Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-11

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 5.5)

The bar chart compares the proportion of families (in millions) according to their annual income (in millions) in the US across three distinct years: 2007, 2011, and 2015.

Overall, the number of households earning exorbitant amount of money annually rose significantly and dominated by the end of the period, while the number of families who belong to the least wealthy class increased marginally over the years.

In 2007, the proportion of individuals having more than or equal to $100 million annual income, starting at close to 30 million in 2007, reaching to the middle of 25 and 30 million in 2011, and peaked at nearly 33 million in 2015. While just from 25 million in 2007, the number families lie in the category of $75 million yearly income experience a growth by far in 2011 and reported at just below 30 million, and levelling off at roughly 27 million by 2015.

Additionally, families earning $50 million to $75,999 per annum remained same in term of their numbers. However, the count of families having yearly turnover between $25 million to $49 million topped at 30 million in 2011 from just above 25 million in 2007, and fell back to approximately 27 million in 2015. Moreover, the number of households earning less that $25 million annually oscillated over the period, 25 million in 2007 and roughly 26 million in 2015 after surging at just below 30 million in 2011.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses the task by identifying key trends and making comparisons. However, there is a significant issue with the data interpretation. The prompt refers to income categories (e.g., $100,000+), but you have consistently misread the units as 'millions' (e.g., '$100 million annual income'). This is a major factual error that misrepresents the data provided in the chart. While you have selected relevant features, the accuracy of your reporting is compromised by this misunderstanding of the scale. To improve, ensure you carefully read the axis labels and legends before drafting your response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs. There is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Overall,' 'In 2007,' and 'Additionally,' which help guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical or awkward, such as 'While just from 25 million in 2007, the number families lie in the category...'. The referencing is generally clear, but the flow between sentences could be smoother to achieve a higher band. Overall, the structure is functional and supports the development of the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'proportion,' 'marginally,' 'oscillated,' and 'surging.' However, there are instances of inaccurate word choice, such as 'exorbitant amount of money' (which is subjective and inappropriate for a factual report) and the repeated misuse of 'million' when referring to income brackets. These errors in lexical precision and collocation affect the clarity of the report. To reach a higher band, focus on using precise terminology that accurately reflects the data provided in the prompt rather than descriptive or emotive language.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'dominated by the end of the period' (missing subject), 'number families lie' (missing 'of'), and 'remained same in term of' (should be 'remained the same in terms of'). Additionally, some sentences are fragmented or lack proper verb agreement, such as 'starting at close to 30 million... reaching to the middle... and peaked'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on subject-verb agreement and ensuring every sentence has a clear main verb.

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

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