Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-02

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 6.0)

The bar chart compares the percentage of average weekly spending of income in eight different categories in a country from 1968 to 2018.

Overall, the spending pattern recorded to be highest in food in 1968, whereas the largest proportion of income spent on leisure in 2018, with housing accounted for the second largest category.

Nearly 35% of weekly income spent on food, which made it the most popular expenditure in both years, whereas the income spent on food, fuel & power, clothing & footwear, and personal goods in 1968 was higher than in 2018. The housing and clothing & footwear made up nearly 10%, while the fuel & power was the lowest spending category in 1968.

In 2018, leisure recorded as the largest spending at 22%, whereas the housing remained the second-highest expenditure with approximately 19%. Furthermore, the food and transport accounted for 17% and 14% of the total share. Fuel & power and personal gooda were the least prioritised categories, stood at 4%. Notably, the weekly income spent on household goods was the equal in both years at almost 13%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by selecting and reporting the main features of the chart, providing a clear overview. However, some ideas are under-developed or contain inaccuracies. For instance, the statement that food was the most popular expenditure in 'both years' contradicts the chart, which shows leisure overtook food as the highest category in 2018 at 22%. Furthermore, the claim that weekly spending on household goods was equal in both years at 'almost 13%' is factually incorrect; the chart indicates 8% for both years. These inaccuracies and under-developed comparisons prevent the response from achieving a higher band. The overview appropriately highlights the shift from food to leisure as the highest categories.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response presents a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction, overview paragraph, and body paragraphs. Information is generally sequenced logically, starting with general trends and moving into specific category details. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical. For example, the transitional phrase 'whereas the income spent on' introduces a confusing comparison structure, and referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the dangling clause in 'with housing accounted for the second largest category'. Paragraphing is used, but the internal logical progression within paragraphs sometimes stumbles due to repetitive sentence openings and slightly awkward cohesive ties.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully conveying basic comparative concepts such as 'proportion', 'category', 'expenditure', and 'prioritised'. The writer attempts less common vocabulary with some success, but there are notable word choice and spelling errors that prevent a higher score. For example, 'personal gooda' contains a typo, and the phrasing 'the spending pattern recorded to be highest' is unnatural. Additionally, the confusion over statistical terms leads to lexical inaccuracies, such as stating household goods were 'equal in both years at almost 13%' when the actual value was 8%. Despite these slips, meaning is generally communicated without significant impediment.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing clauses introduced by 'whereas' and 'while'. There are some grammatical errors in sentence structures and verb forms, such as 'leisure recorded as the largest spending' (passive voice needed) and 'with housing accounted for' (tense and participle error). Prepositions inside grammatical patterns are also occasionally misused. However, these errors are relatively infrequent and rarely impede communication, allowing the reader to follow the intended data points easily. Punctuation is generally functional, supporting the flow of the text.

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