Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-04

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 4.5)

The chart illustrates the number of US households by their anual income, in millions, in 2007, 2011, and 2015.

Overall, the largest number of households had an annual income of $100,000 or more for both year 2007 and 2015, except in 2011, meanwhile the households with the lowest yearly salary for the whole period had $25000 to $49 999. The income of $25,000 to $49,000 had no noted movement for the whole period.

The largest number of inhabitants had more than $100, 000 of income yearly with 29 households, decreased by 1 after 4 years, and then reached the highest number of household in 2015 to 34. After that, 28 millions of households had $25 000 to $49,999, which decreased to 30 and 29 in 2011 and 2015.

Moreover, the houusehold with less than $25 000 had and increasing trend started from 25 millions of households to 29, but deacreased significantly to 28 at the end of the per

75-99 = 14, 13, 15

50-74 = 22

<25. = 25, 29, 28

25-49.= 28, 30, 29

>100 = 29 28, 34

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the chart’s subject and include several relevant figures, including the rise in households earning at least $100,000 by 2015 and the broadly stable $50,000–$74,999 group. However, the overview contains important inaccuracies: $25,000–$49,999 did not remain unchanged, and it was not the lowest-income group that had the fewest households throughout; the $75,000–$99,999 category was consistently smallest. Some figures are also misreported, such as saying the $25,000–$49,999 group rose to 30 million in 2011, when it was about 29.5 million. The final notes are incomplete and do not substitute for a clear summary of all categories. Select the main trends accurately and support them with consistent comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.0

The response has an identifiable opening, overview and body, and words such as “Overall,” “After that” and “Moreover” signal relationships between points. However, the progression is difficult to follow because the overview makes unclear comparisons and the body shifts between categories without a consistent order. The final section is especially fragmented: “75-99 = 14, 13, 15” and the other shorthand figures are not integrated into sentences or explained. The last prose sentence also breaks off at “at the end of the per”. Organise the body by income category or by the most notable trends, and use complete paragraphs and sentences so each comparison connects clearly to the chart.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary such as “annual income,” “households,” “decreased” and “trend,” so the reader can generally understand the topic. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate: “inhabitants” refers to people rather than households, while “lowest yearly salary” is not a suitable description of an income band. Spelling errors such as “anual,” “houusehold” and “deacreased” are noticeable, and inconsistent formatting of income ranges reduces precision. Use the chart’s category labels consistently, and choose standard reporting phrases such as “the number of households earning…” or “the figure for this income group.” Proofreading spelling and number formatting would make the data easier to interpret.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including the overview’s contrast beginning “Overall” and the clause “which decreased to 30 and 29.” However, errors in sentence construction and verb forms are frequent enough to make some relationships unclear. For example, “the households with the lowest yearly salary for the whole period had $25000 to $49 999” does not form a clear grammatical comparison, and “had and increasing trend started from” combines incompatible verb patterns. The final sentence is incomplete, and “for both year 2007 and 2015” has problems with number and phrasing. Practise building complete sentences around a clear subject and verb, and check agreement, articles and tense when describing changes across years.

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