Aptis ESOL · comparison
Aptis to IELTS score: there is no official conversion
Why there is no clean conversion
The two tests report in different currencies. Aptis gives you a CEFR level for each skill — you get a separate result for Reading, Listening, Writing and Speaking. IELTS gives you a band score from 0 to 9, plus an overall band that averages the four.
Both are aligned to the CEFR, which is why people assume a conversion exists. But an alignment is not a conversion: a band range can straddle two CEFR levels, and a CEFR level can be reached with several different band profiles. Turning one into the other loses exactly the information your institution is asking for.
The alignment IELTS publishes — and where it blurs
IELTS does publish how its bands map onto the CEFR, and it is upfront about the fact that several bands sit on a border. That is the honest version of the table everyone else copies without the caveats:
| CEFR | IELTS band | What IELTS says |
|---|---|---|
| B1 | 4.0-5.0 | Band 5 is borderline: "it is not clear whether band 5 is B1 or B2" |
| B2 | 5.5-6.5 | — |
| C1 | 7.0-8.0 | The C1 threshold "would fall between the 6.5 and 7 bands" |
| C2 | 8.5-9.0 | "Band scores of 8.5 and higher are recognised as C2. Band 8 is borderline" |
Source: IELTS, "IELTS and the CEFR". Note what this table is not: it maps IELTS to the CEFR, not IELTS to Aptis. Aptis reports a CEFR level directly, so you can line them up through the CEFR — but that is a comparison you are making, not a conversion either organisation certifies.
What each test actually gives you
| Aptis ESOL | IELTS | |
|---|---|---|
| What you get | A CEFR level per skill | A band 0-9 per skill and overall |
| Range covered | General: A1-B2, with C1 as its ceiling Advanced: B1-C2 | Whole range, expressed in bands |
| Highest level | Only Advanced certifies C2 and separates C1 from C2 | Band 9 |
| Taken | On a computer, at an authorised centre | On paper or computer, at a test centre |
| Fee in Spain | €95 General · €110 Advanced (from 1 September 2026; €95 / €110 before) | Set by each country and centre — see the verified comparison |
Aptis fees are the official British Council rates for Spain. We do not quote an IELTS fee here because it changes by country and centre; the figures we have checked are on the price comparison page.
So which one do you need?
This is the part that actually decides it, and it has nothing to do with conversion tables: take the test that the institution asking for it accepts.
- A UK or Australian visa requires IELTS UKVI. No other test replaces it, whatever any equivalence table says.
- Universities and public-sector requirements in Spain often list Aptis explicitly. The wording of your own call for applications is what counts — not a general table.
- If you are told "B2 level required" without naming a test, Aptis is usually the cheaper and faster route, because it reports the CEFR level directly.
Whatever you read online, the sentence that settles it is the one printed in your own requirements document.
If Aptis is the one you need, you can practise every part of it with our Telegram bot and get your writing and speaking marked with an estimated CEFR level. No payment, no subscription, no email required.
Start on TelegramDon’t use Telegram? Take the full mock exam on the web →More detail: what Aptis costs compared with IELTS, TOEFL and Cambridge · what Aptis is · General or Advanced. En español: Aptis frente a IELTS y TOEFL.