Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-13

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 4.0)

The chart illustrates the number of households in the US by their yearly income in 2007 ,2011and 2015. as we can see that the mainly the highest number of household in 2015. In starting of 2015 there less than $25,000 and the lowest is around the 15 household that the one is the lowest income received in 2015.

in starting of 2007,income goes to 25 and highest and the lowest is the mainly the $75,000 to $99,999. This income is the mainly the lowest in every year. the one of the highest income is come in 2015 up tp $100,000 and the mainly the highest number about to the 35 goes to straight.moreover in 2011, avarage income are made furthermore in 2011 income goes to $50,000 to $74,000 and after that household number are going to down and the maximum the number of household they reach uptp 14 or 15. and than after the ending of 2011 they earn uptp $100,000 income.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.5

The response attempts to summarize the chart showing household income in the US, but the information is presented in a very confused and inaccurate manner. For instance, the writer states that the lowest is 'around the 15 household' and makes fragmented claims about various income brackets without presenting a clear overview or properly comparing the data across the three years (2007, 2011, and 2015). Key features of the chart, such as the overall distribution trends or major shifts between income tiers, are largely missed or misinterpreted. Consequently, the task is only partially addressed, earning a Band 4.5.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

Coherence and cohesion are severely hindered by the lack of clear paragraphing and logical progression. The essay is broken into only two dense, rambling blocks of text that mix multiple years and income categories together without warning. Sentences frequently start abruptly (e.g., 'as we can see that...', 'in starting of 2007...'), and cohesive devices are either absent, repetitive, or misused (such as 'and than after the ending of 2011'). There is no clear organizational structure to guide the reader through the data, resulting in a performance that aligns with Band 4.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary used is very basic and repetitive, heavily relying on simple terms like 'number', 'income', 'highest', and 'lowest'. There are frequent awkward word choices and unnatural collocations, such as 'in starting of 2015', 'income goes to 25', and 'avarage income are made'. The student struggles to accurately report statistical data or economic categories from the prompt. Because the lexical range is narrow and errors frequently strain the reader's understanding, a Band 4.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

Grammatical control is weak throughout the response, featuring a very limited range of sentence structures. Almost every sentence contains serious errors in tense, subject-verb agreement, and clause structure. Examples include 'the one of the highest income is come in 2015 up tp $100,000' and 'household number are going to down'. Punctuation and capitalization are also erratic, with missing spaces after commas (e.g., '2007 ,2011and 2015'). Due to the high frequency of basic grammatical errors that frequently impede communication, the response fits Band 4.0.

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