IELTS Writing Task 1 – Pie Charts
Compare two pie charts the simple way: find the biggest changes, group the slices with the same story, and use easy words for proportions. Then try the practice task below.
Key points
The example question and chart from the video
The pie charts below show the proportion of electricity produced from five different sources in one country in 2005 and 2025. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.
Band 9 model answer from the video (174 words)
The two pie charts compare the share of electricity generated from coal, natural gas, nuclear power, hydropower, and wind and solar energy in a particular country in 2005 and 2025.
Overall, coal was the main source of electricity in 2005, but by 2025 it had been replaced by wind and solar energy. In contrast, the other three sources changed relatively little, and hydropower stayed exactly the same.
In 2005, almost half of the country's electricity (45%) came from coal, while wind and solar energy made up only 5%, the smallest share. Over the next twenty years, however, this changed dramatically. The figure for coal fell to just 15%, whereas the share produced by wind and solar rose to 33%, about a third of the total, making it the largest source in 2025.
Natural gas accounted for a quarter of all electricity in 2005, and this rose slightly to 30% in 2025. By contrast, nuclear power fell a little, from 15% to 12%. Hydropower, meanwhile, remained unchanged at 10%, or one tenth, in both years.
Chapters in this video (14)
- 0:00Introduction
- 0:50Example Question
- 1:51What the Examiner Wants
- 2:39How to Read Pie Charts
- 3:27Finding the Overview
- 4:23Grouping the Information
- 5:13Simple Words for Proportions
- 6:16Answer Structure
- 6:53Writing the Introduction
- 8:00Writing the Overview
- 9:01Body Paragraph 1 (Coal and Wind & Solar)
- 10:25Body Paragraph 2 (Gas, Nuclear and Hydro)
- 11:25Final Answer
- 11:55Outro
Simple words for proportions
| Word / phrase | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| made up / accounted for | was (a part of the total) | Wind and solar energy made up only 5%. |
| the largest share / the main source | the biggest slice | Coal was the main source of electricity in 2005. |
| the smallest share | the smallest slice | Wind and solar made up only 5%, the smallest share. |
| almost half / a quarter / about a third / one tenth | fractions for 45%, 25%, 33%, 10% | Natural gas accounted for a quarter of all electricity. |
| rose to / fell to / remained unchanged | changes between the two charts | Hydropower remained unchanged at 10%. |
| proportion / share / figure | use instead of repeating 'percentage' | The figure for coal fell to just 15%. |
| while / whereas / by contrast | linking words for contrast | By contrast, nuclear power fell a little. |
Practice task: Water use in a city
The pie charts below show how the water used in one city was divided between five sectors in 1995 and 2025. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.
Which slice was the biggest in both years? Did its share go up or down?
Group it: the two biggest changes in body paragraph 1, the smaller changes in body paragraph 2.
Try fractions: 50% is half, 20% is a fifth, 25% is a quarter.
Show model answer (try first!)
The two pie charts compare how the water used in a particular city was divided between agriculture, industry, homes, offices and shops, and parks in 1995 and 2025.
Overall, agriculture used the largest share of water in both years, although its share fell considerably. By contrast, every other sector accounted for a bigger proportion in 2025, with the most noticeable growth in homes.
In 1995, exactly half of the city's water went to agriculture, which was far more than any other sector. By 2025, however, this figure had dropped to 30%, less than a third of the total. Meanwhile, the share used by homes rose from 18% to 28%, so the gap between these two sectors became very small.
The remaining three sectors also grew, but less dramatically. Industry accounted for a fifth of water use in 1995, and this increased to a quarter in 2025. Offices and shops went up from 7% to 10%, while parks used the smallest share in both years, rising from 5% to 7%.
169 words
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