Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-09

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 6.0)

The bar graph illustrates the number of households in US earning different annual incomes, for the year 2007,2011, and 2015.

Overall, the households with annual salary of more than 100,000 dollars, reached at highest numbers in the recent year. While the number of families falling into the lowest slab income, have also risen in recent year.

Firstly, in USA the slowest income slab earners were recorded to be 25 millions in 2007, and four years later this figure rose by nearly 0.4 million people, to make total household number relating to this income group at 29 millions nearly, before it dropped by 1 million households in the year 2015. Morevoer, as far as households earning between $25000 to $ 49999 are concerned, so in 2007 they amounted for nearly 27 millions families, but by 2011 the household numbers significantly rose to 30 millions, and by the end of 2015, the number of families with considered annual salary range diminished and reached to 28 millions.

Secondly, when it comes to higher annual income bracket of $50000 to $75000, so from start of concerned period to that in year 2015 , households which fell into this bracket were stagnant at nearly 21 millions. Furthermore, households filing their annual incomes into range of 75000 dollars to 99999 dollars, amounted to 14 millions approximtaely in start of the concerned timeframe, but four years later the number of families conceeding this much salary fell by one million roughly, before jumping to 15 millions milestone in year 2015.

Lastly, the elite group of households, which earned $100,000 or more, amountd to 29 millions in 2007, but by 2011 the households number earning that much dropped by nearly 2 millions, before increasing in numbers to 33 millions in 2015.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The response covers all five income groups and gives a clear overview: the $100,000-or-more group reaches its highest level in 2015, while the lowest-income group also rises overall. Most reported figures and trends match the chart, including the stable $50,000–$74,999 category and the rise in the top bracket after 2011. The main factual imprecision is that the lowest-income group rises from 25 million to about 28.5 million in 2011, not by only 0.4 million; the $75,000–$99,999 group is also about 14.5 million in 2007. The account is well supported with comparisons, though the overview could identify the 2011 peaks in the two lower brackets and the top category’s overall prominence more explicitly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs grouping the income categories. The sequence from lower to higher income bands is easy to follow, and markers such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” and “Lastly” help signal progression. This gives the report a coherent arrangement, but cohesion is not always handled flexibly. Repeated framing such as “when it comes to” and “as far as … are concerned” makes some transitions mechanical, while “so” is awkwardly used to connect clauses. Some sentences are long and contain several comparisons, which can make the relationships between details less immediate. Use simpler links and vary how comparisons are introduced to make the progression smoother.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The response uses a range of task-related vocabulary, including “income bracket,” “stagnant,” “diminished,” and “increasing,” and the reader can generally understand the intended comparisons. However, control of word choice and collocation is limited in places. “Slowest income slab earners” is not a natural way to describe the lowest-income households, and “elite group” is an overly evaluative label for an income category. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “Morevoer,” “approximtaely,” “conceeding,” and “amountd.” Repeated use of “households,” “families,” and “number” also narrows the range. Prefer precise, neutral chart language and check spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response attempts a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses with “before” and “while,” but complex structures are often not controlled accurately. For example, “While the number of families … have also risen” has a subject–verb agreement problem, and “the households number … dropped” uses an incorrect noun structure. Several sentences begin with subordinate or linking phrases but then continue awkwardly, as in “when it comes to …, so …” and “as far as … are concerned, so …”. Commas are also placed inconsistently, sometimes separating the subject from its verb. These errors can make some comparisons harder to process. Build shorter, complete sentences first, then add subordinate clauses with accurate agreement and punctuation.

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.