Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · 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 4.0)

The bar chart illustrates the amount of households in America and their yearly salary between 2007 to 2015.

Overall, the 2015 had the highest yearly income. While in other years it was relatively low.

In the 2007, the income of the different households varied with the highest was above $100,000 and with a fewer having less than $25,000. In the 2007 the salary threshold decreased to roughly one quarter in the households and increased in the household expenses of who have yearly salary $25,000. The number of households increased above the third in 2015.

the 2007 amount of households i

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The response makes a limited attempt to describe the chart, but it does not clearly report the main features or accurately compare the income groups. The statement that “2015 had the highest yearly income” confuses the year with the income categories, and “the income … varied” does not explain household numbers. Some details are also unclear or unsupported, such as the “salary threshold decreased to roughly one quarter” and the number increasing “above the third.” The chart shows that households earning $100,000 or more peaked in 2015, while the $50,000–$74,999 group stayed at about 21 million. The response is also 50 words below the required minimum, and it ends mid-sentence. To improve, give a clear overview and select accurate comparisons across the three years.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 3.5

There is a basic attempt at organisation: an opening sentence is followed by an overview and a paragraph of details. However, the progression is difficult to follow because the overview is unclear (“the 2015 had the highest yearly income”) and the body shifts between years, salary thresholds and household expenses without explaining their relationships. Repeating “In the 2007” does not create a clear sequence, and the final fragment, “the 2007 amount of households i,” leaves the response unfinished. Linking words such as “While” are used without a complete contrasting clause. Organise the report around a clear overview, then compare the most important income groups, using year references and transitions consistently.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The response uses some relevant chart vocabulary, including “households,” “yearly salary,” “highest,” and “increased,” so the topic is recognisable. However, the range is limited and several word choices make the meaning unclear. “Amount of households” is not a natural collocation; “number of households” is appropriate. “Yearly income” is also used as if it described the year rather than the income category, and “household expenses” does not match the chart, which reports household counts by income. Repetition of “income,” “households,” and “salary” further limits precision. Build a small set of accurate terms for describing figures and trends, such as “income bracket,” “remained stable,” and “rose to,” and use them only where they fit the data.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts a few longer structures, including “While in other years it was relatively low” and “with the highest was above $100,000,” but these are incomplete or incorrectly formed. There are also errors in articles, agreement and sentence construction: “the 2015” and “In the 2007” use unnecessary articles, while “the highest was above $100,000” lacks a clear grammatical link between the subject and description. The phrase “increased in the household expenses of who have yearly salary” is difficult to parse, and the final line is unfinished. Most sentences are simple, with limited control of complex forms. Practise complete comparisons such as “The number of households earning … rose from … to …,” checking articles, verb forms and sentence boundaries.

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