Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-29

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 5.0)

The above chart illustrates the information of how families in one country spent their weekly income in 1968 and in 2018.

Overall, chart shows that families spent more money on buying food in1968 and spent low money to buying personal goods in 2018.

In chart, people spent money to being leisure is at point 9 in 1968 and in 2018 people spent money to being leisure is at point 22. People spent money to get transport is at 8 point in 1968 and is at 7 in 2018. personal goods in chart is at point 8 in 1968 and at 4 in 2018.Household goods is at point 8 in both 1968 and in 2018.Clothing and footware is at 10 point in 1968 and at 5 in 2018. Fuel and power in chart is at 6 point in 1968 and at 4 in 2018..Housing is at point 10 in 1968 and at 19 in 2018. Food is at point 35 in 1968 and at 17 in 2018. This chart demonstrate that people spent more money in buying food in 1968 and spent low money to being leisue in 2018. All the points in the diagrame shows the percentage of weelkly income.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the chart’s subject and report several relevant figures, including food falling from 35% to 17%, housing rising from 10% to 19%, and leisure increasing from 9% to 22%. However, the overview is incomplete and partly inaccurate: it says families spent the least on personal goods in 2018, although leisure is highest at 22% and fuel and personal goods are lowest at 4%. The final sentence also incorrectly says leisure was low in 2018. In addition, transport is reported as 7% in 2018, rather than approximately 14%. To make the response more complete, give a clear overview of the main increases and decreases, and check each comparison against the chart.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a basic structure, with an introduction, an overview, and a paragraph listing category figures. This helps the reader recognise the topic and locate some information. However, the body mostly repeats the same sentence pattern—“people spent money… is at point”—so the information feels like a list rather than a logically grouped comparison. The overview and conclusion also conflict: the overview identifies personal goods as low, while the conclusion says leisure was low. Grouping categories that rose, fell, or stayed stable, and using clear links such as “by contrast” and “while,” would create stronger progression. Check punctuation and spacing between sentences to make the sequence easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant basic terms such as “weekly income,” “food,” “housing,” and “household goods,” so the reader can identify the categories being compared. However, the vocabulary is limited and repetitive, particularly in repeated phrases such as “spent money” and “at point.” Some expressions are not natural for describing a chart: “spent money to being leisure” and “spent low money” make the meaning less clear. There are also spelling errors in “footware,” “leisue,” “diagrame,” and “weelkly.” Use precise reporting language such as “accounted for,” “rose to,” “fell to,” and “percentage of weekly income,” and check spelling of the chart labels.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

Most sentences use simple subject–verb patterns, and the opening sentence communicates the chart’s topic. However, the range is limited, and frequent errors affect clarity. For example, “Overall, chart shows” is missing an article, while “families spent more money on buying food in1968” has a spacing problem and an awkward construction. The repeated pattern “people spent money to being leisure is at point 9” combines incompatible structures; a clearer form would be “Leisure accounted for 9% in 1968.” There are also punctuation problems, including a double full stop after “2018” and missing spaces after full stops. Practise accurate comparative sentences and vary them with structures using “whereas” or “compared with.”

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