Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-02

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 5.0)

The bar chart illustrates the results of a survey about people's coffee and tea purchasing and drinking habits in five different Australian cities.

Overall, it seems clear that the pattern of people went to a cafe for coffee or tea, experienced a notable growth among all the cities rather than Adelaide, in previous four weeks. Along the way, individuals purchased instant coffee, fluctuated during the last four weeks. However, the percentage of bought fresh coffee, remained relatively stable.

Furthermore, in Sydney, the ratio of bought fresh coffee was at approximately 44%. There was at around 45% of residents bought instant coffee. The ratio of persons went to a cafe, rose a peak of 61%. Melbourne recorded the higher percen, in the trend of went to a cafe, to 64%. The

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

The response fails to meet the minimum length requirement of 150 words, stopping abruptly at only 130 words, which restricts the overall development of the task. While the student attempts an overview and mentions some data points, the response only minimally addresses the prompt. The selection of features is limited, and the summary remains incomplete. To improve, you must ensure you write at least the minimum word count, select several key trends from the chart to compare effectively, and provide a fully developed response that covers all categories across the cities rather than cutting off mid-sentence.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is some basic organization, including an introductory sentence and the beginning of an overview, but the overall progression of information breaks down quickly. Cohesive devices are minimal or inaccurate, such as using 'Along the way' awkwardly to transition between points. Paragraphing is attempted, but sentences lack a clear logical flow and the text trails off abruptly at the end. To move to a higher level, you need to ensure that ideas are sequenced logically, transitions between sentences and paragraphs are smooth and appropriate, and the writing is brought to a complete and coherent conclusion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, such as repeatedly using words like 'ratio', 'percentage', and 'bought'. There are noticeable word choice and collocation issues, including phrases like 'the pattern of people went to a cafe' and 'the percentage of bought fresh coffee'. Spelling is generally acceptable, but the limited range of vocabulary and awkward word forms cause some difficulty for the reader. To improve, you should incorporate a wider variety of less common lexical items related to data and trends, ensuring precise word choice and correct word forms.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response shows a very limited range of structures, with frequent grammatical errors that can cause difficulty for the reader. There are persistent problems with verb forms and tense usage, such as 'people went to a cafe' instead of a continuous or participle structure, and awkward prepositional phrases like 'in the trend of went to a cafe'. Sentence structures are frequently faulty when attempting complexity, and punctuation errors are present. To achieve a higher band, you must demonstrate better control over complex sentence forms, accurate verb tense consistency, and correct grammatical patterns for reporting data.

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

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