Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-13

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 how much a family spend their weekly income on eight different categories in 1968 and 2018.All the figures are in percentages.

Overall, food is the highest spending category in 1968, where as leisuer was the topper of the list in 2018. In addition, Fuel and powe was the least spending category in 1968, while personal goods and fuel both ranked last in spending.

The most noticeable feature for the year 1968 is that food topped the list with exactly 35% of weekly income , and in contrast, fuel and power ranked last with slightly more than 5%. Moreover, household goods, personal goods and transport remained the same with well under 10% spending.

In 2018, the highest spending category was leisure with around 23%, followed by housing with 19% and food with approximately 17%. In contrast, the lowest spending categories were personal goods and fuel and power at around 4%. For both years Household goods remained unchanged with

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the chart’s subject and give a clear overview of the main shifts: food is highest in 1968, while leisure leads in 2018, and fuel and power is among the lowest categories. The figures you report for food, leisure, housing and the lowest categories are broadly consistent with the chart. However, some important comparisons are only partly developed. For example, you do not report the substantial rise in transport from 8% to 14%, or the fall in clothing and footwear from 10% to 5%. The final point about household goods is also left incomplete, despite its unchanged 8% share being a useful comparison. Include these changes to make the summary more complete and precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a generally clear structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs describing each year. This helps the reader follow the main features, and linking expressions such as “Overall,” “Moreover,” and “In contrast” show an attempt to connect comparisons. However, some connections are mechanical or unclear, particularly “Moreover, household goods, personal goods and transport remained the same,” which does not specify that these categories had equal values within 1968 rather than unchanged values across both years. The final sentence also stops before completing its comparison, disrupting the progression. Use clearer references and finish each point; grouping categories by increases, decreases and stable spending would create a more logical flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for describing data, including “compares,” “ranked last,” “followed by,” and “remained unchanged.” These choices communicate the main comparisons, and the reader can understand the response despite some imprecise or misspelled wording. For example, “topper of the list” is informal and unnatural in this context, while “leisuer,” “powe,” and “footware” contain spelling errors. “The least spending category” is also an awkward collocation; “the category with the lowest share” would be more natural. Aim for precise chart language and check spelling, especially in category names. This would make your descriptions more fluent and appropriately academic.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including contrast structures such as “while” and “in contrast,” and most of your meaning remains clear. Some grammatical errors are present, however. The opening says “how much a family spend,” where the subject and verb do not agree; “how much families spent” would be accurate. The overview’s “where as” should be written as one word, “whereas.” There are also punctuation and spacing problems, such as the missing space after “2018.” The final sentence, “For both years Household goods remained unchanged with,” is incomplete and leaves the grammatical relationship unfinished. Review agreement, sentence completion and punctuation when editing.

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