IELTS Academic Writing Task 1: how to describe charts, tables and processes

Task 1 is the shorter of the two Academic Writing tasks. You get a visual, about 20 minutes and a 150-word floor. This guide covers what IELTS actually says about the task, how it is marked, how to build the answer, and four practice items from the ScoreFluent bank.

ScoreFluent is not affiliated with IELTS, or with the British Council, IDP IELTS or Cambridge University Press & Assessment, who jointly own it. Every rule below links to its primary source.

What does IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 ask you to do?

You describe visual information in your own words. IELTS says the visual can be one or more graphs, charts or tables, or a diagram of an object, device, process or event. Its preparation page adds that the images can include process diagrams, maps or plans. All the information you need is in the visual.

• Length: at least 150 words.
• Time: the whole Writing test is 60 minutes for two tasks. The format summary says about 20 minutes for Task 1, and the detailed page says to spend no more than 20.
• Style: academic or semi-formal/neutral.
• Form: full sentences. No notes or bullet points.
• Weighting: Task 2 contributes twice as much as Task 1 to the Writing score.

Checked 15 and 16 October 2026 against IELTS: Academic Writing format and IELTS: writing test resources.

How is Task 1 marked?

Certificated IELTS examiners mark each Writing task on four criteria: Task Achievement (Task 2 uses Task Response), Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource, and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. IELTS says the criteria are weighted equally and the task score is their average (IELTS: scoring in detail).

Task Achievement is the criterion that changes between tasks, so it matters most here. IELTS describes it as how accurately, appropriately and relevantly your response covers the task requirements. The public band descriptors (updated May 2023) show the shape of it for Academic:

• At Band 7, the response "presents a clear overview, the data are appropriately categorised, and main trends or differences are identified".
• At Band 5, "the recounting of detail is mainly mechanical" and there "may be no data to support the description".

Read them in full in the IELTS writing band descriptors (PDF). For how the criteria become one band, see IELTS scoring. For the other Writing tasks, see IELTS Writing.

What is an overview, and where does it go?

IELTS defines an overview as the part of the response that summarises the main points: the main trends, changes or number of steps in the information. It also says a clear overview is important for Band 7 or higher.

IELTS does not say where the overview must sit. Put it straight after the introduction. Then you cannot forget it, and the details that follow have something to hang on.

A usable overview names the pattern, not the numbers:

• Chart or table: which items are highest and lowest, or which way the trend goes.
• Process: how many stages there are, and what goes in and comes out.
• Map or plan: what changed and what stayed the same.

Weak: "The chart shows many reasons." Stronger: "Reasons linked to personal development were far more common than financial or family reasons." The second sentence commits to a pattern the reader can check against the visual.

How should you spend the 20 minutes?

IELTS gives a ceiling, not a split. This split is our suggestion, not an IELTS rule:

1. 2 minutes: read the title, units, time period, axes and any small print in the prompt.
2. 2 minutes: choose your overview, then group the details into two body paragraphs.
3. 14 minutes: write.
4. 2 minutes: check figures, units, tenses and length.

Do not run over. Task 2 counts twice as much, and IELTS warns that a longer Task 1 can leave you less time for it. On computer, IELTS lets you use a note-taking tool for planning, though the examiner cannot see those notes.

What structure works for charts and tables?

Four paragraphs:

1. Introduction (one sentence). Restate what the visual shows in your own words. Do not copy the prompt: the public descriptors list over-dependence on input material among the features of low-band answers.
2. Overview (two sentences). The main pattern, as above.
3. Body 1. The first group of features, with figures.
4. Body 2. The second group, compared back to the first.

Group by pattern, not by reading order. For a bar chart, body 1 might be the three highest bars and body 2 the three lowest. For a line graph, body 1 might be the lines that rise and body 2 the lines that fall. Give figures with their units. You are selecting: the Band 7 descriptor talks about key features that are "selected" and covered, so a minor figure can stay out.

Read the small print. "Students could select more than one reason" means the percentages will not add up to 100.

How do you describe a process or a map?

Process. Say how many stages there are in the overview. Link the stages with sequence words (first, then, once, finally) and use the passive for what happens to things: "the water is filtered". IELTS says that for a diagram you include the most important points and that minor details may be left out, so you do not need to narrate every pipe.

Map or plan. IELTS says the key features are the major changes, supported by details such as the position of items. Use compass directions when the map gives them. In the overview, say what changed overall, such as more buildings and less green space. Then give the detail area by area.

Which mistakes cost marks in Task 1?

• Reading out every figure. The Band 5 descriptor calls this "mechanical". Select and compare instead.
• No overview. IELTS ties a clear overview to Band 7 and above.
• Adding reasons or opinions. The visual holds the information you need. Explaining why the numbers moved is a Task 2 skill.
• Writing under 150 words. There may not be enough evidence for higher bands.
• Using notes or bullet points. IELTS says you will be penalised for an answer that is not connected text.
• Wrong units or time period. Check the title and axes before you write the first sentence.
• Copying the prompt. Paraphrase it.

Practice items from the ScoreFluent bank (not real exam questions)

These four items come from our practice bank. They are not IELTS exam questions. In the app each item comes with a rendered chart. Here is the data it shows. Write a two-sentence overview for each before you read on.

Item 1. Pie chart: Reasons for Employee Absence, by Share of Days Lost

The pie chart below shows the reasons for employee absence from work in one large company during a year. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Reason	Share of days lost (%)
Illness	42
Family responsibilities	18
Medical appointments	12
Transport problems	9
Bereavement	6
Other	13

Item 2. Bar chart: Reasons for Choosing to Study Abroad

The bar chart below shows the main reasons that students gave for choosing to study abroad. Students could select more than one reason. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Reason	Percentage of students
Career prospects	62
Cultural experience	54
Language skills	48
Lower fees	21
Scholarship offered	17
Family ties	12

Item 3. Process diagram: Household Rainwater Harvesting System

The diagram below shows how rainwater is collected and used in a household. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features.

The diagram runs left to right: rain falls on the roof, then the gutters collect the water, then a leaf filter removes debris, then the water goes to an underground storage tank, then a pump sends it to garden irrigation and to toilet flushing. When the tank is full, the water overflows to a soakaway.

Item 4. Table: Weekly Leisure Time (Hours) by Age Group

The table below shows the average number of hours per week that people of different ages spent on four leisure activities. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Age group	Reading	Watching TV	Playing sport	Using social media
15-24	3	8	6	21
25-34	4	11	4	14
35-54	5	15	3	9
55-64	8	19	3	5
65 and over	10	24	2	3

For item 4, a table with five rows and four activities tempts you to read every cell. Look for the two or three patterns instead: which activity rises with age, which falls, and where the lines cross.

What does a Task 1 answer look like?

Here is an answer to item 2. It is meant to show structure, not to be copied.

Notice four things. The introduction restates the chart and picks up the small print. The overview commits to a pattern. The body paragraphs are grouped by size, not by reading order. Every figure carries its unit. We have not marked this answer and it carries no band.

How does ScoreFluent mark Task 1 practice?

ScoreFluent returns a practice estimate for your Task 1 answer against the four published criteria. Writing feedback marks the sentences that need work. It is a practice estimate, not an official IELTS band or an examiner's mark.

Reading and listening practice is free. Speaking and writing examiner reports use credits. New accounts start with 40 free credits, credits never expire and there is no subscription. See pricing, then start with 40 free credits →

Where do these facts come from?

Checked 15 and 16 October 2026:

• IELTS: Academic Writing format: tasks, word counts, timings, criteria, weighting, penalties.
• IELTS: writing test resources: visual types, key features, overview.
• IELTS: scoring in detail: criteria and equal weighting.
• IELTS writing band descriptors (PDF): quoted phrases above.

Time splits, paragraph plans and the illustrative answer are our own technique and are labelled as such.

Next: the General Training letter and Writing Task 2. Back to the IELTS hub or all IELTS task-type guides.