Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-18
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 illustrates the number of hhouseholds in united states, measured in millions, across five different annual income groups in 2007,2011 and 2015.
Overall, the number of households earnings $100,000 or more increased considerably over the periodand reached the highest figures in 2015. In contrast, the $75,000-$99,999 category remained the smallest throughout the period. The figures for middle-income groups changed relatively little.
In 2007, approximately 25 million households earned less than $25,000 per year, while around 27 million were earning between $25,000-$49,999 category. The number earning $50,000-$74,999 was about 21 million, compared with roughly 14 million for those earning $75,000-$99,999.
Meanwhile, approximately 30 million households earned $100,000 or more
By 2011, the number of households earning less than $25,000 had risen to around 29 million, while the $25,000-$49,999 group increased slightly to approximately 30 million. The figures for the two higher-middle-income groups remained almost unchanged.
However, households earning at least $100,000 fell slightly to approximately 28 million
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The student covers the main features and trends of the chart well, successfully identifying key categories such as the highest earners and the smallest category, and making appropriate comparisons across the years 2007, 2011, and 2015. However, the response stops abruptly in the middle of describing 2011 and completely omits any mention of the 2015 data figures in the body paragraphs, meaning it only partially addresses the requirements of the prompt regarding the final year. Despite this truncation, the overview and initial body details are accurate and well-grounded in the visual data. This incomplete treatment of the data prevents a higher score.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The text demonstrates a clear overall arrangement with an introductory paragraph, an overview, and initial body paragraphs detailing specific data points. Transitional phrases like 'Overall', 'In contrast', 'Meanwhile', and 'However' are used to connect ideas logically. Paragraphing is appropriately structured to separate the overview from the detailed body data. However, due to the abrupt ending of the text, the organizational progression feels incomplete. Referencing and cohesive devices are generally manageable, but the lack of a final concluding section on 2015 disrupts the overall logical flow.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for an Academic Task 1 response, including terms like 'illustrates', 'considerably', 'category', and 'remain almost unchanged'. There are some basic spelling and typographical errors, such as 'hhouseholds' and capitalization slips like 'united states'. Some collocation and phrasing choices are slightly awkward, such as 'earnings $100,000 or more' instead of 'earning'. Nevertheless, the lexical range is sufficient to convey the intended meaning without major impedance to communication.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, utilizing clauses such as 'while around 27 million were earning...' and 'The number earning $50,000-$74,999 was about 21 million, compared with roughly 14 million for those earning...'. There are several grammatical errors and punctuation omissions, including missing full stops at the end of sentences (e.g., after 'periodand' and 'more'), missing prepositions, and tense inconsistencies. However, simple sentences are generally controlled and communication is rarely impeded by these mechanical and grammatical errors.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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