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)

Paragraph 1

Introduction

The chart shows the result of a survey about the people's coffee and tea buying and drinking habits in five Australian cities over the previous four weeks.

Paragraph 2

Overview

Overall, visiting a cafe for coffee or tea was vthe most popular activity in most cities, while buying fresh coffee was generally the least popular. In addition, instant coffee was purschased by more people than fresh coffee in every city.

Paragraph 3

According to the cafe visits, Melbourne had the highest percentage, at 64%, followed by Hobart with approximately 63%. Sydney also recorded a high figure of about 61%. In contrast, Brisbane and Adelaide had lower percentages, at around 55% and 50%.

paragraph 4

As for coffee purchases, instant coffee was more popular than the fresh coffee in all five ciities. Hobart and Brisbane had the highest proportions of instant coffee buyers, while sydney had the higgest percentage of the fresh coffee buyers. Brisbane and Adelaide recorded the lowest figures for buying fresh coffee at about 34%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have successfully identified the main features of the data and provided relevant comparisons. The overview clearly highlights the key trends, such as the popularity of cafe visits and the preference for instant coffee over fresh coffee. You have also included specific data points to support your observations, such as the 64% figure for Melbourne cafe visits and the 34% figure for fresh coffee purchases in Brisbane and Adelaide. To reach a higher band, ensure you consistently provide data for all claims made; for instance, you mention Hobart and Brisbane had the highest proportions of instant coffee buyers but do not provide the specific figures for these cities, which would have strengthened your analysis.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a distinct purpose (introduction, overview, and body paragraphs). The progression of ideas is easy to follow. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'In contrast', 'As for', and 'In addition', to link your points. However, the flow could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words and ensuring that the transition between sentences is smoother. At times, the connection between the overview and the body paragraphs feels slightly mechanical. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate and contributes to the clarity of the report.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'survey', 'proportions', 'recorded', and 'figures' appropriately. There are some spelling errors, such as 'vthe', 'purschased', 'ciities', 'sydney' (should be capitalized), and 'higgest', which slightly detract from the professional tone. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, it lacks the sophistication and precision required for a higher band. To improve, focus on using more varied collocations and ensuring accurate spelling of key terms related to data reporting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is generally effective. Most of your sentences are clear and easy to understand. However, there are several grammatical slips, such as 'According to the cafe visits' (which should be 'Regarding cafe visits'), and minor punctuation or article errors. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. To improve, pay closer attention to prepositions and ensure that your sentence structures are consistently accurate, especially when describing statistical trends.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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