IELTS Academic Writing Task 1: Consumer Expenditure Table (Band 9 Sample)
This Academic Task 1 asks you to describe a table showing the percentage of national consumer spending that five countries devoted to three categories in 2002. A band-9 response gives an overview of the main patterns, then reports the key figures with comparisons rather than reading out every cell. Below is a model answer of roughly 190 words, followed by why it scores 9 on all four criteria.
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01 · The task
The table below shows the percentage of their national consumer expenditure that five countries devoted to three categories — food/drinks/tobacco, clothing/footwear, and leisure/education — in 2002. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
02 · Band 9 sample answer
189 words · Band 9The table compares how much of their national consumer spending five countries — Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden and Turkey — allocated to three categories in 2002.
Overall, food, drinks and tobacco accounted for by far the largest proportion of spending in every country, whereas leisure and education consistently received the smallest share. Turkey and Ireland devoted the highest proportions to essentials, while spending patterns in the wealthier northern European countries were more modest.
Food, drinks and tobacco dominated across the board, but the range was wide: Turkey spent the most, at 32.14%, closely followed by Ireland at 28.91%, while Sweden spent the least, at just 15.77%. This suggests that a smaller share of income went on basic goods in the more affluent economies.
The other two categories took up far less. Clothing and footwear ranged from 5.40% in Sweden to 9.00% in Italy, the highest of the five. Leisure and education attracted the smallest proportion everywhere, never exceeding 4.35% (Turkey) and dipping as low as 1.98% in Spain.
03 · Why this scores Band 9
The response covers all three categories across the five countries, opens with an overview capturing the dominance of food/drinks/tobacco and the small share for leisure/education, and then reports the highest and lowest figures with comparisons. It selects the significant extremes rather than reciting all fifteen cells.
The report is logically organised — overview, then one paragraph per grouping (the dominant category, then the two smaller ones). Cohesion is smooth and varied — "dominated across the board", "closely followed by...", "while Sweden spent the least", "The other two categories took up far less".
Data vocabulary is precise and varied — "allocated to", "accounted for by far the largest proportion", "devoted the highest proportions to essentials", "dominated across the board", "never exceeding", "dipping as low as" — describing proportions without repetition.
04 · Useful collocations for this task
Tap a phrase to see what it means and how to use it. Natural collocations like these lift your Lexical Resource score.
05 · Frequently asked questions
How do I avoid just listing every number in a table?
Group and compare. In your overview, name the biggest and smallest categories overall; in the body, report only the highest and lowest countries for each with a comparison. Selecting the extremes, not reciting every cell, is what earns Task Achievement.
Can I add a light interpretation?
A brief, cautious inference is fine and can lift the answer — here, noting that wealthier countries spent proportionally less on essentials. Keep it modest ("this suggests...") and always grounded in the data.
What tense should I use?
The past simple, because the data is for a single past year, 2002 ("Turkey spent the most", "clothing ranged from..."). Keep it consistent throughout.
How long should a Task 1 answer be?
At least 150 words; a band-9 answer is usually 170–200. This model is 189 words, enough for an overview and the key comparisons across all three categories. Spend about 20 minutes on Task 1.
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