Purpose Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) was established showing the poor prognosis in several diseases, such as malignancies and cardiovascular diseases. But limited study has been conducted about the prognostic value of PLR on the long-term renal survival of patients with Immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN). Methods We performed an observational cohort study enrolling patients with biopsy-proven IgAN recorded from November 2011 to March 2016. The definition of composite endpoint was eGFR decrease by 50%, eGFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m(2), initiation of dialysis, or renal transplantation. Patients were categorized by the magnitude of PLR tertiles into three groups. The Kaplan-Meier curves and multivariate Cox models were performed to determine the association of PLR with the renal survival of IgAN patients. Results 330 patients with a median age of 34.0 years were followed for a median of 47.4 months, and 27 patients (8.2%) had reached the composite endpoints. There were no differences among the three groups (PLR < 106, 106 <= PLR <= 137, and PLR > 137) in demographic characteristics, mean arterial pressure (MAP), proteinuria, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at baseline. The Kaplan-Meier curves showed that the PLR > 137 group was significantly more likely to poor renal outcomes than the other two groups. Using univariate and multivariate cox regression analyses, we found that PLR > 137 was an independent prognostic factor for poor renal survival in patients with IgAN. Subgroup analysis revealed that the PLR remained the prognostic value for female patients or patients with eGFR less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m(2). Conclusions Our results underscored that baseline PLR was an independent prognostic factor for poor renal survival in patients with IgAN, especially for female patients or those patients with baseline eGFR less than 60 mL/min/1.73 m(2).