Band 8.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 8.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-27

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 8.0)

The bar chart illustrates the results of a survey concerning the coffee and tea buying and drinking habits of residents across five Australian cities (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Hobart) over a four-week period.

Overall, visiting a cafe for coffee or tea was the most prevalent habit in the majority of the cities, with the exception of Adelaide. Additionally, purchasing instant coffee was widely popular, whereas buying fresh coffee was consistently the least common practice across all locations.

In terms of cafe visits, Melbourne and Hobart recorded the highest figures, at 64% and 63% respectively. Sydney followed closely at just over 60%, while Brisbane stood at over 55%. Adelaide registered the lowest proportion for cafe-going, dipping just below the 50% mark.

Regarding instant coffee, Hobart and Brisbane had the highest proportions of residents purchasing it, standing at 54% and roughly 52% respectively. Adelaide and Melbourne followed at 50% and 48%, while Sydney recorded the lowest figure at just over 45%. Notably, Adelaide was the only city where buying instant coffee was slightly more popular than visiting a cafe.

Finally, the purchase of fresh coffee remained below 45% in all five cities. Sydney and Melbourne were the top consumers for this category at 44% and 42% respectively, followed by Hobart at 39%. Adelaide and Brisbane recorded the lowest figures for fresh coffee purchases, both hovering at approximately 34%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 8.0

The response is excellent. You have successfully identified all key features of the data, including the overall trends and specific comparisons between the five cities. Your overview is clear and highlights the main differences effectively, such as the popularity of cafe visits versus the exception of Adelaide. You have also made relevant comparisons throughout the body paragraphs, such as noting that Adelaide was the only city where instant coffee was more popular than cafe visits. The data is accurately reported, and the response fully satisfies the requirements of the task by providing a comprehensive summary of the provided chart.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The response is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. Each paragraph has a distinct focus: the introduction, the overview, and then specific details for each category. You have used a good range of cohesive devices such as 'Additionally', 'In terms of', 'Regarding', and 'Finally' to guide the reader through the information. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the flow between sentences is smooth. The use of referencing is precise, ensuring that the reader can easily follow the comparisons made between the different cities and habits.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.5

You demonstrate a strong command of vocabulary, using a range of topic-specific terms such as 'prevalent', 'proportion', 'recorded', and 'hovering'. The language is precise and natural, which helps to convey the information clearly. You avoid repetition by using varied phrasing to describe the data, such as 'dipping just below', 'stood at', and 'followed closely'. There are no noticeable errors in word choice or collocation, and the vocabulary is well-suited to an academic report of this nature.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 8.0

Your control of grammar is very high. You use a variety of complex sentence structures effectively, such as 'with the exception of Adelaide' and 'noting that Adelaide was the only city where...'. The punctuation is accurate, and the sentence construction is varied, which makes the text easy to read. There are no significant grammatical errors, and the few minor slips that might occur are non-systematic. The accuracy of your verb tenses and subject-verb agreement is consistent throughout the response.

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