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IELTS Sample Charts (IELTS Writing Task 1)
The Writing Task 1 of the IELTS Academic
test requires you to write a summary of at least
150 words in response to a particular graph (bar,line or pie graph), table, chart, or process (how
something works, how something is done).
This task tests your ability to select and report
the main features, to describe and compare
data, identify significance and trends in factualinformation, or describe a process.
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IELTS Tip
• Write a brief introduction in your own
words using information from the question
and the headings in the graph.
• Divide the main body of your report into
two or three paragraphs describing the key
information in the graph. The first
paragraph should list your main points.Secondary points and observations
regarding surprising or interesting
information should follow in subsequent
paragraphs.
• In the exam, you might be asked todescribe two graphs. If this is the case, you
need to compare and contrast the
information and make connections
between the two.
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You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The two pie charts below show the online shopping sales for retail sectors in Canada in 2005 and 2010.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
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The two pie charts compare the percentages of
online sales across different retail sectors in
Canada in the years 2005 and 2010. For three
of the sectors, it is evident that over this time
frame there was significant change in theirproportion of online transactions.
At 35% we can see that electronics
and appliance sector accounted for
the majority of online sales in 2005,
but this percentage had dropped to 30% by 2010.
During the same five-year period, as
an increasing number of people
chose to purchase food and
beverage online, we can see thattransactions went from just 22% to
32%, making it the retail sector with
the largest overall proportion of the
online market.
In 2005, the home furnishing industry
boasted an impressive 25% of the total
online sales in Canada. However, by
2010, the figure had fallen considerably
to 15%.
Interestingly, online sales of video games
eventually overtook sales of home
furnishings, although video games still
represented only 23% of the market.
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However, But
On the contrary, On the other hand,
Differ from Nevertheless
Although Though
Otherwise Instead
Alternatively, Even though
Contrasting
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Generally, Generally speaking,
Overall, On the whole,
In general, By and large,
It seems to me that I believe
All in all, Basically,
Essentially, As a rule,
All things considered For the most part
Generalizing
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Certainly, Undoubtedly,
Doubtless, No doubt,
Definitely, Of course,
Expressing Certainty
More or less, To some extent,
Up to a point, Almost,
In a way, So to speak,
Expressing PartialAgreement
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Furthermore In addition
Also And
Moreover Similarly
Likewise As well as
Besides Too
Even What’s more
Adding Information
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To summarize In conclusion
Lastly, Finally,
To conclude with, In short,
Concluding
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Useful Phrases for IELTS Writing Part One Suggested Answers
Explaining what the task shows
The table/ pie chart/ bar chart/ line graph/ map/ flow chart/ diagram/ illustration/ figures…
… shows/ represents/ gives data on/ presents statistics on/ compares…
The vertical axis/ y axis is…
The horizontal axis/ x axis represents… Explaining the paragraph structure
These two sources of information will be examined in turn.
I will start by explaining…/ First, I will look at…/ First of all, I will focus on…/ Firstly, I will
describe…
In the next paragraph I will…/ and the following paragraph will…/ and then I will…/ … and
after that I will…/ and the final paragraph will be on…
The information will be divided into… and… and looked at in that order. Selecting the most important information/ Giving overall information
… stands out (because…)
The first thing you notice looking at the graph is…
The biggest/ largest/ most noticeable/ most important/ most obvious + difference/
similarity/ trend is…
Overall,…
The main trend…
Over the entire period shown,…
It can be said that in general,…
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Mentioning parts of what the page shows
The left-hand column/ first column/ middle column/ second column/ third column/
last column/ right-hand column
The top row/ first row/ second row/ last row/ bottom row
in the North/ Northwest/ Southeast
top right/ bottom left/ middle/ centre
segment
arrow
axis/ axes
Upward trends
To rise/ go up/ increase/ escalate/ climb/ grow/ expand/ soar/ take off
(nearly) double/ triple
A rise/ An increase
Reach a new high
Plateau
Downward trends
To drop/ fall/ dive/ plunge/ crash/ decline/ decrease/ deteriorate/ plummet A drop/ A fall/ A crash/ A decline/ A decrease/ A deterioration
Bottom out
Shrink
(nearly) halve
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Going up and down
Fluctuate/ Be unstable
Reach a peak
Recover/ Bounce back/ Pick up
Not changing
Remain stable
Flatten out
Big changes
Significant(ly)/ Substantial(ly)/ Dramatic(ally)/ Considerable(/bly), Sharp(ly)
Dive/ Plunge/ Crash/ Plummet
Rocket/ Shoot up/ Soar/ Take off
Small changes
Slight(ly)/ Gradual(ly)Creep up
Comparing
(far/ much/ substantially/ significantly/ slightly) …er/ more/ less…
(not) as…as…
(very) similar/ almost the same/ almost identical
in some ways similar to…
Comparing the… with/ to…
Contrasting
While…,…
In contrast,…
… shows a rather/ very different pattern/ trend.
We can contrast this with…
… is almost the exact opposite. … is (a/ the) (major) exception…
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Sequencing
Some time later…
After that…
The next/ following stage is… This is followed by…
This reoccurs…
In the following hours/ days/ weeks/ months/ years,…
Subsequently,…
…, after which…
As soon as…,… Starting the second main paragraph (= the second paragraph
of the body of the text)
Looking at…
Moving on to…
Turning our attention to…
In contrast to the… above,… Conclusion/ Summary (only if you can’t find another way of
reaching 150 words)
We can therefore see that…
Together, the graph and bar chart show that…
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The general idea – avoid the personal pronoun
The idea is that you don’t use “I” unless you are emphasising the
fact that this is your personal opinion.
The impersonal IT
One strategy you can think about is using IT phrases to start your sentences whenyou are about to give an opinion. This has two effects:
- it makes what you say sound more intelligent/plausible
- it gives you some ready-made English to use that is grammatically complex
- you don’t always need to say “Some people say”
- Here are a few alternatives for you:
Th i l THERE
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The impersonal THERE
Another alternative is to use a THERE phrase to be more impersonal. This works for
the same reasons as IT does and nearly all these phrases are also for giving
opinions:
ONE and WE
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Look at the following pie
charts and decide if the
sentences are true or false.
1) The pie charts show how many people listened to music in 2000 and 2010.
False
2) The pie charts show the proportion of songs played on different formats in 2000 and 2010.
True
3) More people listened to music on radio in 2010 than in 2000.False
4) In 2000 nearly a third of songs were played on cassette tape but this amount decreased to about two per cent in 2010.
True
5) The proportion of people listened to music on CD was about the same in 2000 and 2010.
True
6) There was a slight increase in the number of people listening to music on MP3 player from 2000 to 2010.
False
7) In 2000 no one used the Internet to listen to music but in 2010 people used the Internet to listen to a quarter of the total
songs.
True
8) In 2010 approximately half of the songs were played using two formats: MP3 player and CD.
True
9) From 2000 to 2010 the number of people listening to music on radio decreased by just over 25 percent.
False
10) From 2000 to 2010 the number of people listening to music on radio decreased to approximately half.True
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Test Tip
Note the way we use prepositions with numbers and dates:
2000 40%
2010 25%
In 2010 the number decreased to 25 per cent. (40 -> 25)
In 2010 the number decreased by 15 per cent. (40 – 15 = 25)
In 2010 the number decreased from 40 per cent. NOT in 40 percent.
The number dropped to 25 percent between 2000 and 2010. (40 ->
25)
Y h ld d b t 20 i t thi t k
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You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The pie charts below show the average household expenditures in a country in 1950
and 2010.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and makecomparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Average Household Expenditures by Major Category
Writing Tip
We can use either present simple
tense or past simple tense when
describing data in pie charts.
Whichever tense you choose,
remember to be consistent
throughout your whole answer.
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The two pie charts give information
about what households spent their
money on / household expenditure on
goods and services in 1950 and 2010.
It is immediately obvious that there aresome quite significant differences /
some things are significantlydifferent between the two charts.
In 2010 the largest proportion of expenditure was / most money was spent on food
whereas in 1950 it was on housing, with food for just 11.2%.There is a great difference in terms of the amount of money people’s spent on housing /
housing expenditure between the two years.
In 1950 72.1% of the total household budget / the total of what households spent went
towards housing, compared to only 22% in 2010.
There has been a notable increase in / People have notably increased the amount of
money spent on transportation between the two dates.In addition, the charts show a significant rise in the proportion of money spent onhealth care / that people spent more on health care in 2010 compared to 1950.
There are some similarities, however. For example, in both 1950 and 2010 people spent
a similar proportion on education. / the proportion of education expenditure was roughly
the same.
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