Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-11-02

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 5.5)

The bar chart illustrated the final data of a survey about people who bought coffee and tea and their drinking routines in five different cities of Australia.

Overall, people went to a café for coffee or tea rank first in all five cities in last 4 weeks. people who bought instant coffee increased in 5 cities in last month. those people who bought fresh coffee rank third. the figure showed that was in low position in last 30 days.

People who visited café for coffee or tea get higher position in all cities. In Melbourne approximately 64% people went to a café for coffee and tea and this figure is highest from all five cities. So, it was at position one. people who bought instant coffee in last four weeks rapidly increased in all cities. people bought fresh coffee had slightly low figure in all cities of Australia.

By the help of this data we compared people's drinking habits. this data showed that people who bought instant coffee higher in Hobart. and this figure was higher from others and Adelaide had lowest people who bought instant coffee.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the chart’s three measures and give an overview that café visits were highest across the cities, which captures an important feature. You also correctly note Hobart as the highest for instant coffee. However, the comparison that instant-coffee purchases “increased in 5 cities” is not supported: the chart compares cities, rather than showing change over time. Some details are inaccurate or incomplete: Melbourne, not the only city described, had the highest café figure at about 63.5%, while Hobart was close at 63%; Adelaide, not the lowest, had the lowest café attendance, and Brisbane and Adelaide shared the lowest fresh-coffee figure. The response selects relevant features, but limited accurate comparisons and unclear claims leave the task only partly developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs of detail. This gives the reader some organisation, and phrases such as “Overall” and “In Melbourne” signal the intended direction. However, progression is limited because several points are repeated rather than developed: café visits are described as highest in both the overview and the next paragraph, while fresh coffee is repeatedly called low without a clear city-by-city comparison. Linking is sometimes mechanical or unclear, as in “So, it was at position one” and “By the help of this data we compared…”. The final paragraph introduces Hobart and Adelaide but does not connect those figures to the earlier comparisons. Group the data by meaningful contrasts and use clearer references to improve the flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant topic vocabulary, including “survey,” “café,” “instant coffee,” “fresh coffee,” and “figure,” so the subject is generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several expressions are repeated, especially “people who bought” and “higher position.” Some word combinations are unnatural or imprecise, such as “final data,” “rank first,” “rapidly increased,” and “higher from others.” In particular, “increased” suggests a change over time, which the chart does not show. More precise language for describing proportions and rankings would make the comparisons clearer. Aim to vary reporting verbs and use standard chart collocations, while keeping the wording concise and accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

Most sentences use simple structures, and the reader can usually identify the intended comparison. However, grammatical errors are frequent and sometimes make relationships between ideas difficult to follow. Examples include “people went to a café … rank first,” where the verb form does not agree with the subject, and “people who bought instant coffee increased,” which gives the people an unintended action. Articles and sentence boundaries are also inconsistent: “In Melbourne approximately 64% people” needs an article or a different construction, and several sentences begin with lowercase “people” or “this.” There is little evidence of controlled complex sentence structures. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and build comparisons with patterns such as “The proportion who visited cafés was higher in…”

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