Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-07
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 chart illustrate a survey result of buying and drinking tea and coffee by the Australian people of five different cities, measured in percentage.
Overall, more people of Melbourne and Hobart visit different cafes for coffee or tea, however, more people brought or drunk fresh coffee in all five cities than instant coffee.
Initially, more than 64% people of Melbourne and Hobart went to cafe in the last 4 weeks to buy or drink coffee or tea followed by around 61% citizens of Sydney. In Brisbane and Adelaide, minimum people visit cafe for this purpose at around 56% and 49% respectively.
By contrast, approximately 43% citizens of Sydney brought fresh coffee from the cafe followed by Melbourne at around 42% in the last 4 weeks, however, less people of Brisbane bought fresh coffee in the same time. Moreover, almost 54% citizens of Hobart purchased maximum amount of instant coffee while the minimum amount of the same type of coffee was brought by the people of Sydney in the same time period.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all parts of the task by identifying the main features and making relevant comparisons across the five cities. You successfully highlighted the trends for cafe visits, fresh coffee, and instant coffee. However, the analysis is slightly hindered by some inaccuracies in data reporting. For instance, you mention 'more than 64%' for Melbourne and Hobart regarding cafe visits, but the chart shows these figures are closer to 60-65%. Additionally, the phrasing 'minimum people visit cafe' for Adelaide is a bit vague. To improve, ensure that data points are cited with greater precision and that comparisons are clearly linked to the specific categories provided in the prompt.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. You use cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'Initially', 'By contrast', and 'Moreover' to guide the reader through the information. While the progression is generally clear, some transitions feel slightly mechanical. The referencing is mostly effective, though the connection between the data points in the final paragraph could be smoother. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the information is grouped logically by category, which helps the reader follow the comparison of the five cities effectively.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'citizens', 'purchased', and 'period'. However, there are some word choice errors that slightly impact precision, such as 'brought' instead of 'bought' (as 'brought' implies carrying something to a place, whereas 'bought' refers to the act of purchasing). Additionally, the phrase 'minimum people' is not standard academic English; 'the lowest percentage of people' would be more accurate. Expanding your range of synonyms for 'increase', 'decrease', and 'proportion' would help elevate your score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('The chart illustrate' instead of 'illustrates', 'more people brought' instead of 'bought') and awkward phrasing ('more people of Melbourne'). While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher band score. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and ensure that verb tenses are used consistently when describing survey results. Proofreading for small errors like 'the' versus 'a' would also be beneficial.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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