Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-01

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 bar graph compares the percentage of weekly amount which families spent on different categories in one country in 1968 and in 2018.

Overall, people spent more money on their food in 1968 while, the money spent on their houses and to buy clothes and footware was same. On the other hand, in 2018, citizens were more likely to spent on their leisure facilities.

Firstly, people spent a large amount of money on their food in 1968, this proportion was 35%. Following it, people spent equal precentage on their houses and clothing and footware. This percentage was 10%. Whereas, people spent smallest proportion on their fuel and power in 1968, this was only about 7%.

Secondly, in 2010, people spent same proportion of their weekly earnings on fuel and households goods. This was almost 4% but it was least amount of money spent on any category. People preferred to spent more money on their leisure in 2010, this per cent was approximately 23%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the broad contrast that food took the largest share in 1968 and leisure was prominent in 2018, and you include some figures, such as 35% for food and 10% for housing and clothing in 1968. However, the response only partially reports the chart and the overview contains a major inaccuracy: housing and clothing were not the same in both years; they were equal only in 1968, while housing rose to 19% and clothing fell to 5% in 2018. You also refer to 2010 instead of 2018, and the claim that fuel and household goods were both about 4% is incorrect: household goods remained at 8%. Important comparisons, including the rise in transport and the fall in food, are missing or not developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs beginning “Firstly” and “Secondly.” This gives the reader some sense of how the information is grouped. However, progression is limited because the body paragraphs list a few categories without systematically comparing the two years, and several key changes are left out. Linking is also sometimes awkward or inaccurate: “Following it” and “Whereas” do not connect the surrounding ideas smoothly, while repeated “people spent” makes the account feel repetitive. Organise the details into clear comparisons—for example, categories that rose versus those that fell—and use linking phrases to show those relationships.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant chart vocabulary, including “proportion,” “percentage,” “category,” and “weekly earnings,” so the reader can generally understand the subject. There is also an attempt to vary wording with phrases such as “were more likely” and “preferred.” However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for describing spending: “weekly amount,” “spent on their houses,” and “leisure facilities” do not precisely express the chart categories or proportions. Spelling errors such as “precentage” and “footware” are noticeable, and “spent” is repeated frequently. Aim for precise collocations such as “accounted for,” “share of weekly income,” and “expenditure on housing,” while checking spelling and category names.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast introduced by “while” and a sentence beginning “On the other hand.” The main meaning is usually recoverable, but control is uneven. Several sentences join independent clauses with commas, as in “people spent a large amount of money on their food in 1968, this proportion was 35%” and “Whereas, people spent smallest proportion…”. The overview also has faulty structure in “while, the money spent… was same,” and “were more likely to spent” uses the wrong verb form. Work on sentence boundaries, articles and verb patterns: for example, use “were more likely to spend” and separate complete clauses with a full stop or an appropriate conjunction.

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.