User-written IELTS example
Writing Academic Task 1 Band 8.0 Example
Original task prompt, user essay, band score, and related examples in the same report workspace.
Illustrative target band for this original model answer.
Plan your answer
Try your own response before reading the samples.
Ideas to explore
- Compare the largest category in each direction: aircraft parts are $72 million from the US to Vietnam, while coffee is $23 million from Vietnam to the US.
- Highlight the gap between the leading and smaller categories: US exports include other goods at $35 million and machinery at $30.5 million, while Vietnam’s garments and other exports are both $2 million.
- Point out close values where they help summarise the data: Vietnam’s seafood ($4.4 million) and rice ($4.3 million) are almost equal.
Suggested structure
- Paraphrase what the charts compare and state that values are in millions of dollars.
- Give an overview naming the leading category in each direction and any notable tie or overall contrast.
- Describe US-to-Vietnam exports from the largest value to the smallest.
- Describe Vietnam-to-US exports in descending order, grouping the close seafood and rice figures and the tied lowest figures.
Useful vocabulary & examples
- account for
- to make up or represent a stated amount or share
Aircraft parts account for $72 million of exports to Vietnam.
- be valued at
- to have a stated monetary value
Machinery is valued at $30.5 million.
- be tied at
- to have the same value as another category
Garments and other exports are tied at $2 million.
- followed by
- used to introduce the next item in a ranking
Coffee leads at $23 million, followed by fruit and vegetables at $16 million.
Task Prompt

User Essay Analysis
Review the public answer with report-style highlights.
The two pie charts compare the value of key goods exported between the United States and Vietnam, measured in millions of dollars. Overall, Vietnam mainly exports agricultural products to the US, with coffee and fruit dominating. In contrast, the US exports largely industrial goods to Vietnam, particularly aircraft parts. The total value of US exports to Vietnam was considerably higher than the value of Vietnamese exports to the US. Adding the categories gives totals of about $172 million and $51.7 million, respectively.
For Vietnam, coffee was the leading export, at $23 million, followed by fruit and vegetables at $16 million. The remaining items were much smaller: seafood and rice brought in $4.4 million and $4.3 million, while garments and other goods were both valued at $2 million.
US exports were led by aircraft parts, at $72 million. Other goods, worth $35 million, and machinery, at $30.5 million, were also substantial contributors. Fertiliser earned $16.5 million, while cotton and cars were the smallest US export categories, at $12 million and $6 million respectively. Thus, the charts show a clear contrast: Vietnam’s exports were concentrated in coffee and produce, whereas US export value was dominated by high-value industrial items, especially aircraft parts.
Targeted Improvement Tips
Related examples for this topic
Compare different bands on the same IELTS prompt.
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