- A line graph shows change over time. Write at least 150 words in about 20 minutes.
- Use four paragraphs: introduction, overview, and two paragraphs of details.
- The overview is essential: summarise the main trends without numbers.
- Select key figures (start, peak, low, end) and use varied trend vocabulary. Never give reasons or opinions.
Line graphs are one of the most common questions in IELTS Academic Writing Task 1. They look simple, but many students lose marks by listing every number, forgetting the overview or repeating the same verbs.
This guide shows you a clear four-paragraph structure, how to write an overview the examiner is looking for, the vocabulary you need to describe trends, and a complete model answer for the graph below.
What an IELTS line graph task looks like
You see a graph and a short task. The final instruction is the same for every Task 1 question:
The graph below shows the percentage of workers in Riverton who travelled to work by car, bus and bicycle between 1990 and 2020.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Percentage of workers in Riverton travelling to work by car, bus and bicycle, 1990–2020
Show the data as a table
| Year | Car | Bus | Bicycle |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 45% | 35% | 10% |
| 1995 | 50% | 32% | 8% |
| 2000 | 55% | 28% | 7% |
| 2005 | 58% | 25% | 8% |
| 2010 | 55% | 24% | 12% |
| 2015 | 50% | 26% | 20% |
| 2020 | 40% | 27% | 31% |
Task 1 is marked on four criteria: Task Achievement, Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource and Grammatical Range and Accuracy. For Task Achievement, the examiner checks that you have given a clear overview and supported it with accurate, relevant data.
A simple 4-paragraph structure
- 1Introduction: paraphrase the task (1 sentence)
Say what the graph shows in your own words. Change the wording: shows becomes illustrates, between 1990 and 2020 becomes over the thirty years from 1990 to 2020.
- 2Overview: the main trends (2 sentences)
Summarise the two most important features, with no numbers. This is the paragraph examiners look for first.
- 3Details 1 (3–4 sentences)
Describe one group of data with key figures: where it started, how it changed, its peak or low, and where it ended.
- 4Details 2 (3–4 sentences)
Describe the rest of the data, and compare the lines where they meet, cross or move in opposite directions.
How to write the overview
Before you write, spend two or three minutes studying the graph. Ask yourself these questions, and your overview will almost write itself:
- What is the overall direction of each line: up, down or roughly the same?
- Which line is highest and which is lowest for most of the period?
- Which line shows the biggest change?
- Do any lines cross, or move in opposite directions?
Overall, the car remained the most common way of getting to work throughout the period, although its popularity declined after 2005. The most striking change was in cycling, which more than tripled and overtook the bus by the end of the period.
How to group the details
With two detail paragraphs, you need a sensible way to divide the data. There are two common options:
- By line: one paragraph for the lines that behave similarly, one for the line that is different. In the model answer, car and bus come first, and cycling, the most dramatic trend, gets its own paragraph.
- By time: one paragraph for the first half of the period and one for the second, when there is a clear turning point that affects every line.
For each line, give the start, any peak or low, and the end, with the year for each. Compare lines where it matters: when one overtakes another, or when they move in opposite directions.
Vocabulary for describing trends
Verbs and nouns
| Meaning | Verbs | Nouns |
|---|---|---|
| Going up | rise, increase, climb, grow, go up | a rise, an increase, a growth in |
| Going down | fall, decrease, decline, drop, go down | a fall, a decrease, a decline, a drop in |
| Highest point | peak at, reach a peak of, hit a high of | a peak |
| Lowest point | bottom out at, fall to a low of | a low |
| No change | remain stable, stay the same, level off, plateau | a period of stability |
| Up and down | fluctuate, vary | fluctuations |
| Passing another line | overtake, exceed, surpass | — |
How big or fast the change was
| Size | Adjectives (+ noun) | Adverbs (+ verb) |
|---|---|---|
| Very large | dramatic, sharp, steep, rapid | dramatically, sharply, steeply, rapidly |
| Large | significant, considerable, marked | significantly, considerably, markedly |
| Steady | steady, gradual, consistent | steadily, gradually, consistently |
| Small | slight, modest, small | slightly, marginally |
Mix the two patterns to add variety: Cycling rose sharply (verb + adverb) and There was a sharp rise in cycling (adjective + noun) say the same thing.
Numbers and time
- Approximate figures: just over 30%, nearly 60%, roughly a quarter, almost a third.
- Time: between 1990 and 2005, over the thirty-year period, by 2020, in the final five years, from then on.
- Comparisons: twice as many as, more than tripled, the least popular, a similar proportion.
Model answer
Here is a complete answer to the Riverton task, about 190 words. Useful language is highlighted.
The line graph illustrates how the proportion of workers in Riverton who commuted by car, bus and bicycle changed over the thirty years from 1990 to 2020.
Overall, the car remained the most common way of getting to work throughout the period, although its popularity declined after 2005. The most striking change was in cycling, which more than tripled and overtook the bus by the end of the period.
In 1990, 45% of workers drove to work, and this figure rose steadily to a peak of 58% in 2005. It then fell back gradually, reaching 40% in 2020, its lowest point on the graph. Bus use followed a different pattern: it declined from 35% in 1990 to a low of 24% in 2010, before recovering slightly to 27% by 2020.
Cycling was the least popular option for most of the period. Its share dipped from 10% to 7% between 1990 and 2000 and remained below 10% until 2005. After that, however, it rose sharply, to 20% in 2015 and 31% in 2020, overtaking the bus in the final five years.
Why this answer works
- Task Achievement: a clear overview of the two key features, supported by accurate figures for every line, with no opinions or reasons.
- Coherence and Cohesion: each paragraph has one job, and linking words such as although, then and after that, however guide the reader.
- Lexical Resource: varied trend language (rose steadily, fell back gradually, dipped, overtook) instead of repeating increased and decreased.
- Grammar: accurate past tenses and a range of structures, including participle clauses such as reaching 40% in 2020.
This model shows the kind of answer examiners associate with the highest bands. Your score depends on your own writing on the day.
7 common line graph mistakes
- No overview. This is the most expensive mistake in Task 1. Always summarise the main trends.
- Listing every number. Choose the key figures. A list of data with no comparison doesn't show the main features.
- Giving reasons or opinions. “Cycling rose because of new bike lanes” is outside the task.
- Copying the task. Paraphrase the introduction instead of copying the question word for word.
- Repeating the same verbs. Use the tables above to vary increase and decrease.
- Wrong tense. Past dates need the past simple. Future dates need forms such as is expected to.
- Spending too long. Task 1 is worth half as much as Task 2. Finish in about 20 minutes.
How to practise line graphs
- For each graph you practise, write the overview first, in under five minutes. If you can't, study the graph again.
- Keep to time: 20 minutes, at least 150 words. Our free IELTS word counter shows your count as you type, just like the computer-based test.
- Check your linking and range with the linking words checker and the grammar checker.
- Taking IELTS on computer? Practise typing your reports, not handwriting them. Our guide to IELTS on computer explains what to expect.
Get your Task 1 reports marked
Write Task 1 in the real exam format and get an AI band score with feedback on all four criteria.
- Graphs, charts, tables, maps and processes
- A band for each criterion, with corrections
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