Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-28

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 illustrates in the US the number of households by thier annual income in 2007, 2011 and 2015. Overall, 2015 was the most noteable year while 2011 and 2007 was also significant.

To begin with the year 2015, people over 30 million have income $[redacted phone] or more while almost 30 million people have income in between $25000 to $49999. Similarly, over 20 million people have $50000 to $74999. In contrast, 15 million people have less than $25000 in 2015. This was the most significant feature of bar chart.

Moving to the 2011, over 25 million people have $ [redacted phone] income while 30 million people have $25000 to $49999. Similarly, over 20 million people have $75000 to $99999 and almost 15 million people have less than $ 25000.

Finally, in 2007 almost 30 million have $[redacted phone] or more than and 25 million people have less than 25000$. In contrast, over 25 million people have $25000 to $49999 and almost 15 million people have $75000 to $99999.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

The response identifies the chart’s subject and attempts to compare all three years, but the main features are not reported accurately enough. Most seriously, the 2015 figures for the two lowest income groups are reversed: households earning under $25,000 were about 28 million, not 15 million, while the $25,000–$49,999 group was about 28.5 million. The 2011 description also assigns almost 15 million to the under-$25,000 group, when it was about 28.5 million, and gives the $75,000–$99,999 group over 20 million instead of about 14 million. The overview that 2015 was “the most notable” is vague and does not summarise the key trends. Select accurate comparisons and state the overall pattern clearly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for 2015, 2011 and 2007. Sequencing the years with “To begin with,” “Moving to,” and “Finally” helps readers follow the account. However, the year-by-year approach leads to repeated listing rather than grouping related income bands or highlighting changes across years. The overview is also unclear, and “This was the most significant feature” does not specify which feature it refers to. Some linking, such as “Similarly” and “In contrast,” does not express a clear relationship between the figures. Organise the body around meaningful comparisons—for example, the high-income group’s rise by 2015 and the relative stability of the middle-income bands—and use links that accurately show those relationships.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The response uses enough basic vocabulary to identify income categories and make simple comparisons, including “illustrates,” “in contrast,” and “almost.” However, word choice is often imprecise or repetitive, which makes the report less natural and sometimes unclear. “People” is repeatedly used where the chart measures households, and “most notable year” does not convey a specific data trend. Phrases such as “people over 30 million have income” and “income in between” are awkward, while “more than” is incorrectly attached to the $100,000 category in “$100000 or more than.” There are also spelling and formatting slips, including “thier” and inconsistent presentation of dollar ranges. Use precise chart vocabulary such as “households,” “numbered,” “rose,” and “remained stable,” and format income bands consistently.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response communicates its basic meaning through mostly simple sentence patterns and makes some attempts to vary sentence openings. However, grammatical control is uneven, with errors in agreement, verb forms, and sentence construction. For example, “2011 and 2007 was also significant” has a plural subject with a singular verb, and “people … have income” uses an unsuitable tense for describing past data. The construction “people over 30 million have income $100000 or more” is also difficult to parse, while “almost 30 million have” omits a clear noun as the subject. Aim to use consistent past-tense reporting, such as “There were about 33.5 million households earning…,” and check subject–verb agreement. A wider range of accurately controlled comparative sentences would make the report clearer.

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