What's a Good LSAT score?

What LSAT score do you need? As you consider an LSAT score goal, it’s always wise to look at average scores at the schools to which you’re applying. For starters, though, here are the basics you might need to know about your LSAT score:

The LSAT is scored on a 120-180 scale. The average LSAT score is about 153. This relatively small range of scores means that small improvements in performance can increase your score quite a bit. It also means that small improvements in your score can make a big difference in your percentile ranking (sometimes, a one-point increase in your score can boost your percentile ranking by as many as 5 points).

You don’t have to be perfect to do well on the LSAT. On a typical LSAT, you can still get around 18–19 questions wrong and still end up in the 160s—or about 12 wrong and get a 166, a 90th percentile score. Even a perfect score of 180 often allows you to miss a question or two.

Top LSAT Scores: Top 10% of Test Takers

A sampling of law schools with median LSAT scores at or above the 90th percentile for admitted applicants.

SCALED SCORE: 166-180

• Yale University: 175
• Harvard University: 174
• Standford University: 173
• University of Chicago: 173
• Columbia University: 173
• University of Pennslyvania (Carey): 172
• New York University: 172
• University of Michigan, Ann Arbor: 171
• University of Virginia: 171
• Northwestern University (Pritzker): 171
• Duke University: 170
• University of California, Berkeley: 170

LSAT score isn’t the only factor in law school admissions. Including GPA shows a slightly different list of top law schools.

Competitive LSAT Scores: Top 25% of Test Takers

A sampling of law schools with median LSAT scores at or above the 75th – 89th percentile for admitted applicants.
SCALED SCORE: 160-165

• University of Wisconsin-Madison: 165
• Indiana University-Bloomington: 164
• University of Colorado-Boulder: 164
• Ohio State University (Moritz): 164
• Pepperdine University: 164
• University of Arizona:163
• Northeastern University: 163
• Tulane University: 161
• Florida International University:160
• Georgia State University: 160

Good Enough LSAT Scores: Top 50% of Test Takers

A sampling of law schools with median LSAT scores at or above the 50th – 74th percentile for admitted applicants. These scores put you ahead of the pack, but won’t be as advantageous when applying to highly competitive programs
SCALED SCORE: 153-159

• University of Oklahoma: 159
• University of Cincinnati: 158
• University of Kansas: 158
• University of Oregon: 158
• Syracuse University: 157
• Texas Tech University: 157
• University of Arkansas-Fayetteville: 156
• University of New Mexico: 156
• Indiana University, Indianapolis: 154
• New York Law School: 153

Below Average LSAT Scores: Bottom 50% of Test Takers

A sampling of law schools with median LSAT scores below the 50th percentile for admitted applicants.
SCALED SCORE: 152 or below

• Pace University: 152
• Elon University: 152
• St. Thomas University (Florida): 152
• Northern Kentucky University: 152
• Jones School of Law: 151
• University of South Dakota: 151
• Atlanta’s john Marshall Law School: 151
• Mississippi College: 150
• Northern Illinois University: 150
• Southern Illinois University-Carbondale: 150

As of Oct, 2023. Source for LSAT scores

The test-taking world would be such an easier place to understand if every test was scored on a 1-100 scale. However, the LSAT is on a scale that ranges from 120- the lowest score possible- to 180- a perfect score.

The scoring on the LSAT might seem strange because there are not, in fact, 180 questions on the test. Thus, getting one wrong answer does not equate to one lost point in your overall score. Rather, your raw score, the number you get correct out of the roughly 75-76 questions on the test, is converted into a 120-180 score based on a mathematical formula specific to that particular test.

This method, with different conversion formulas for each LSAT, is designed to minimize the variance in scores across all of the LSAT exams administered each year, and across LSATs over different years.

On average, getting a raw score of about 67 or above converts into an LSAT score of 170 or above. Note that a score in this range places you, on average, in the 95th percentile, meaning that only 5% of all those who take the LSAT score 170 or above. To get a score of 160 you should aim for getting 55 questions correct. A 160 is typically at the 75th percentile. Add just three correct answers to your performance, and you’ll receive a score of 162 on a typical LSAT, placing you in roughly the 80th percentile. A majority of test takers score between 145 and 160. 

While this scoring may seem complex at first, after you gain familiarity with the LSAT it will make more sense. For information on what the average LSAT scores are for students attending a particular law school, you can visit that law school’s website, or see a list of average scores here.

Expert Test Tip

Monika Moore, LSAT Tutor and Teacher

“It is all about quality over quantity. So many students think that if you take a certain number of prep tests to prepare, you will get a good score – but that is not often the case. You are much better served to take fewer tests and to spend significant time analyzing and reviewing the material to learn from your mistakes.”

You will receive not one, not two, but three scores on Test Day:

• A raw score, the total number of scored questions answered correctly.
• A scaled score (120-180), the score by which law schools will evaluate your candidacy; and
• A percentile score, comparing test-takers across various testing cohorts

[ RELATED: LSAT Raw Score Conversions ]

Estimated conversions-actual test will vary slightly

Since there is no wrong answer penalty on the LSAT, you score is determined solely by the number of questions you answer correctly. On a typical test, approximately 46 right answers will produce a score of 153 and land you squarely in the 50th percentile, better than half of all test takers. If you add just three correct answers, you’ll move to a 156 and be in the 60th percentile. 

To a lot of students, that jump of three scaled points (from a 153 to a 156) doesn’t sound very impressive, but when you consider that around 130,000 people take the LSAT each year, that increase means that you’ve passed around 13,000 competitors, applicants potentially vying for the same school(s) you’re trying to get into. Notice that each time you add three or four correct answers, you make a comparable leap past the other test takers. 

That should tell you just how much you can accomplish, even with the limited time before the next test. It should also underline how important it is to get additional correct answers wherever you can on the test, including sections in which you’re already relatively strong.

Most law schools use an “index formula” — a weighting of your LSAT score and undergraduate cumulative GPA to determine your application’s objective strength. Almost universally, the LSAT score has a greater weight than your undergraduate GPA, accounting for more than 50% of the admissions decision.

Your LSAT score is a crucial factor in determining where you go to law school—or if you go at all. Law school admission committees look at your LSAT score to determine if you have the skills required for success in law school. It helps admissions officers compare your record with those of students from other schools.

What constitutes a strong LSAT score may vary by law school program, according to Kaplan Test Prep’s most recent survey of law school admissions officers, but poor performance on the exam can severely damage your chances of getting in. According to the nearly 100 admissions officers we spoke with in 2018, 49 percent say a low LSAT score is “the biggest application dealbreaker”; a poorly written personal essay placed second at 22 percent.

So while Law School Admissions officers often rank LSAT as the number one factor in law school admissions, your LSAT score does not stand alone. Whether or not you are admitted to law school depends on other factors, too, such as GPA, recommendations and personal statement. In addition to focusing on getting the best LSAT score possible, you should also work on obtaining the best GPA possible, writing a spectacular personal statement, flattering professors and professionals into writing outstanding letters of recommendation, and rounding out your resume.

[ NEXT: When Should I Take the LSAT? ]