Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-07

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 how many US households fell into five annual income brackets in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Overall the number of houshold icome was $100,000 or more in given period. While the $75,000 to $99,999 remained the smallest though.

The most grewed group is $100,000 or more was on top in 2017 and were roughly at 30 million , followed by the $25000-$49999 bracket at about 27 milllion. By 2011, this group had dropped slightly to around 28.5 million, whereas the two lowest brackets rose to approximately 29 and 30.5 million respectively.

By 2015, the number of households earning $100,000 or more had surged to about 35 million, the highest figure on the chart.The two lowest brackets stayed almost unchanged from 2011. Meanwhile, the $50,000-$74,999 group stayed stable at around 21-22 million,AND THE $75,000-$99,999 group edged up from about 14.5 to 16 million.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the five income groups and include an overview, noting that the $100,000-or-more category was largest by the end and that $75,000–$99,999 was generally the smallest. However, the overview is unclear (“the number of houshold icome was $100,000 or more”), and several figures or comparisons are inaccurate: the top group was about 29.5 million in 2007, not roughly 30 million in 2017, and the $25,000–$49,999 group was about 27 million then. In 2011, the two lowest brackets were about 28.5 and 29.5 million, not 29 and 30.5. The final category rose to about 33.5 million in 2015, rather than 35. The response is also five words below the required minimum. Add a clearer overview and report the main changes accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic progression from an introduction and overview to comparisons across the three years, and phrases such as “By 2011” and “By 2015” help signal time. However, the organisation is not consistently clear: the overview is difficult to interpret, and the first comparison paragraph mixes 2007 and 2011 figures without a clear sequence. “While” begins an incomplete sentence, and “Meanwhile” introduces a useful contrast but is followed by an abrupt switch to all capitals. Improve progression by grouping the figures into a clear overview and then one or two chronological comparison paragraphs. Use linking words only where they accurately show the relationship between the data, and keep punctuation and formatting consistent.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant chart vocabulary, including “brackets,” “surged,” “remained,” and “edged up,” and the income ranges are generally identifiable. However, the range is limited and several noticeable spelling or word-choice errors reduce precision: “houshold icome,” “grewed,” and “milllion.” The phrase “the number of houshold icome was $100,000 or more” is also an inaccurate and confusing way to describe a category; use “the largest income bracket was households earning $100,000 or more.” Write monetary ranges consistently, for example “$25,000–$49,999,” and avoid informal or unclear expressions such as “was on top.” More accurate collocations and careful proofreading would make the description easier to follow.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

There are attempts at complex sentences, including the contrast in “By 2011, this group had dropped slightly … whereas the two lowest brackets rose,” and most of the intended comparisons can be understood. However, sentence control is uneven. “While the $75,000 to $99,999 remained the smallest though” is an incomplete clause, and “The most grewed group is … was on top” combines incompatible verb forms and structures. The overview also lacks a clear grammatical relationship between the number of households and the income category. Use complete sentences with a consistent past tense for the historical data, and check subject–verb agreement and sentence boundaries. For example: “The $75,000–$99,999 bracket remained the smallest throughout the period.”

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