Academic Task 1
IELTS Academic Writing Task 1: Cycling to work (table)
Question type: Academic Task 1: table
The question
The table below shows the percentage of workers who cycled to work in four cities in 2005, 2015 and 2025.
| City | 2005 | 2015 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| City A | 4% | 9% | 17% |
| City B | 12% | 11% | 10% |
| City C | 2% | 3% | 8% |
| City D | 20% | 24% | 26% |
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Write your own answer first. Then get an estimated band and corrections from our AI marker.
Answer this questionHow to approach it
- Start by paraphrasing the question: what, where and when.
- In the overview, say which cities grew and which one was different.
- Group City A and City C together (strong growth), then compare City D and City B.
Model answer
178 words (minimum 150). Written to show the features of a Band 8-level answer.
The table shows the proportion of workers who cycled to work in four cities in 2005, 2015 and 2025.
Overall, cycling to work became more popular in three of the four cities, with the most dramatic growth in City A. City B was the only city where the proportion fell, while City D had the highest rate throughout the period.
City A saw the biggest change. Only 4% of workers cycled there in 2005, but this figure more than doubled to 9% in 2015 and reached 17% by 2025. City C also experienced considerable growth, although from a very low base, rising slightly from 2% to 3% in the first decade before jumping to 8% in 2025.
City D had the highest proportion of cyclists in every year. The figure climbed steadily from 20% in 2005 to 24% in 2015 and 26% in 2025. By contrast, City B, which started with the second-highest rate at 12%, was the only city to see a decline, falling gradually to 11% and then to 10% by the end of the period.
Useful language from this answer
- the proportion of
- describing percentages
- more than doubled
- describing a large increase without calculating
- from a very low base
- showing a small starting figure
- by contrast
- comparing opposite trends
- throughout the period
- describing something that did not change
Common mistakes with this question
- Missing the overview. A report without a clear summary of the main trends cannot score above Band 5 for Task Achievement.
- Giving your opinion or explaining why the changes happened. Task 1 Academic only asks you to describe the data.
- Listing every number in order instead of selecting the key figures and making comparisons.
Now write your own answer
Reading a model helps, but writing is what improves your band. Answer this question and get an estimated band for all four criteria, with corrections taken from your own sentences.
This model answer was written by TestWise Prep to show the features of a high-scoring answer. It is not official IELTS material. Use it for ideas and language, not to memorise.