The table shows the cost of water in 5 cities in Australia.
Sample Response
The table illustrates the price of water and the average household water billwater, and the average household water bill, in five Australian cities.
Overall, it can be seen that Melbourne residents have the lowest average household water billwater bill per household on average, while Perth households have the highest average water billlargest water bills. Additionally, there is little to no difference in the cost of water for residents exceeding 125 kilolitres in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, whereas Perth and Adelaide residents pay significantly higher rates.
The cost of water in Adelaide and Perth is $0.42 per kilolitre for use of up to 125 kilolitres. However, this cost increases to $1.00 in Adelaide and $1.50 in Perth for water use exceeding 125 kilolitres. Residents in Melbourne and Sydney, on the other hand, pay set rates of $0.78 and $0.98, respectivelya set rate of $0.78 and $0.98 respectively per kilolitre of water, regardless of the total amount used, while those in Brisbane pay $0.81 per kilolitre up to 125 kilolitres and $0.84 per kilolitre above that threshold$0.81 per kilolitre and $0.84 for water use surpassing 125 kilolitres.
Regarding household water bills, Perth residents pay the highest average billhave the highest on average, at $332, while the average in Melbourne is $253. Residents in other cities pay an average of between $310 andto $320 per household.
Why this response received Band 8.5
This is a highly accurate, well-organised account that selects the principal pricing patterns and household-bill contrasts with precise supporting figures. Its main limitation is a minor imprecision in the final range expression, while some comparisons could be stated even more explicitly. The highest-priority improvement is to present the three mid-range household bills individually or contrast them directly, maintaining the response's otherwise excellent precision.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The response gives a clear overview and accurately reports all major tariff patterns and bill extremes from the table.
Add the individual Brisbane, Adelaide, and Sydney bill figures to make the final comparison fully explicit.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information is grouped logically into tariff and household-bill paragraphs, with clear progression and unobtrusive linking.
Refine the final paragraph by ordering the three remaining cities or comparing them directly rather than compressing them into a range.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied, precise, and appropriate for describing rates, thresholds, and household costs.
Prefer the idiomatic form 'between $310 and $320' to preserve complete lexical precision.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex structures is used accurately, with only a very minor construction error in the final sentence.
Check paired grammatical constructions such as 'between ... and ...' during the final edit.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The table shows the cost of water in 5 cities in Australia.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.