Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-31

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 chart illustrates the weekly expenditure of families in one country fot the year of 1968 and 2018.In 1968, people spent the largest portion of their income in food but in 2018,expenses in leisure became the highest in terms of spending their income.

People spent more in food,fuel and power,clothing and footware and personal goods in 1968 compare to 2018.In 1968,people spent 35% of their income weekly in food and it decreased to a little more 15% in 2018.In addition,expenditure in fuel and power droped to less than 5% in 2018 from about 7% and clothing and footware also droped 5% in 2018 from 10% in 1968.Moreover, expenditure in personal goods also decreases about 4% and became 4% in 2018

However,people spent same amount of money for household goods wheres the expenditure in housing,transpor and leisure incresed in 2018 compare to 1968.In 2018 expenditure in housing is about 19% which was 10% in 1968.Additionaly people spent about 5% more in transpor in 2018 and an significant rise can seen in the expenditure of leisure which reached about 22% compare to sligtlly less than 10% in 1968.

To conclude ,it is evident from the graph that people want to enjoy their leisure by spending the largest portion of their income in 2018 where in 1968,people wanted to spend mostly on their food.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main contrast accurately: food was the largest category in 1968, while leisure led in 2018. You also select relevant changes, including the fall in food spending, the rise in housing and transport, and the unchanged household-goods figure. Most reported values are close to the chart, though food in 2018 is described as “a little more 15%” rather than about 17%, and the 1968 fuel figure is slightly high. The concluding claim that people “want to enjoy” leisure goes beyond what the chart can establish; report the spending pattern without inferring motives. The overview is clear, but a more precise summary of the largest increases and decreases, with consistently accurate figures, would make coverage more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an opening summary, two paragraphs grouping decreases and increases, and a concluding comparison. This gives the reader a coherent route through the data, and transitions such as “However,” “In addition,” and “Moreover” help signal relationships. Some linking is mechanical, however, and the final “To conclude” repeats the opening rather than adding a useful synthesis. Several sentences also pack multiple categories and comparisons together, making the progression less smooth. For example, the long paragraph beginning “People spent more in food…” could be divided or organised around the main declines. Use clearer topic sentences and vary referencing so that each comparison connects naturally to the next.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “weekly expenditure,” “largest portion,” “decreased,” “expenditure,” and “reached,” so the main trends are generally understandable. However, the range and control are uneven: “spent more in food” and “spent same amount of money” are imprecise collocations, while “want to enjoy their leisure” introduces an unsupported interpretation. Spelling errors such as “fot,” “footware,” “droped,” “transpor,” and “incresed” are noticeable, and repeated use of “spent” and “expenditure” limits flexibility. Aim for accurate, concise reporting verbs and collocations, such as “accounted for,” “fell to,” and “rose by,” and proofread category names carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including contrast clauses with “but” and “however,” and the overall meaning is usually clear. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly in articles, verb forms, agreement, and sentence boundaries. For example, “in 2018,expenses” needs a space after the comma, “clothing … droped 5%” should express the change as “dropped to 5%,” and “an significant rise can seen” needs both the correct article and a passive verb form. The opening also runs two sentences together: “2018.In 1968”. These errors do not generally prevent understanding, but they reduce accuracy. Practise checking each sentence for a complete verb phrase, correct articles, and punctuation, while retaining your attempts at varied sentence structures.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.