Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-03

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 illustrates information regarding the families yearly income in the US in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Overall, as can be seen that more than 33 million households annual income is less than $25,000. But the income between $50,000 and $74,999 are mainly same in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Specifically, In 2015 yearly income of households which is more than the previous years. While annual income in 2007 is less than the $25,000 of 25 million families. Although the yearly income of 15 million households are more than $100,000.

Furthermore, There between 25 million and 30 million whose yearly income is in range of $25,000 abd $49,000 which is stable in different time period

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response only minimally addresses the prompt, failing to meet the minimum word length requirement of 150 words by stopping at 115 words. While there is an attempt to summarise the data, the selection of features is confused and contains several inaccurate statements about the chart. For instance, the claim that more than 33 million households have an income of less than $25,000 misreads the actual figures, and the details provided in the body paragraphs are disjointed and difficult to follow. To reach a higher level, the writer must ensure the word count requirement is met, report data accurately without misinterpretations, and provide a fully developed overview that captures the main trends across all categories.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response demonstrates some organisation with basic paragraphing and introductory signposts such as "Overall" and "Specifically". However, there is no clear overall progression of ideas, and the connections between sentences are frequently awkward or confusing. Cohesive devices are used in a mechanical and sometimes inaccurate manner, as seen in the phrase "There between 25 million and 30 million whose...", which disrupts the flow of information. Referencing and linking are inadequate, making the text feel disjointed. Improving coherence requires careful sequencing of ideas, clearer referencing, and a more logical flow between the overview and the detailed body paragraphs.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and repetitive, though it is minimally adequate to convey basic concepts related to the chart. There are noticeable lexical errors, such as "families yearly income" instead of "families' yearly income" and typos like "abd" instead of "and", which detract from the quality of the writing. The range of vocabulary is restricted to simple terms, and attempts at less common phrasing are hindered by word choice and collocation errors. To improve, the student should expand their range of vocabulary to include precise statistical terms and synonyms, whilst paying closer attention to word forms and spelling.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response relies on a limited range of sentence structures, and attempts at more complex sentences are often faulty. There are frequent grammatical errors, including missing prepositions, incorrect verb forms, and issues with subject-verb agreement, such as "the income between $50,000 and $74,999 are mainly same". Punctuation and phrasing errors also occur, such as starting a sentence with "There between..." which lacks a proper verb. These frequent errors can cause some difficulty for the reader. To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to demonstrate better control over basic sentence patterns, ensure accurate subject-verb agreement, and incorporate error-free complex structures.

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

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