Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-13
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 bar chart illustrates consumption of different types of beverages by individuals in five cities at Australia. Overall, most of the time people chose to buy coffee or tea from a cafe. All values are provided by percentage.
Looking at the first category, the least amount of fresh coffee was consumed by the citizens of Brisbane and Adelaide, at approximately 33% and 34%, respectively. In Hobart fresh coffee consumption showed the third lowest values at 38%, while that of Melbourne was only 42%. Sydney was the highest among all for the percentage of bought fresh coffee, at 44%.
As for the other categories, Adelaide citizens used up almost the same amount of instant coffee and coffee and tea bought from a cafe. The biggest discrepancy was seen in these two categories in Sydney, for instant and cafe, at 46% and 61%, in turn. Similarly, Melbourne individuals mostly prefer coffe or tea at cafe, rather that instant coffee, with the difference of 15%. Instant coffee consumption for Brisban and Hobart demonstrated almost the same percentage, at 52% and 54%, respectively. Lastly, the coffee or tea amount bought from cafe was the second highest in Hobart, at 63%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response successfully covers the main features of the chart by reporting data across the five Australian cities for fresh coffee, instant coffee, and cafe visits. An overview is provided at the beginning, stating that people mostly chose to buy coffee or tea from a cafe. Key comparisons are made, such as highlighting Sydney as the highest for fresh coffee at 44% and noting the discrepancy between instant coffee and cafe purchases in cities like Adelaide and Sydney. While some data points could have been grouped more comprehensively to enhance the analysis, all parts of the prompt are addressed adequately, and key trends are clearly identified, aligning well with the Band 6 descriptor.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response demonstrates a clear overall arrangement with logical progression. Each paragraph focuses on a distinct aspect of the chart: an introductory overview, a section on fresh coffee, and a section on the remaining categories. Cohesive devices are employed to link ideas, such as 'Looking at the first category,' 'As for the other categories,' and 'Similarly.' However, some referencing is slightly awkward or mechanical, such as 'in turn' and 'Melbourne individuals,' which affects the natural flow. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different data categories, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6 score.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating terms related to data reporting such as 'consumption,' 'discrepancy,' 'percentage,' and 'citizens.' However, there are noticeable word choice and preposition inaccuracies, such as 'in five cities at Australia' instead of 'in Australia,' 'bought fresh coffee' instead of 'purchased fresh coffee,' and 'used up' which is slightly informal for an academic report. Spelling is generally accurate, but lexical control lacks the flexibility and precision required for higher bands, placing this performance firmly at Band 6.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writing includes a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as introductory participial phrases ('Looking at the first category') and relative clauses. There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, including 'consumption of different types of beverages by individuals in five cities at Australia,' 'the coffee or tea amount bought from cafe,' and missing articles (e.g., 'at cafe'). Despite these errors, the meaning remains clear and communication is not impeded. The control over grammar and punctuation reflects a typical Band 6 performance where simple sentences are accurate, but errors appear when attempting more complex constructions.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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