Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-15

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 illustrate the number of households in the US by their yearly income in the three years.

overall,it can be clearly seen that the less than dollor was dominated the highest money in 2015 while the dollae of lakh is the least ovear the periods.

The number of US household of annual income was the dominated in 2015year approximately [redacted phone],followed by dollar [redacted phone] to 49000 in the same period. While the dollor 25000 to 49999 is the relatively 27m in 2007.

In 2011,dollar of household of annully income was 25000 to 49999 was the highest while the dollar 75000 to 25000 is the least,furthermore the less than dollar 25000 followed to dollar of annual income 25000 t

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

The response identifies the chart’s subject and attempts to compare income groups across the three years, but it does not provide a reliable overview of the main trends. The claim that the “less than” group had the highest figure in 2015 is inaccurate: households earning $100,000 or more were highest, at about 33.5 million. The response also calls the $75,000–$99,999 group the lowest in 2011, although it was the smallest in 2007 and 2011, while the $50,000–$74,999 group remained around 21 million. Several figures and comparisons are unclear or incomplete. The response is 110 words, below the required 150, which further limits its coverage. To improve, give a clear overview and accurately report the key highs, lows and changes.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

There is a basic attempt to organise the response into an opening, an overview and year-based details, and time markers such as “In 2011” help signal a change in focus. However, the progression is difficult to follow because comparisons are not consistently grouped or explained. The overview’s wording does not make clear which income category is being described, and the final sentence stops at “25000 t,” leaving the comparison unfinished. Connect each paragraph to a clear purpose—for example, an overview followed by grouped comparisons of the income bands—and use linking words only where the relationship is clear. Completing each sentence and maintaining a consistent order of categories would make the information easier to track.

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The response uses some relevant chart vocabulary, including “number of households,” “annual income,” “highest” and “least,” so the reader can recognise the general topic. However, word choice and spelling are often inaccurate or unclear: “dollor,” “dollae” and “lakh” do not appropriately describe the chart’s income categories, while “was the dominated” and “the highest money” are unnatural expressions. Repeated use of “dollar” also makes the comparisons hard to interpret. Use the exact income bands, such as “households earning less than $25,000” and “those earning $100,000 or more,” and choose precise reporting verbs such as “stood at,” “rose” and “remained stable.” Check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts both simple and more extended sentence forms, including a sentence beginning “while,” but grammatical control is inconsistent and several errors obscure the intended comparisons. For example, “The bar chart illustrate” has subject–verb disagreement, and “the less than dollor was dominated” has an unclear and faulty verb construction. The sentence beginning “The number of US household of annual income was…” is difficult to parse because its subject and comparison are not clearly structured. There are also problems with articles, plurals and sentence boundaries, such as “2015year” and the comma attached directly to the following word. Build clear sentences with a subject and verb, use accurate agreement and punctuation, and proofread each sentence for completeness.

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