Academic Task 1
Proportions of a whole, and usually more than one chart to compare. With a worked example and a practice exercise.
An IELTS pie chart shows how a total divides into parts, so proportion is the whole subject. The question almost always gives you two or more charts, which means the real task is comparing them rather than describing either one on its own.
That is where most answers go wrong. Describing chart one in full and then chart two in full produces two lists and no comparison, and comparison is what the instruction asks for.
The task
Six points, and the trap that catches most candidates.
Each segment is a share of one hundred per cent. That is why proportion language works here and absolute figures often do not: a segment may grow as a share while the total shrinks.
If you are given two years or two countries, organise the answer by category rather than by chart. Take the largest segments across both, then the smallest.
Name the largest and smallest categories, and the biggest change between the charts. That is usually two sentences and it carries a large part of the Task Achievement mark.
Just under a quarter, almost half, roughly a third, a tenth. Alternating these with exact percentages gives range without any risk.
Accounted for, made up, represented, constituted. Was works but does nothing for Lexical Resource, and these four are easy to use accurately.
A percentage point is not a per cent. If a share moves from 20 to 30 per cent, that is a rise of ten percentage points, or a fifty per cent increase. Confusing them is a factual error.
Worked example
The data below is what a typical pair of pie charts would show. The model covers the introduction and overview.
| Category | 1990 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Housing | 26% | 38% |
| Food | 31% | 19% |
| Transport | 17% | 16% |
| Leisure | 11% | 18% |
| Other | 15% | 9% |
Introduction. The charts show how household spending was divided between five categories in 1990 and in 2020.
Overview. Housing replaced food as the largest single item of household expenditure over the thirty-year period. Spending shifted away from essentials towards housing and leisure, while transport was the only category that remained broadly unchanged.
Body paragraph. Food accounted for just under a third of spending in 1990, the largest share at that time, but by 2020 it made up only 19 per cent. Housing moved in the opposite direction, rising from 26 to 38 per cent and becoming the biggest item.
The overview is organised around the change rather than around either chart, and no category is described twice. That is what comparison looks like on the page.
Method
Six things that decide whether this task reaches Band 7.
One paragraph on the largest categories across both charts and one on the smallest is far stronger than a paragraph per chart.
With two charts, the biggest shift is almost always the significant feature. Lead the overview with it.
Almost half followed by 47 per cent reads better than either used throughout, and it demonstrates range at no risk.
If your figures do not add to one hundred, you have misread a segment. It takes ten seconds to check and it prevents a factual error.
Group the small categories: the remaining three accounted for under a fifth between them. That is one sentence instead of three.
A rise from 20 to 30 per cent is ten percentage points. Calling it a ten per cent rise is wrong, and examiners do notice.
Practice
Six questions on the language this task needs. Choose the best option.
Every option below is grammatically possible. The question is which one an examiner would read as accurate and appropriately selective.
That judgement is what Task Achievement and Lexical Resource are measuring in this task.
1A share rises from 20 per cent to 30 per cent. Which sentence is accurate?
Ten percentage points. In relative terms the rise is fifty per cent. Saying ten per cent states a different and incorrect fact, which counts against accuracy.
2Which verb is best for describing a segment?
Accounted for. The first is acceptable but plain. Accounted for, made up and represented are the natural verbs here and cost nothing to use.
3You are given two pie charts, 1990 and 2020. How should the body paragraphs be organised?
By category. A paragraph per chart produces two descriptions and no comparison. Organising by category forces the comparison the task asks for.
4Which phrase best describes 24 per cent?
Just under a quarter. A quarter is 25 per cent, so 24 is just below it. Approximations must still be accurate, and a loose one reads as a mistake.
5Correct the error: Housing was the most largest category in 2020.
The largest. A doubled superlative is one of the most frequent errors in this task. Large takes -est on its own.
6Which sentence handles the small categories best?
The third. It groups the smaller segments into one accurate sentence. The first is a list, and the second and fourth give the reader no information at all.
That is the harder half of this task, and it is invisible from inside your own answer. An answer can be accurate in every sentence and still score Band 6 because it described everything instead of choosing what mattered.
The complete IELTS course on IELTStestONLINE has video lessons on every question type, many more exercises like this one, and your own support tutor you can ask when an answer does not make sense. Take a look at the complete course
Choosing the better sentence from four is not the same as producing one under time with a chart in front of you.
IELTStestONLINE keeps every score you get in one place, gives you an estimated band as you work, and assesses your writing and speaking against the four criteria so you can see where you stand before test day. See what full membership includes
Organise by category rather than by chart, so that each paragraph compares both. A paragraph per chart produces description instead of comparison.
Both. Alternating between almost half and 47 per cent shows range and keeps the writing readable.
A move from 20 to 30 per cent is ten percentage points, but a fifty per cent increase in relative terms. Mixing them up is a factual error.
No. Group the small ones into a single sentence and spend the words on the categories that carry the pattern.
Past simple for past dates, present simple for an undated chart. If two dates are given, both paragraphs are normally in the past.
Full membership
Task Achievement rewards choosing the significant features and reporting them accurately. Nobody can judge their own selection, because the things you left out are exactly the things you did not notice.
IELTStestONLINE assesses your writing against the four IELTS criteria, instantly and as often as you like, using a system built by a former IELTS examiner and examiner trainer. It keeps every score in one place with an estimated band, and it carries no advertising.
See what membership includes