Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-11-08

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows the results of a survey about people’s coffee and tea buying and drinking habits in five Australian cities.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The graph given illustrates the results of a survey about the buying and drinking habits of people in five Australian cities in the last four weeks.

Overall, we can clearly see that usually people went to cafe for coffee or tea. And the percantage of people who bought fresh coffee is the lowest. Moreover, poeple who purchased instant coffee are

People who went to cafes are the majority as they make about 62% of Sydney. The percantage of them peaks at approximatley 64% in Melbourne. However, in Brisbane and Adelaide the percantage is so close to the percantage of people who bought instant coffee as in Brusbane they both make about 55% and in Adelaide they both make nearly 50%.

People who bought fresh coffee had the lowest percantages amongst the three types of people in all cities, with the nearest percantage to come close to poeple who bought instant coffee is in Sydney, where they had about 42%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main categories and make a relevant overall comparison: café visits are generally highest, while fresh-coffee purchases are often lowest. The city-specific figures for café visits in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide are broadly consistent with the chart. However, the overview is incomplete: “Moreover, people who purchased instant coffee are” is left unfinished, and the response does not summarise the instant-coffee pattern across all five cities. The claim that fresh coffee is lowest “in all cities” is inaccurate, since in Sydney its figure is slightly below instant coffee but in other cities it is also generally lower; more importantly, the stated Sydney fresh-coffee figure of about 42% is noticeably below the chart’s approximate 44%. Include a complete overview and compare the three series more systematically.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable paragraph structure, moving from an introduction and overview to details about café visits and fresh coffee. This gives the reader some organisation. However, progression is weakened by the unfinished sentence “Moreover, people who purchased instant coffee are,” which interrupts the overview and leaves a key category unexplained. The detail paragraphs also do not provide a balanced account of the chart: instant coffee is mentioned only in comparisons for Brisbane and Adelaide, rather than being developed as a clear trend. Linking words such as “Overall,” “Moreover,” and “However” are used, but some connections feel mechanical or do not lead to a complete idea. Finish each point and organise the body by comparing the categories consistently.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant chart vocabulary, including “survey,” “purchased,” “peaks,” and “approximately,” and the reader can generally understand the comparisons. However, the range is limited and several choices are repetitive or imprecise: “percentage” appears repeatedly, while “people who went to cafes” and “people who bought fresh coffee” are used instead of more concise descriptions such as café-goers and fresh-coffee buyers. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “percantage,” “poeple,” “approximatley,” and “Brusbane,” which reduce accuracy. Some phrasing is awkward, such as “the nearest percentage to come close to.” Use a wider range of accurate chart terms and proofread spelling and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, for example, “However, in Brisbane and Adelaide…” and the clause beginning “where they had about 42%.” Most of the intended meaning remains understandable. However, the unfinished sentence about instant-coffee buyers is a significant sentence-completion problem, and some constructions are awkward or inaccurate, such as “the nearest percentage to come close to people who bought instant coffee is in Sydney.” The opening overview also uses a sentence fragment after “Overall” (“And the percentage…”), and the final sentence has an unclear comparison structure. Aim to write complete sentences with a clear subject and comparison, and check articles and sentence boundaries.

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