The table below shows the monthly expenditure of an average Australian family in 1991 and 2001.
Sample Response
The table comparesThe table data compare monthly expenditureexpenses of an average family in Australia in 1991 and 2001for the years 1991 and 2001. Overall, monthly expenditure by an average Australian family did not increasehad not increased that much in 10 years, from 1991 to 2001, and expenses on electricity, water, housing, and non-essential goods and services somewhat increased while the expenses on clothing and transport decreased over time. As shownAs is presented in the table, an average Australian family's monthly expenditurethe average expenditure of an Australian family per month was AUD 675 in 1991 and this rose towhile this reached to AUD 715 in 2001after 10 years. This shows that an average Australian family's expenditurethe average expenditure of an average Australian family had not increased significantly. In 1991, the expenditure on non-essential goods and services was $250, which$250 which was the highest of the listed categoriesamong the given categories. This rosereached to $270 in 2001, which$270 in 2001 which was also the highest amount among the listed categoriesgiven expense categories in 2001. The expenses on food & housing were $155 and $95 consecutively in 1991 and both of these expenses increased by only 5 dollars after 10 years. Interestingly the monthly amount spent on clothing and transport decreased over the decade and reached to $20 and $45 in 2001. The expenses on food, housing and electricity & water increased and the highest increase was for electricity and water.
Why this response received Band 7.0
The response gives a clear overview and selects the most important comparisons, including the modest rise in total expenditure, the largest category, and the categories that fell. Data are generally accurate and well supported, although repetitive phrasing, awkward collocations, and the absence of paragraph breaks reduce polish. Group the details into focused paragraphs and use more natural comparative expressions.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The overview is clear, the main trends are accurately identified, and well-chosen figures support the key comparisons.
For even fuller coverage, add the exact electricity-and-water figures when highlighting that category's largest increase.
Coherence and Cohesion
Ideas progress logically from the overview to totals and category comparisons, but presenting everything in one paragraph reduces readability.
Divide the response into an introduction, overview, and two detail paragraphs grouped by increasing and decreasing expenditure.
Lexical Resource
The response shows a good range of relevant expenditure language, though repetition and awkward choices such as consecutively and reached to reduce precision.
Use respectively for paired figures and reached or rose to for final amounts, while varying repeated references to average expenditure.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of complex structures is used with generally good control, despite some tense, article, and preposition errors.
Refine tense choice and remove unnecessary prepositions, especially in forms such as rose to and had increased over the decade.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The table below shows the monthly expenditure of an average Australian family in 1991 and 2001.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.