Academic Writing Task 1 · pie chart

Online shopping sales for retail sectors in Australia 2010 and 2015

The pie charts below show the online shopping sales for retail sectors in Australia in 2010 and 2015.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.

Online shopping sales in Australia 2015 (%)

Electric & appliance: 33%
Food & Beverage: 22%
Home Furnishings: 19%
Video Games: 8%
Gift Items: 11%
Books: 7%

View the data

Category	Value (%)
Electric & appliance	33
Food & Beverage	22
Home Furnishings	19
Video Games	8
Gift Items	11
Books	7

Online shopping sales in Australia 2010 (%)

Electric & appliance: 27%
Food & Beverage: 21%
Home Furnishings: 22%
Video Games: 19%
Gift Items: 7%
Books: 4%

View the data

Category	Value (%)
Electric & appliance	27
Food & Beverage	21
Home Furnishings	22
Video Games	19
Gift Items	7
Books	4

Chart redrawn by BandLadder from the data in the original IELTS practice task. Many IELTS practice tasks come from the Cambridge IELTS series (Cambridge University Press & Assessment); all rights in the original tasks remain with their owners.

Band 8 sample answer

The two pie charts illustrate the distribution of online shopping sales across six retail sectors in Australia during 2010 and 2015. Overall, it is clear that electric and appliance products became the most popular category by the end of the period, whereas video games saw a notable reduction in their market share.

In 2010, home furnishings accounted for the largest proportion of online sales at 22%, closely followed by electric and appliance goods at 27% and food and beverage at 21%. Video games also held a significant share of 19%. In contrast, gift items and books represented the smallest segments, contributing only 7% and 4% respectively.

By 2015, the landscape had shifted significantly. Electric and appliance sales rose to 33%, establishing themselves as the leading retail sector. Food and beverage sales remained relatively stable, increasing slightly to 22%. Conversely, the share of home furnishings dropped to 19%, and video games experienced a substantial decline, falling to just 8%. Meanwhile, gift items grew to 11% of total sales, and the proportion of books also saw a modest increase to 7% over the five-year period.

183 words. Every figure in the answer comes from the chart above.

How to write about pie charts

Name the largest and smallest shares in the overview.
Use proportion language: a quarter, just under half, the majority.
With two pies, compare the same slice across both.

proportion: a part or share of a whole amount
stable: not changing significantly or showing much variation
decline: a gradual decrease in value or amount
accounted for: made up a specific percentage of something
shifted: underwent a change in position or emphasis
modest: relatively small in amount or degree

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Frequently asked questions

What should the overview say?

Overall, electric and appliance sales grew to become the dominant sector by 2015, while video games experienced a significant decline in their share of total online sales.

How long should an IELTS Task 1 answer be?

At least 150 words; 170 to 200 is the safe range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.

How do I describe pie charts?

Name the largest and smallest shares in the overview. Use proportion language: a quarter, just under half, the majority. With two pies, compare the same slice across both.