Guide · The full scale
IQ score range chart: from average to genius
IQ scores are positions on a bell curve, not badges. This chart shows the full deviation IQ scale — mean 100, standard deviation 15 — with the percentile that corresponds to each band.
The chart
IQ score ranges and percentiles
These bands follow from the normal distribution the scale is built on.
| Score range | Label | Percentile | Scale position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 145 and above | Far above average | Top ~0.1% | More than three SD above the mean |
| 130 – 144 | Well above average | Top ~2% | Two to three SD above the mean |
| 120 – 129 | Above average | Top ~9% | About 1.3 to 2 SD above |
| 110 – 119 | Slightly above average | Top ~25% | About 0.7 to 1.3 SD above |
| 90 – 109 | Average | Middle ~50% | Within 0.7 SD of the mean |
| 80 – 89 | Slightly below average | Bottom ~25% | About 0.7 to 1.3 SD below |
| 70 – 79 | Below average | Bottom ~9% | About 1.3 to 2 SD below |
| Below 70 | Far below average | Bottom ~2% | More than two SD below the mean |
Labels like "average" or "above average" describe statistical position, not worth. Roughly 95% of people fall between 70 and 130.
Genius IQ
What IQ is considered genius?
There is no official genius cutoff, but 130+ is the usual threshold in popular discussion.
The word "genius" is not a clinical category. In everyday use, people often call scores of 130 or higher gifted, and scores of 140 or higher are sometimes described as genius-level. On the deviation scale, 130 is two standard deviations above the mean, which puts a person in roughly the top 2% of the population. A score of 145 is about three standard deviations above the mean, or roughly the top 0.1%.
These numbers describe performance on a specific set of reasoning tasks. They do not measure creativity, practical skill, emotional intelligence, or the ability to produce meaningful work. Many accomplished people do not have exceptionally high IQ scores, and many high scorers have not accomplished exceptional things.
Using the chart
How to read your own score
A number is most useful when you know the range around it.
Find the band your score falls in, but remember that measurement error means your true score probably sits in a wider interval. A 95% confidence interval is the honest way to report the result. If your interval spans two bands, the test cannot confidently place you in either one.
For a precise percentile for any single score, use the IQ percentile calculator. It converts a deviation IQ score into the share of people scoring lower.
Limits
What the scale does not measure
The deviation IQ scale measures performance on a narrow set of reasoning tasks under controlled conditions. It does not capture creativity, practical problem solving, social skill, motivation, or character. A low score does not mean a person is incapable, and a high score does not guarantee success.
Online tests add extra uncertainty. Conditions vary, the sample is self-selected, and retaking the same items inflates scores through practice. Use any online result as an estimate, not a verdict.
Keep reading
- IQ test: how scoring worksThe deviation scale, item scoring, and why the result is a range.
- Free IQ testA 16-question test with an honest score range, no account needed.
- Online IQ test: what to expectHow online testing differs from a supervised clinical assessment.
- Abstract reasoning testRule-finding puzzles with no words or numbers involved.
- Verbal reasoning testAnalogies and relationships between words and ideas.
- Matrix reasoning testPractice the grid-pattern items used on most modern tests.
- What is a good IQ score?What the numbers mean, and what they cannot tell you.
- Average IQ scoreWhy 100 is the middle of the scale and how national averages work.
- IQ percentile calculatorEnter a score and see its percentile on the deviation IQ scale.
Get your own score range
Sixteen free questions, about eight minutes, and a score range with your percentile at the end.
Start the free testNo card required. No email needed to see your first score.