Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-19

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 4.5)

The bar chart illustrates the number of households in the US across different annual income categories in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Overall, the number of households varied across the income groups over the period, with some categories experiencing increases and others showing decreases.

To begin with the income of those households in the start 2015 the income of those households Less than 25000 but those around 27% and the 25000 to 49000

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The opening identifies the chart’s subject and years, and the overview recognises that categories changed in different ways. However, the response does not provide a usable summary of the main features: it gives no clear, accurate comparisons across the five income bands, and the final sentence is incomplete and includes a confused reference to “27%” rather than household numbers in millions. The chart’s notable pattern—that the $100,000-or-more group rose to the highest figure in 2015, while the $50,000–$74,999 group stayed stable—is not reported. The response is also 78 words below the required minimum, leaving the task substantially unfinished. Develop a clear overview and support it with selected, accurate figures and comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an introductory sentence is followed by an overview marked with “Overall,” and then a further paragraph begins with “To begin with.” These signals show some awareness of sequencing. However, the progression stops abruptly, and the final sentence does not form a complete or understandable comparison. The overview is very general and is not followed by organised details, so the reader cannot track the categories or years. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and key comparisons, and group related income bands or trends together. Complete each sentence and use clear references to the year and income category so that the information connects logically.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The response uses some relevant chart vocabulary, including “bar chart,” “households,” “annual income categories,” “increases,” and “decreases.” This gives it a basic range for introducing the topic and describing change. However, the vocabulary is limited and the unfinished final sentence makes phrases such as “the income of those households” repetitive and unclear. “27%” is also not an appropriate way to report the chart’s household counts, which are measured in millions. Use precise terms such as “number of households,” “income band,” and “approximately 28 million,” and vary verbs with options such as “remained stable,” “rose,” or “fell.” Check that each expression accurately describes the data.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The first sentence is a clear, complete simple sentence, and the overview uses a correctly formed clause: “some categories experiencing increases and others showing decreases.” This shows some control of basic sentence construction and a limited attempt at a more complex structure. However, the final sentence is grammatically incomplete: “To begin with the income of those households in the start 2015…” has no clear main clause, and the following phrase does not complete the thought. The response therefore offers little evidence of accurate sentence variety. Practise writing complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, and use straightforward comparison patterns such as “In 2015, the figure for … was higher than in 2011.”

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

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