A table task gives you data in rows and columns and asks for a summary. The examiner wants you to select the significant figures and group them into clear comparisons rather than listing every cell. Each question below includes the table to describe.
The one rule
You can’t describe every cell. Group the rows, pick the extremes, and compare — selection is the skill.
On test day
It's one of the recognised Task 1 formats, so it's fair game on test day — but you can't reliably predict which one you'll be given. Treat every format as likely and practise across all of them rather than betting on a single type.
Templates
Learn the shape, not a script. A reliable structure for table questions saves planning time, but a memorised answer bolted onto the wrong prompt is penalised. Adapt the structure to the exact question in front of you.
Marking
Against the four official IELTS Writing criteria — task achievement, coherence and cohesion, lexical resource, and grammatical range and accuracy. Getting the format right mainly protects your task achievement score; the other three come down to your language.
Practice volume
Enough to make the format automatic, then stop drilling it in isolation. Once you can structure a table response without thinking, your time is better spent on the language criteria that actually move your band.
More Task 1 Academic types
Attempt any table question in the exam workspace — 20 minutes on the clock, then a band for all four criteria in about 60 seconds. Starts with a 3-day free trial.
“The table shows the five most spoken languages in the world by number of speakers in 2020.”