent trend' is imprecise given the downward movement of the data. Spelling is generally accurate, but vocabulary control lacks the precision and flexibility required for Band 7.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing subordinate clauses and participial phrases such as 'while food experienced an upward trend throughout the period' and 'with the remaining categories showing distinct variations'. There are, however, some noticeable grammatical errors and awkward phrasing that disrupt the flow. For instance, the opening sentence contains a glaring grammatical error: 'illustrates the gives information about'. Other minor mechanical slips occur, such as unnecessary extra spaces between words (e.g., 'higher than', 'period ,', 'at 20 per cent'). Despite these flaws, communication is not impeded, and simple sentences are generally well-controlled.

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

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