— Occupational IQ research

Professional Athletes — average IQ & cognitive profile

Published occupational IQ research consistently places professional athletes at an average IQ of around 109 — the 73th percentile of the general adult population. This sits modestly above the population mean.

Why professional athletes cluster at this level

Pro athletes average slightly above the population mean overall, with particular strength on spatial-perceptual tasks. Elite chess players, by contrast, average around +2 SD.

What this number really means

An occupational IQ average is a statistical mean, not a hiring criterion. The within-profession standard deviation is typically 10-15 IQ points, which means:

• There are highly successful professional athletes scoring well above 124
• And highly successful professional athletes scoring well below 94
• Conscientiousness, domain knowledge, emotional regulation, and motivation account for far more variance in actual job performance than the difference between, say, IQ 115 and IQ 125 does

How to interpret your own score against this average

If you're considering this profession or already in it, here's how to read a personal IQ result in context:

• If you score 99–119: you're right in the typical range for professional athletes
• If you score above 124: you have meaningful cognitive headroom; you'll likely find the abstract demands of the role easier than peers
• If you score below 94: the profession is still entirely accessible to you — many professional athletes succeed at this level — but you may rely more on persistence, structured systems, and specialisation than peers do

Related profession comparisons

• Teachers — average IQ 112
• Nurses (RN) — average IQ 113
• Accountants — average IQ 114
• Visual Artists — average IQ 114
• Professional Musicians — average IQ 116

Related reading

• What does an IQ of 110 mean?
• Full IQ-to-percentile chart
• What is the average IQ?