Band 8+: The given pie charts compare the expenses in 7 different categories in 1966 and 1996 by American Citizens. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The two pie charts compare how the American citizens have spent their money in seven different categories in the years 1966 and 1996.

Overall, in 1966 food was the largest and computers were the smallest expenditure of the average American’s income. In contrast, in 1996, people used more of their income on cars and spent the least on books.

In 1966, American people spent most of their money on food, which was 44% of total expenses; this figure experienced a significant decline, reaching roughly 14% in 1996. People showed less interest in buying books, representing 6% in 1966, declining to 1% in 1996. Similarly, spending on furniture and petrol decreased slightly from 10% to 8%, and 9% to 8%, respectively.

In contrast, the amount of spending on cars exhibited a dramatic increase from 23% in 1966 to 45% in 1996; it became the largest expenditure of the average American’s salary. The percentage of people who bought computers grew from 1% to 10%. Finally, the percentage of expenditure on restaurants rose to double the amount, representing 7% in 1966 and 14% in 1996.