Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-27

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 bar chart displays the number of households in the US by their annual income in 2007, 2011 and 2015. population of households covered in the chart are in millions.

It is clear that in 2007, 25 households earning was less than $25000 which increased near to 29 in 2011 but in 2015 it decreased to 28. 26 famlies were drawing salaries between $25,000-$49,999 in 2007, wihich hiked near upto 30 in 2011 but dropped near to 29 in 2015. Citizens who has income between $50,000-$74,999 are near to 21 and it remained constant over all 3 years.

Moreover, peoples who were earning between $75,000-$99,999 were near to 15 in 2007 which decresed to 14 in 2011 but again it increases upto 15 in 2015. Near to 30 households remuneration was $100,000 and more in 2007 which dropped almost 27 households in 2011 but again it hiked near to 34 familes in the year 2016.

In conclusion, year over years families were capable to earn more in the US.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You report figures for all five income groups and identify several genuine patterns, including the stability of the $50,000–$74,999 group and the rise in the $100,000-or-more group by 2015. However, the overview is weak: “families were capable to earn more” is a broad conclusion not clearly demonstrated by the chart, since several categories changed little or fell. Some figures are also inaccurate: the $25,000–$49,999 group is about 27 million in 2007, not 26, and the final year is 2015, not 2016. The response describes the categories mostly one by one rather than selecting the most important comparisons. A clearer overview of the highest and lowest groups and their overall trends would make the key features more fully addressed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, two paragraphs describing income groups, and a concluding sentence. Sequencing the figures by year within each category generally helps the reader follow the changes, and “Moreover” signals a move to further information. However, the organisation is largely a list of categories, with limited comparison between them. The final “In conclusion” repeats a general claim rather than drawing together the main trends, and the link between that claim and the preceding data is unclear. Some sentence connections are also awkward, particularly where several figures and changes are joined in one long sentence. Grouping related categories and using clearer comparisons would improve progression and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant income and quantity vocabulary, including “annual income,” “remained constant,” “decreased,” and “increased,” so the main subject is usually understandable. However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or unnatural for describing a chart. “Citizens who has income” and “peoples who were earning” are unsuitable ways to refer to household categories, while “hiked” and “families were capable to earn more” do not fit the formal reporting style. There are also noticeable spelling errors, such as “wihich,” “decresed,” and “famlies.” Use precise terms such as “households,” “stood at,” and “rose to,” and check spelling and phrasing carefully to make the account clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences with clauses, for example, “Citizens who has income between $50,000-$74,999 are near to 21 and it remained constant.” This shows some range, but control is uneven. Subject–verb agreement is incorrect in “who has,” and the sentence shifts from present tense (“are”) to past tense (“remained”). Other patterns are awkward or incomplete, as in “25 households earning was less than $25000” and “which dropped almost 27 households.” The response also uses inconsistent tense when describing past data, including “it increases” and “it hiked.” Keep the account consistently in the past tense and build each comparison with a clear subject and verb; this would reduce errors while preserving your attempts at complex sentences.

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