Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-19

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 6.0)

The given bar graph represents the results of a survey about people addicted to buying and drinking coffee and tea in five cities of Australia. The data has been calibrated into percentages.

Overall it is crystal clear that visiting cafes was more popular than the other two activities in all cities expect Adelaide, where buying coffee was slightly more common. In contrast, buying fresh coffee was consistently the least popular activity.

At a fleeting glance, Melbourne recorded the highest proportion, at approximately 64% closely followed by Hobart at around 63%and Sydney at just over 60%. The corresponding figure for Brisbane was lower, at 55%. Adelaide had the smallest percentage of cafe-goers, with just under half of its residents choosing this option.

However, instant coffee was most popular in Hobart and Brisbane, where the figures stood at approximately 54% and 53%, respectively. Around half of Adelaide residents bought instant coffee compared with roughly 48% in Melbourne and 46% in Sydney, respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers the main features of the data, including a clear overview and comparisons between cities. However, the task is not fully addressed as the prompt mentions three categories (coffee and tea buying and drinking habits), but the response only discusses 'visiting cafes' and 'instant coffee'. It completely omits the data regarding 'fresh coffee', which is a significant oversight. While the overview is clear, the failure to report on one of the three main categories limits the score. The data is generally accurate, but the omission prevents a higher band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different categories of data. Cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'At a fleeting glance', and 'However' are used to guide the reader. However, the referencing is occasionally slightly mechanical, and the transition between the overview and the body paragraphs could be smoother. Overall, the information is presented in a coherent manner, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow throughout the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task. The student uses some topic-specific language like 'proportion', 'calibrated', and 'residents'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'addicted to buying', which is not appropriate for a neutral report on survey data. Additionally, the phrase 'At a fleeting glance' is slightly unnatural in this context. While the range is sufficient to convey the main points, there is a lack of more sophisticated or precise vocabulary that would elevate the response to a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are some minor errors, such as 'all cities expect Adelaide' (should be 'except') and a missing space in '63%and'. Punctuation is generally handled well, though there are occasional slips. The control of grammar is sufficient to ensure that the meaning is clear throughout the text. To reach a higher band, the student should aim for more error-free complex sentences and ensure greater precision in proofreading to avoid small slips.

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

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