Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-02

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows the number of households in the US by their annual income in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

THE BAR CHART ILLUSTRATES THE FIGURE OF HOUSEHOLDS IN THE UNITED STATES BY THEIR ANNUAL INCOME IN YEAR 2007, 2011 AND 2015.

OVERALL, IT IS CLEAR THAT THE NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS WITH HIGHER INCOME WAS HIGHEST THROUGHOUT THE PERIOD, WHEREAS THE FIGURE OF HOUSEHOLDS WITH MODERATRE INCOME REMAINED CONSTANT. HOWEVER, THE NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS WITH LOWER INCOME WAS LOWER AT THE BEGINNING, INCREASED IN THE NEXT YEAR AND THEN DECREASED.

IN 2007, 30 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS HAVE $100,000 OR MORE INCOME. AFTERTHAT, IT DECLINED TO APPROXIMATELY 28MILLIONS, BRFORE RISING TO JUST UNDER 35 MILLION AT THE END. THE NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS WITH INCOME LESS THAN $25,000 AND $25,000-$49,999 STOOD AT 25 MILLIONS AND 26 MILLIONS. OVER THE FOLLOWING YEAR, IT ROSE TO APPROXIMATELY 29 MILLIONS AND 30 MILLION, THEN FELL TO JUST UNDER 30 MILLION AT THE END.

HOWEVER, 20 MILLIONS HOUSEHOLDS AND AROUND 15 MILLIONS HOUSES HAVE INCOME OF $50,000-$74,999 AND $75,000-$99,999 RESPECTIVELY. AFTERWARDS, THESE FIGURES REMAINDED CONSTANT.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response provides a clear overview of the main trends and selects key data points to support the description. However, there are inaccuracies in the data reporting. For instance, the student states that the number of households with $50,000-$74,999 and $75,000-$99,999 income remained constant, whereas the chart shows fluctuations. Additionally, the grouping of data is slightly confusing, and the summary of the lower-income brackets is somewhat imprecise. While the main features are identified, the lack of precision in reporting the figures prevents a higher score. The response covers all parts of the prompt but lacks the analytical depth required for a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs. Cohesive devices such as 'overall', 'however', and 'afterwards' are used to link ideas. However, the progression of ideas within the body paragraphs is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear, particularly when discussing multiple income brackets simultaneously. The use of paragraphing is appropriate, but the flow between sentences could be improved to ensure a more natural progression of information. Overall, the text is coherent, and the arrangement of information is logical enough to follow without difficulty.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to describe trends such as 'increased', 'decreased', and 'remained constant'. There are some spelling errors, such as 'moderatre', 'afterthat', 'brfore', and 'remainded', which are distracting. The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive, relying on basic terms to describe the data. To improve, the student should incorporate more varied synonyms for change and stability and ensure greater attention to spelling accuracy. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the main points, it lacks the precision and flexibility expected at higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues (e.g., '30 million households have' instead of 'had', '15 millions houses') and incorrect pluralization (e.g., '28 millions'). Punctuation is generally functional, but the frequent errors in verb tense and noun-number agreement are noticeable. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to impact the overall clarity of the report. A more careful proofreading process would help to reduce these recurring slips and improve the grammatical control.

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

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