Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-09-27
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 5.0)
The Bar graph gives the information about the annual earning in th US in 2007,2011 and 2015.
As can be seen from graph, Households earning greater than $[redacted phone] were higher in given years.However, Households earning greater than $75000 and less than $99999 were least over the given period of time.
It can be seen from graph that Families earning greater than more than $[redacted phone]
were peaked at 28 million wnere as Families earning between ($75000-$99999) were least among all and marked at 14 million.Furtheremore other Families earning less than $75000 were under 30 million.In 2011, Number of Families hovered around similar figures as in 2007 and Families earning between ($25000-$49999) were peaked at 30 million while Families earning between($75000-$99999) fluctuated around 14 million.Furthermore,Similar trend can be seen in 2015 where Household having annual income higher than $[redacted phone] were peaked at 32 million and Families earning less than $[redacted phone] were
nearly equal to their initial earning as in 2007.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the prompt by summarising the main features of the chart regarding US household income in 2007, 2011, and 2015. However, there are several inaccuracies in quoting the data from the visual. For instance, the writer states that households earning greater than $100,000 peaked at 28 million in 2007, whereas the correct figure is approximately 29.5 million. Additionally, some categories are misidentified or confused throughout the body paragraphs. While an overview is attempted, the lack of precision and some unsupported generalisations prevent the response from achieving a higher band score. The selection of data is somewhat haphazard, missing key comparative highlights across the three years.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response is divided into paragraphs, but the paragraph structure is weak and somewhat disjointed. While cohesive devices such as 'As can be seen from graph', 'However', and 'Furthermore' are employed, their mechanical usage and punctuation errors (such as missing spaces after commas and periods) disrupt the flow. Referencing is occasionally unclear, and logical progression within the paragraphs is hindered by repetitive phrasing and disjointed sentences. The overall arrangement lacks the smooth logical transitions expected at higher band levels.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is relatively basic and repetitive, with frequent reliance on phrases like 'earning greater than' and 'Families earning'. There are noticeable collocation and word choice errors, such as 'annual earning' instead of 'annual earnings' or 'annual income', and awkward phrasing like 'were peaked at'. Spelling errors are also present, including 'wnere as' and 'Furtheremore'. While the vocabulary is adequate to convey a basic meaning, it lacks the range and precision required for a higher score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is weak. There are frequent errors in article usage (e.g., 'gives the information about', 'in th US'), missing subjects, and incorrect verb forms (e.g., 'were peaked at' instead of 'peaked at'). Punctuation is often faulty, with multiple missing spaces after punctuation marks and incorrect spacing around parentheses. These errors occasionally cause difficulty for the reader.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.