IELTS 5.5 in PTE: Score Equivalent and Where It Is Enough

IELTS 5.5 corresponds to a PTE Academic overall score of about 39 to 46, according to Pearson's July 2025 concordance table. No country sets a "PTE 5.5" requirement, because PTE is scored from 10 to 90, so the useful question is whether your PTE score clears the PTE minimum that your visa or university lists. This page converts 5.5 properly and then checks that range against the official PTE minimums we could confirm. Checked 10 Oct 2026.

IELTS 5.5 in PTE: the Pearson table

Pearson's institution score guide gives its current best estimate of how the two tests line up. Pearson also says concordance is always an approximation and that tests are not exactly the same. Source: Pearson PTE Academic Institution Score Guide, July 2025. Checked 10 Oct 2026.

Speaking has the widest 5.5 range (39 to 53). That matters: a speaking score of 39 and a speaking score of 53 both map to IELTS 5.5, while 54 jumps to 6.0, so the speaking number alone tells you little. For one-number conversions, use the PTE to IELTS converter, and for the reverse use IELTS to PTE. The PTE vs IELTS guide compares the formats.

Text version of this diagram

• IELTS 4.5: PTE overall 24–30
• IELTS 5.0: PTE overall 31–38
• IELTS 5.5: PTE overall 39–46
• IELTS 6.0: PTE overall 47–54
• IELTS 6.5: PTE overall 55–62
• IELTS 7.0: PTE overall 63–70
• IELTS 7.5: PTE overall 71–78
• IELTS 8.0: PTE overall 79–85
• IELTS 8.5: PTE overall 86–89
• IELTS 9.0: PTE overall 90
• Ranges are inclusive. Scores below 24 have no IELTS band in this table. It is an estimate with measurement error.

Where a 39-46 score meets an official PTE minimum

These are PTE figures that governments or Pearson publish for specific routes. Only rows we confirmed on the official page are listed (checked 10 Oct 2026). The last column compares each minimum with the 39-46 band. Checked 10 Oct 2026.

Three cautions. First, the Australian levels are for tests taken on or after 7 August 2025. Older tests use different numbers, which the Pearson article on the new Home Affairs requirements lists, and Home Affairs says results from tests taken on or before 6 August 2025 may be used until 6 August 2026 (inclusive), depending on the visa, so by now new-scale scores are the safe basis. Second, most UK visa routes need the PTE Academic UKVI version of the test, which carries the SELT reference number, so book the version your route names (see PTE score for UK). Third, Canada's table uses PTE Core, not PTE Academic, so do not read a PTE Academic 39-46 score straight onto it; use PTE score for Canada.

We did not list the Australian student visa (subclass 500) minimum here because we could not re-confirm it on a static official page today. The figure we hold is on PTE score for Australia student visa, which cites Home Affairs.

Worked example: a 5.5-level result, route by route

A student scores overall 42, with listening 40, reading 44, speaking 45 and writing 41. This is a normal "IELTS 5.5" profile on Pearson's table, and every skill sits inside its own range.

The lesson is the UK row. An overall score of 42 can look close to 43, but the UK checks each skill, and two weak skills end the application. Before you book, write down the rule for your route, then compare skill by skill, not just the overall number. The PTE score chart shows how the scale reads, and the PTE score calculator turns practice results into a rough estimate.

What to do if you need "5.5"

1. Find the actual PTE minimum on the official page for your visa or course. If the page lists only IELTS, ask whether PTE Academic is accepted at all.
2. Check whether the rule is overall, per skill, or both.
3. Convert 5.5 to 39-46 only as a planning target, then add a margin of a few points.
4. Work on your weakest skill first. Speaking has the widest spread, so Describe Image practice and Answer Short Question practice are good places to start. The practice hub lists every task.
5. Read the rest of the PTE accepted countries guide for destinations not covered here.

What we left out

We left out any destination whose PTE minimum we could not confirm on an official page today, including the Australian student visa figure, Ireland, Germany, the USA and the UAE. We also left out university-level scores, because each university sets its own and they change by intake. If a figure you need is missing, check the official page for your route, and note that visa rules change.