Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-20

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 6.5)

The bar chart illustrates the household count in the USA according to their annual income in 2007, 2011, and 2015.

Overall, the number of households with varying income levels had increased by the end of the period, despite a minor fluctuation in one category. Notably, the household count earning $100,000 or more increased dramatically, becoming the most popular category by the end.

Firstly, in 2007 houses generating annual income of less than $25,000 had increased significantly in 2011 at approximately just below 30 million before experiencing a minimal decline in 2015. The number of houses generating up to $50,000 followed the same trend, reaching 30 million in 2011.

In addition, the household count earning between $50,000-$75,000 anually recorded the same throughout the period at just over 20 million. Moreover, houses with salaries of $100,000 were the highest in 2007, climbed to approximately 34 million in 2015 after facing a substantial decrease in 2011. Houses with the annual income of $75,000-$99,999 had the lowest number over the eight-year period, comprising approximately 14-15 million.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student covers all parts of the task well, providing an overview and reporting the main features and trends of the US household income data across the three years. The overview successfully highlights the general increase in households and points out the significant rise in the $100,000 or more category. Key figures are generally well-reported, such as identifying the top-earning bracket reaching approximately 34 million in 2015 and the $75,000–$99,999 bracket remaining the lowest at around 14-15 million. However, there are minor inaccuracies in reporting specific intermediate data points; for instance, the text states that households earning less than $25,000 'had increased significantly in 2011 at approximately just below 30 million before experiencing a minimal decline', whereas the chart shows 28.5 million in 2011 dropping to 28 million, which is quite a minor shift rather than a major one. Despite these slight misinterpretations of magnitude, the main features are clearly addressed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is logically organised into an introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs covering specific income brackets. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different groups of data. Cohesive devices are employed to guide the reader through the data, such as 'Overall', 'Notably', 'Firstly', and 'In addition'. However, referencing and transitions are occasionally slightly mechanical or imprecise, as seen in phrases like 'followed the same trend, reaching 30 million in 2011' where the connection to the previous sentence's exact trajectory feels somewhat forced. Progression is clear overall, but minor clumsiness in cohesion prevents it from reaching a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate and generally appropriate range of vocabulary for task 1, successfully utilising terms like 'illustrates', 'fluctuation', 'dramatically', 'decline', and 'substantial decrease'. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary, though some word choices are slightly unnatural or inaccurate. For instance, the phrase 'household count earning $100,000 or more increased dramatically, becoming the most popular category' uses 'popular', which is an odd collocation for statistical categories where 'common' or 'frequent' would be more precise. Similarly, using 'houses' interchangeably with 'households' ('houses generating annual income') is imprecise. Nevertheless, spelling is accurate, and vocabulary is sufficient to convey the meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating a reasonable command of grammar. Examples of complex structures include '...despite a minor fluctuation in one category' and '...before experiencing a minimal decline in 2015.' There are some minor grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'recorded the same throughout the period' (missing a noun or object) and preposition usage like 'with salaries of $100,000' rather than 'with incomes of'. Punctuation is generally sound, and these minor errors do not impede communication, allowing the reader to follow the descriptions easily.

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