Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · 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 6.5)

This chart illustrates, the number of households in the us by their annual income in 2007 , 2011 and 2015.

Overall, the household with income of ($100,000 or more) was highest group by 2015 and grew most noticeably over period, whereas the earners $75,000-$99,999 remained smallest group.

In 2007, the group with highest earning category of around (29 million) was $100,000 or more followed by $25,000-$49,999 (about 27 millions) and those with less than $25,000 (25 million). Around 21 million households with income of $50,000-$74,999 while the smallest category of (14.5 million) households was $75,000-$99,999.

In 2011, the earners category of $25,000-$49,999 around 30 million became highest by overtaking $100,000 or more dipped around (around 27 million) while the category of earners with less than $25,000 enhanced by ( around 29 million) household. In contrast the categories of $50,000-$74,999 and $75,000-$99,999 remained unchanged respectively.

By 2015, the earners with highest income of $100,000 surged to (34 million) became most popular category, while $25,000-$49,999 and less than $25,000 plummeted to (about 28.5 million) and (28 million) simultaneously. In contrast the earners group between $50,000 and $99,999 remained unchanged.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You provide a clear overview of the main patterns: the $100,000-or-more group finishes highest and rises most strongly, while $75,000–$99,999 is the smallest category. The year-by-year account is supported with relevant figures, including the 2011 lead of the $25,000–$49,999 group and the 2015 rise to about 34 million in the top-income group. Most figures and comparisons match the chart. However, the statement that the $50,000–$99,999 groups “remained unchanged” is too broad: the $75,000–$99,999 category changes slightly, from about 14.5 to 14 and then 15 million. More precise wording such as “changed little overall” would avoid over-generalising while preserving the useful overview and coverage.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction and overview are followed by separate paragraphs for 2007, 2011 and 2015. This makes the time sequence easy to follow, and contrasts such as “In contrast” help signal comparisons. The organisation is effective, but some linking and reference choices are mechanical or unclear. For example, “remained unchanged respectively” does not clearly identify which value belongs to which category, and “plummeted … simultaneously” is an awkward way to connect the two 2015 figures. Improve cohesion by grouping categories with similar trends and using explicit references, such as “Both middle-income groups changed little.” This would retain the logical progression while making relationships between details smoother.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of vocabulary for describing data, including “overtaking,” “surged,” “highest” and “smallest,” and the income categories are generally identified clearly. Some less common choices are inaccurate or unnatural in this context, however. “Enhanced” does not mean that a household count increased, and “most popular” suggests preference rather than the largest number. “Earners category” and “plummeted” are also imprecise for these figures, particularly as the counts declined only slightly. Aim for accurate, neutral chart language and consistent labels such as “households in the income bracket.” This would make your descriptions more precise without requiring a much wider vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex sentences, including comparisons with “whereas” and “while,” and the main trends remain understandable. Some grammatical errors recur, especially missing articles, incomplete sentence structures and agreement. For example, “the household … was highest group” needs a plural subject and an article (“the group of households … was the largest”), while “Around 21 million households …” is a sentence fragment without a main verb. In “the earners category … around 30 million became highest,” the sentence structure is also incomplete. Review articles, plural forms and sentence boundaries, and make sure each sentence has a clear subject and finite verb. More accurate control of these patterns would improve readability.

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