Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-20

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 5.5)

The chart illustrates the number of households in the Us on the basis of their annual income in 2007,2011,and 2015 respectively.The yearly income is mentioned in millions.

Overall,the yealry income of Us household increased by leaps and bounds between 2007 and 2015,the lowest and highest categories revealed a significant growth.However,the middle payment showed a slight fluctuations.

To commence with the salary less than 25,000$ in 2007,it witnessed a little increase from 25 to 30 miilions in 2011 while meagerly dropped bellow 30millions in 2015.Similarly,salary from 25 to 49,000$ demonstrated the similar trend as it stood at above 25millions,then rose to 30millions and the decrease to beloe 30millions again. However,the household annual intake between $75,000 to $99,999 fluctuated a little bit in every year.

Taking the middle income into account, it ranges from $50,000 to $ 74,999 remaind unchanged through out these years. Furthermore, $100,000 or above this accounted for 15millions in 2007,decreased slightly in 2011, and the increased exactly to 15millions in 2015.

In conclusion, the chart clearly demonstrated the yearly income of US household.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the chart’s subject and include an overview, noting that the middle-income group was broadly stable. However, the overview misrepresents the data: the number of households did not generally rise “by leaps and bounds,” and the $100,000-or-more group—not the lowest category—shows the clearest overall growth, from about 29.5 million to 33.5 million. There is also a major figure error: this highest-income group is described as 15 million, which actually corresponds to the $75,000–$99,999 category in 2007. Some trends are reported approximately, but the account of the $75,000–$99,999 group is vague and the key comparisons are not clearly selected. Focus the overview on the highest category’s rise and the relative stability of the others.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, overview, two detail paragraphs and a conclusion. Grouping the lower-income categories together and then discussing the middle and highest categories gives the reader some organisation. However, progression is weakened by the conclusion, which simply repeats that the chart demonstrates household income rather than summarising its main findings. Linking phrases such as “To commence with,” “Similarly,” and “Furthermore” are used, but some connections are mechanical or do not clarify the comparison. The order of details also makes the final paragraph confusing because the $100,000-or-more figures are incorrectly presented as 15 million. Use clearer grouping, refer consistently to household numbers, and make the overview and conclusion reinforce the same accurate main trends.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You attempt a range of vocabulary, including “fluctuated,” “demonstrated,” and “accounted for,” and the income bands are generally identifiable. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for describing a chart. “Yearly income” is used where you mean the number of households in each income band, while “increased by leaps and bounds” exaggerates the modest changes. Phrases such as “middle payment,” “salary less than,” and “household annual intake” are imprecise, and spelling errors including “yealry,” “miilions,” and “bellow” are noticeable. These issues make some descriptions harder to interpret. Prefer precise, repeated terms such as “households,” “income band,” “rose,” “fell,” and “remained stable,” and check spelling before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response includes both simple statements and attempts at longer sentences, for example, “Similarly, salary from 25 to 49,000$ demonstrated the similar trend…” However, complex constructions are often faulty, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to follow. Examples include “the lowest and highest categories revealed a significant growth,” “the middle payment showed a slight fluctuations,” and “the $50,000… remaind unchanged,” which show problems with articles, number agreement and verb forms. The sentence describing the highest-income group also has an unclear sequence of verbs: “decreased slightly in 2011, and the increased exactly…” Punctuation and spacing around commas are inconsistent. Practise accurate subject–verb agreement and past-tense reporting, and build longer sentences from simpler, correctly formed clauses.

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