Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-02

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 5.5)

From the given bar graph we can conclude that in 1968 almost 35% of the weekly income was spent in foods whereas half of it is spent in 2018, the housing was cheaper in 1968 and more expensive in 2018 as it takes almost 20% of weekly income, The fuel and power posses a slight difference in spending ,whereas clothing and accessories spending has been reduced to almost 50% of what families spent in 1968, Household goods in 2018 take the same portion of weekly spending as of 1968. The transport has become much more expensive in 2018 as it was way cheaper in 1968 and saved a good amount of weekly income. The leisure in 2018 seems to be most expensive of all the categories in comparison with 1968. Families in 1968 spent most of their weekly income on Food , whereas in 2018 they spend their most of the income in leisures.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main shifts: food falls from about 35% to 17%, housing rises to around 19%, and leisure becomes the largest category in 2018, while food is largest in 1968. You also note that household-goods spending is unchanged and clothing spending roughly halves. These are relevant comparisons and give the response a clear overall message. However, some details are vague or imprecise: “fuel and power posses a slight difference” does not state that the share falls from about 6% to 4%, and transport is described as “much more expensive” without reporting its rise from 8% to 14%. More precise figures and a clearer overview of the largest increases and decreases would make the key features more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response moves through several chart categories and ends by comparing the largest spending areas in each year, so the reader can follow its general purpose. However, it is presented as one long, comma-linked sequence rather than being organised into an overview and grouped comparisons. The repeated use of “whereas” and “as” creates awkward links, and the sentence beginning “The fuel and power…” runs into the clothing and household-goods comparisons without clear boundaries. Group related changes—for example, falling shares together and rising shares together—and use full stops to separate the main points. This would create clearer progression and make the relationships between comparisons easier to understand.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant chart vocabulary such as “weekly income,” “portion,” “spending,” and “categories,” and phrases like “most of their weekly income” help communicate the main contrast. There is some variety in describing change, including “reduced” and “become much more expensive.” However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for describing proportions: “spent in foods,” “the fuel and power posses a slight difference,” and “saved a good amount” do not express the data clearly. “Leisures” is also not the appropriate plural form in this context. Aim for precise reporting verbs and collocations such as “accounted for,” “rose,” and “fell,” and use “leisure” as an uncountable category.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to connect comparisons in longer sentences, and the meaning is generally recoverable. However, the response relies heavily on long sentences joined by commas, which leads to run-on structures and makes punctuation difficult to control. There are also some errors in tense and sentence construction: “whereas half of it is spent in 2018” shifts from past to present, and “they spend their most of the income” has an awkward grammatical structure. The opening sentence also joins several independent comparisons without clear sentence boundaries. Use past-tense forms consistently when describing the two years, and divide the information into shorter, complete sentences while retaining some varied complex structures.

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