Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-21

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 chart illustrates the comparison between the number of houses in the US and their annual in 2007, 2011 and 2015, measured in millions.

Overall, the number of houses earning more than $100,000 had the highest increase over years with some fluctuations whereas households having income from less than $25,000 to $49,999 rose and then had a little decline in 2011. Houses earning between $50,000 to $99,9999 remained stable throughout the period.

In 2007, almost 29 million of the houses earned 100,000 or more which decreased by 2.5 million in 2011. The figure then rose to reach its peak at around 34 million in 2015 marking it the highest number of houses. Houses having income less than 25,000 and those between 25-49 had a consistent slight difference every year with the ones having $25000- $49000 leading with almost 2-2.5 million.

Household earning income from $50,000 to $99,999 remained stable throughout the years with houses earning between $50,000 to $74,999 just above 20 million while the ones earning from $75000 to 99,9999 aproximately at 14 to 15 million.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You provide a relevant overview and identify several important patterns: the $100,000-or-more group reaches the highest level in 2015, the $50,000–$74,999 category stays stable, and the two lowest-income groups rise before easing slightly. Most figures are broadly consistent with the chart. However, the overview says the lower-income groups “rose and then had a little decline in 2011,” when the decline occurs from 2011 to 2015. The statement that the $25,000–$49,999 group leads by 2–2.5 million is also inaccurate: the gap is about two million in 2007 and only around one million thereafter. The main features are selected, but these imprecisions and the limited comparison of changes keep the report from being fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs grouping the income categories. This makes the information reasonably easy to follow, and phrases such as “The figure then rose” help connect changes over time. Some cohesion is less controlled, however. The overview’s reference to a decline “in 2011” conflicts with the later account, and “Houses earning between $50,000 to $99,999” combines two categories in a way that makes the grouping less precise. The final paragraph repeats the stability point already made in the overview without adding much comparison. To strengthen progression, organise the details consistently by income group and use clear references to the relevant years and categories.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough task-related vocabulary to describe the chart, including “remained stable,” “decreased,” “rose,” and “peak.” However, the range is somewhat repetitive, with “houses” used repeatedly where “households” is the accurate term, and several phrases are awkward or imprecise. For example, “the number of houses … and their annual” does not clearly express the chart’s subject, while “consistent slight difference” is not a natural way to describe the gap between two series. There are also spelling and number-formatting slips, including “aproximately” and inconsistent forms such as “25-49.” More precise collocations and consistent income-band labels would make the report clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mixture of simple and more complex sentence forms, including the overview clause “whereas households … rose” and the sentence describing the 2011 decrease followed by a rise in 2015. Meaning is generally understandable, but some grammatical errors remain. The introduction has an incomplete construction in “their annual,” and “Houses earning between $50,000 to $99,9999” uses an incorrect preposition pattern; use “between … and …” or “from … to …”. There are also agreement and article issues in “Household earning income” and “marking it the highest number.” Some sentences are long and would benefit from clearer punctuation and more controlled clause structure. Greater accuracy in these patterns would improve readability.

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