Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-06

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 the number of household in the US by their annual income in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Overall, it is clear that highest number of annual income is recoded in 2015, whereas the lowest amount is given in 2011. In each year the three categories heavly fluctuated, while one categoriy remained steady in every year.

Surtinzing deeper into obtainable information, income of 100,000 and more recoded peck in 2015, whereas in 2011 13 milion households with 75,000-99,999 were the lowest. Furthermore, the household with the income of 50,00-74,999 reamained stangant every year.

Inaddition, the three category which includes less tahn 25,000, 25,000-49,000 and 50,000-74,999 fluctuated beteween 20 milion household to 30 milion household. followe by, the household with income of 100,000 and more remained the highest in every year bar in 2011, in which the highest categoriy was the household with the income of 25,000-49,999.

I hereby, conclud my report

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response addresses the task only partially, and the length requirement is not met, falling short of the 150-word minimum (with 12 words copied directly from the prompt discounted). While the student attempts to present an overview and mention some categories, the information reported contains several inaccuracies and vague generalisations. For instance, stating that 'the highest number of annual income is recoded in 2015' is unclear and misinterprets the data, and claiming that the 50,000–74,999 income bracket remained stagnant is inaccurate since that category remained constant at 21 million rather than showing the kind of broader stability implied. Furthermore, key comparisons between income brackets are missing or confused, and the abrupt concluding sentence ('I hereby, conclud my report') is inappropriate for an academic report. To improve, the student must ensure all figures are read accurately from the chart, avoid vague assertions, write an appropriate summary overview, and meet the minimum word count.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

There is some basic organisation with paragraph breaks used to separate the introduction, overview, and body details, but there is no clear overall progression of ideas. Cohesive devices are attempted ('Overall', 'Surtinzing deeper', 'Inaddition'), but they are often awkward, inaccurate, or mechanical. Referencing between sentences can be unclear, such as the ambiguous grouping in the final body paragraph ('Inaddition, the three category... fluctuated between 20 milion household to 30 milion household'). To achieve a higher band, the writer needs to structure the response logically with clearer transitions that genuinely guide the reader through the data comparisons, ensuring that referencing words connect ideas smoothly and accurately without mechanical repetition.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary range is limited and minimally adequate for the task, containing noticeable spelling and word-choice errors that occasionally cause difficulty for the reader. Words such as 'recoded' instead of 'recorded', 'peck' instead of 'peak', 'Surtinzing' instead of 'Scrutinizing', and 'stangant' instead of 'stagnant' demonstrate frequent spelling issues. Furthermore, phrasing like 'highest number of annual income' rather than 'number of households by annual income' shows a restricted control of appropriate collocations and subject-specific vocabulary. To progress, the student must expand their range of functional vocabulary for describing data trends (such as verbs and nouns indicating change and stability) and carefully check their spelling.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response displays a very limited range of sentence structures, relying mostly on simple or basic complex forms that frequently contain structural errors. There are frequent mistakes in article usage ('the highest number of annual income', 'the three category'), singular/plural agreement ('three category', 'million household'), prepositions ('fluctuated beteween... to...'), and sentence fragments or awkward phrasing. For instance, 'followe by, the household with income of 100,000 and more remained the highest' lacks proper syntactic connection. These frequent errors in grammar and punctuation can cause some difficulty for the reader. To improve, the writer needs to demonstrate better control over basic grammatical structures, subject-verb agreement, and accurate punctuation.

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

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