In IELTS Academic Task 1, a table response needs to select important features and support them with data. Copying each cell in sequence may preserve the figures while hiding the key change. First look for a group that differs most from the others or changes its position.
In this example, one city starts with the shortest commuting time and ends with the longest. Listing all six figures conceals that reversal. One connected observation makes it visible.
LetsWords offers table tasks, practice focused on individual Task 1 criteria, and feedback on complete responses. It shows which important comparison disappeared in a list and where wording no longer matches the figures.
What to read before comparing a table
Identify the rows, columns, and units. The value 40 could represent minutes, percentages, or thousands of people. Even correct arithmetic cannot save a description that loses the unit.
Check whether the table covers one period or several. Two years allow you to describe the change between them. They do not establish the path between those dates unless intermediate values are provided.
The general requirements are set out in the IELTS Academic Writing format.
Three cities, two years, and a reversal
The table shows average commuting times in three cities. All values are in minutes.
| City | 2015 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Alder | 25 | 40 |
| Brook | 35 | 38 |
| Cedar | 30 | 32 |
The figure rose in every city. The changes differ in size: Alder gained 15 minutes, Brook 3, and Cedar 2. Alder also moved from the lowest value to the highest.
That observation connects two aspects of the data: the amount of change and the final ranking. It does not need unusual vocabulary to be meaningful. Selecting the precise relationship matters more.
What a list of six figures leaves out
In 2015, the figures were 25, 35 and 30 minutes. In 2025, they were 40, 38 and 32 minutes.
What LetsWords feedback explains. For Task Achievement, the passage misses the main comparison: Alder went from the shortest average commute to the longest. Coherence suffers too: the numbers are not linked to the cities they belong to. Instead of adding another list, highlight Alder’s change and support it with the starting and ending values.
Adding a city to each number would make the list easier to understand. However, the central issue would remain: the important change is still not highlighted. A connected observation is more useful.
After revision:
Alder experienced the largest increase in commuting time, from 25 to 40 minutes, and had the longest average commute by 2025.
The passage identifies the largest increase and Alder’s final position. The numbers support the observation instead of standing alone.
Two choices make the sentence work: it names the city and explains why its change matters.
Largest describes the increase, while longest describes journey duration. This precision is more useful than replacing words mechanically with synonyms.
See what this kind of feedback finds in your response.
A high value and a large increase are different findings
Incorrect: Brook recorded the largest increase because it had the highest figure in 2015.
Correct: The average commute in Alder increased by 15 minutes, the largest rise among the three cities.
Brook did start with the highest value, 35 minutes. But change is measured by the difference between two years, not the size of the first value.
In Alder, the difference is 40 − 25 = 15; in Brook, it is 38 − 35 = 3. The highest starting figure and the largest increase therefore belong to different cities.
This error can survive even when highest and increase are grammatically correct. First decide which feature you are comparing: the initial level, final level, or change.
One preposition adds 25 extra minutes
Incorrect: Commuting time in Alder rose by 40 minutes.
Correct: Commuting time in Alder rose to 40 minutes.
To 40 identifies the final level. By 15 identifies the increase. Therefore, rose by 15 minutes is another correct option.
Keeping by 40 would mean an increase of 40 minutes. Added to the starting 25, that gives 65, while the table ends at 40. One preposition has added 25 minutes to the data.
Practise growth verbs with a free check on rise vs raise. Pay attention to the preposition too: the right verb does not guarantee the right numerical claim.
What two columns cannot tell you
Unsupported: Commuting time in Alder rose steadily throughout the decade.
Supported: Commuting time in Alder increased between 2015 and 2025.
The table provides only the start and end. It does not show whether commuting time rose evenly, changed sharply in one year, or first fell. Steadily adds a path we cannot see.
For the same reason, do not state a cause without further information. Several circumstances might explain the rise, but the table does not identify them.
The neutral increased between… preserves everything known. An accurate sentence can be simpler than the one you first wanted to use to display vocabulary.
Keep comparisons clear without long lists
Once the cities and units are explicit, you can compare final values or the amounts of change briefly. A single sentence should not contain so many figures that the relationships disappear.
Compared with Brook helps if the measure being compared is clear. Alder was higher than Brook is too compressed: it is the commuting time, not the city, that is higher. Name the figure, commuting time, or another suitable measure.
On compared to, you can check a comparison sentence for free. Keep one measure and two explicitly named groups. This helps reveal whether the subject of comparison has disappeared.
Transfer the skill to another table
The most noticeable relationship in the next task may be different: similar values, opposing changes, or a contrast between categories in one year. Remember the habit of tying an observation to particular data, rather than memorising the sentence about Alder.
For a complete visual response, see the line graph worked example. It illustrates the scope of the task; a new table still requires you to select the relationships that matter in that data.
In LetsWords IELTS Writing Task 1, choose a table and write a description. You can focus on Task Achievement or submit a complete response for feedback across all four criteria. The reference guide and checklist are available before the attempt; afterwards, the feedback shows which observation was missed and what language to revise.
Continue in LetsWords to practise selecting the main point in an unfamiliar table. The service checks both your observation and its English wording. Start preparing, choose your goal and level, and try the feedback before paying.