An IELTS Writing Task 1 table at Band 6, 7 and 8
Quick answer
This page describes one invented table three times, at Band 6, 7 and 8, with the same overview and the same key features, and marks the phrases that earn or lose marks. For a table, the thing that most often separates the bands is selection: whether the report finds the pattern that links the columns and drops the column that does not fit, or reads the grid row by row.
In the app, a Task 1 report is marked with a band range for each criterion and a Data Accuracy card, so you can see whether a lost mark came from the table or from the language.
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On this page
This page takes one invented table and describes it three times, at Band 6, Band 7 and Band 8. The three reports have the same overview and pick out the same key features. Only the writing changes, so the differences you see belong to the bands and not to what was noticed in the data. How to plan a report on a table is explained in the guide to line graphs, bar charts, pie charts and tables; the table is a label from practice material, not an IELTS category.
The three answers were written for this site. They are not from a real paper, they were not marked by IELTS, and they are illustrations to compare against, not answers to memorise. IELTS.org penalises memorised and plagiarised content, and the visual in your exam will be different, so the use of this page is to see what each band looks like.
Key takeaways
- All three answers state the same overview and use the same features. What changes is how exact the overview is, how well the figures fit the claims and how accurately the sentences are built.
- The Band 6 answer goes through the cities one by one, spends words on the population column and rounds one figure so loosely that it no longer matches.
- The Band 7 answer groups the cities by journey time and links that group to the other columns.
- The Band 8 answer names the column that organises the table and shows with figures that the population column does not.
The task
This task is invented for practice and is not from a past paper. The figures are round and are not real statistics.
The table shows information about the daily journey to work in five cities in 2025. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
The data in the table:
| City | Population (millions) | Average journey to work (minutes) | Commuters by public transport (%) | Commuters by bicycle (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 1.2 | 52 | 48 | 4 |
| B | 3.5 | 38 | 30 | 12 |
| C | 0.8 | 24 | 12 | 35 |
| D | 2.1 | 45 | 41 | 6 |
| E | 0.6 | 21 | 9 | 28 |
All three answers rest on the same reading of the table:
- Overview: the cities with the longest journeys to work, A and D, had the highest use of public transport and the lowest cycling, and the reverse was true of C and E, the cities with the shortest journeys.
- Feature one: City A, the longest journey at 52 minutes, with 48 per cent on public transport and 4 per cent on bicycles.
- Feature two: City E, the shortest journey at 21 minutes and the lowest public transport share at 9 per cent, and City C, the highest cycling share at 35 per cent.
- Feature three: population does not follow the pattern, because City B, the largest at 3.5 million, has a journey well below A and D.
The same table at Band 6, 7 and 8
Hover or tap a marked phrase to see what a marker would note. The legend names the criterion for each colour, and orange marks a slip that loses marks.
Band 6
The table gives information about the population, the journey to work and the way people travelled in five cities in 2025.
Overall, the cities were different from each other, and in some cities people travelled longer and used public transport more than in the other citiesAn overview is there, but it does not say which cities and it does not link the journey time to the way people travel.
City A had a population of 1.2 million and the most longWrong word form: should be “longest” journey to work, at 52 minutes. 48 per cent of commuters used public transport and 4 per cent used a bicycleTwo columns are read out for one city, and nothing is compared with the other cities. City D had 2.1 million people, the journey took 45 minutes, 41 per cent used public transport and 6 per cent cycled.
In City B, the population wereAgreement: should be “was” 3.5 million, which was the biggest, and the journey took 38 minutes. City C and City E were the smallest cities, with 0.8 and 0.6 million people. Their journeys were the shortest, at 24 and 21 minutes, and about 40 per cent of commuters in City C cycledThe figure is 35 per cent, so “about 40” is too loose and no longer matches the table. AlsoA bare additive; the sentences are listed one after another, in City E 28 per cent cycled and 9 per cent used public transport. City B had 30 per cent on public transport and 12 per cent on bicycles.
Band 7
The table compares five cities in 2025 by population, the average journey to work and the shares of commuters who travelled by public transport and by bicycle.
Overall, the cities with the longest journeys to work, A and D, had the highest use of public transport and the lowest cycling, while the reverse was true of C and E, the cities with the shortest journeysOverview groups the cities and links the journey time to the way people travel.
City A had the longest average journey, at 52 minutes, and nearly half of its commuters, 48 per cent, used public transport, while only 4 per cent cycled. City D showed a similar pattern, with a 45-minute journey and 41 per cent travelling by public transport and just 6 per cent by bicycleParallel phrases after “with”, kept to the same form.
At the other extremeMarks the move to the opposite group of cities and sits where it fits, City E had the shortest journey, at 21 minutes, and only 9 per cent of commuters used public transport. City C, which haveWrong verb form: should be “had” the second shortest journey, at 24 minutes, recorded the highest share of cyclistsPrecise reporting language for a figure taken from a table, 35 per cent. Population did not follow the same pattern, as City B, the largest at 3.5 million, had a shorter journey than A or DTests the one column that does not fit the overview and says so.
Band 8
The table presents data for five cities in 2025: population, the average journey to work in minutes, and the percentages of commuters who used public transport and bicycles.
Overall, journey length sorted the cities: where journeys were longest, public transport dominated and cycling was marginal, and where they were shortest, the position was reversedNames the column that organises the table and gives the pattern in both directions.
City A combined the longest journey, at 52 minutes, with the highest public transport share, 48 per cent, and the lowest cycling rate, 4 per cent; City D followed closely on all three measures, at 45 minutes, 41 per cent and 6 per centA matched series of figures that answers three measures in one sentence.
At the other end of the rangeOpens the second group and mirrors the first, so no connector is needed, City E had the shortest journey, 21 minutes, and the smallest public transport share, 9 per cent, while City C was only three minutes behind on time yet led for cyclingCompact and exact, with the figure that proves it in the next phrase, at 35 per cent. City B sat between the two groups on every measureOne clause summarises a whole row, so the report needs no figures for it. Population explains none of this: City B was the largest, at 3.5 million, yet its journey of 38 minutes was well below that of AThe one column that does not fit is tested and set aside, with figures that show it.
What moved the band
The accounts below follow the public band descriptors, as this site paraphrases them. Each quotation comes from the answer of the band named in its sentence.
Task Achievement
The Band 6 report has an overview and covers the right cities, but it moves through the table city by city and rounds loosely. In Band 6, “48 per cent of commuters used public transport and 4 per cent used a bicycle” reads two columns for one city without comparing it with another, and “about 40 per cent of commuters in City C cycled” turns 35 into a figure the table does not hold. Its overview says that “the cities were different from each other”, which names no city and no link.
Band 7 sorts the cities into two groups and links the columns: “the cities with the longest journeys to work, A and D, had the highest use of public transport and the lowest cycling”. It also notices that population does not fit, though it says so in one sentence.
Band 8 names the column that organises the table, “journey length sorted the cities”, and gives the figures that prove the break in the population column: “City B was the largest, at 3.5 million, yet its journey of 38 minutes was well below that of A”. The Task Achievement cell at Band 7 holds the wording this account paraphrases.
Coherence and Cohesion
The Band 6 report is organised by city, so its order is the order of the rows. In Band 6, “Also” joins a City E sentence to a City C sentence with nothing to say why they belong together, and the paragraph on City B, C and E mixes three cities.
Band 7 organises by group, and “At the other extreme” opens the second group in the place where a reader expects it.
Band 8 builds the second group as a mirror of the first. “At the other end of the range” needs no further connector, because the sentence that follows repeats the three measures in the same order as City A’s. The Coherence and Cohesion cell at Band 6 describes the pattern of joins that follow the data’s layout instead of its meaning.
Lexical Resource
The Band 6 vocabulary is wide enough for the table and shows attempts that miss: “most long” has the wrong form of the word, and the report returns to “had” and “used” in almost every sentence.
Band 7 reports figures in the language of a table. “recorded the highest share of cyclists” is the register a data report needs, and the report varies how it names the two transport columns.
Band 8 compresses without losing the figures. “led for cycling” and “City B sat between the two groups on every measure” say in a few words what a looser report would spend a sentence on. The Lexical Resource cell at Band 7 describes this control.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The Band 6 report mixes simple and complex sentences and its slips are small: in Band 6, “the population were 3.5 million” has the wrong verb for a singular noun, and several sentences are joined by commas where a conjunction was needed.
Band 7 uses more than one structure. “41 per cent travelling by public transport and just 6 per cent by bicycle” keeps two phrases parallel after “with”, though “which have the second shortest journey” in its relative clause slips on tense.
Band 8 widens the range and almost every sentence is clean. “City D followed closely on all three measures, at 45 minutes, 41 per cent and 6 per cent” packs three figures into a matched series, and the semicolon before it joins two related statements without a connector. Compare the Grammatical Range and Accuracy cell at Band 8.
Traps this task sets
These come from the guide to line graphs, bar charts, pie charts and tables, and each is visible in the Band 6 answer.
- Going through the grid row by row. The Band 6 answer takes City A, then D, then B, then C and E, so the order of the table decides the order of the report. Sort the cities first and write about groups.
- Describing the column that carries no pattern. Population is read out in four of the Band 6 sentences, and none of them helps the overview. Say what the column does not show, once, and move on.
- Rounding a figure until it is wrong. Calling 35 per cent “about 40” starts to misstate the table. Round only when the rounded figure still matches.
- Mixed units. The table holds millions, minutes and percentages. Put the unit beside every figure, and compare a percentage with a percentage.
How to use these answers
Write your own report on the same table first, in 20 minutes. Then read the three answers against yours, one paragraph at a time, and ask which band your paragraph resembles on each of the four criteria.
Next, mark your own script with the same codes: where you stated the overview, where a group of cities was linked to a column, where a figure was chosen because it settles a comparison and which slips a marker would circle. Count how many of the twenty figures you used and ask what each one proved. Do not memorise any sentence from these pages: IELTS.org penalises memorised content, and the visual in the exam will not match this one.
How the app marks it
IELTS Mentor AI marks a Task 1 report with a band range for each of the four criteria, from a strict to a lenient reading, followed by what worked and how to improve for each criterion. A Data Accuracy card separates a misread chart from a language mistake. The editor is timed at 20:00 with a live word count against the 150 minimum.
Where this fits
This page belongs to the guide to line graphs, bar charts, pie charts and tables, which explains how to plan a report, and to the Writing test format guide, which covers the whole test. The same exercise is done for the other visuals: line graph, bar chart, pie chart, process diagram, map and two charts. For the Task 1 practice tool, see Writing Task 1 practice, and for how the Writing score is built, see how the IELTS Writing score is calculated.
Frequently asked questions
Are these IELTS Writing Task 1 table answers from a real paper?
No. They were written for this site, on an invented table with round figures, and IELTS did not mark them. The band each one illustrates is the site's reading of the public band descriptors, not a score that any examiner gave.
How many figures from a table should a report include?
IELTS publishes no number. IELTS.org asks you to include the most important points and allows minor details to be left out. The three answers here use between ten and twenty figures from a grid of twenty figures, chosen because they carry the pattern.
Do I have to describe every column?
No. The task is to select and report the main features. The population column in this table follows no pattern, so the Band 8 answer mentions it once to set it aside, and the Band 6 answer spends several sentences on it.
Will the exam give me a table?
IELTS publishes no list of visuals to expect. IELTS.org says Academic Task 1 may show one or more graphs, charts or tables, or a diagram. A table is a practice shape on this site, not a promised one.
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