— Reference

IQ & cognitive assessment guides

Plain-language reference material on IQ scoring, percentiles, the major IQ tests, and what specific scores actually mean.

Reference

IQ Percentile Chart (2026)
Full IQ-to-percentile lookup table from 55 to 160 with rarity ratios and bands.
What is the average IQ?
Why the average is 100 by definition, the Flynn effect, and what "normal range" means.
Mensa IQ score requirements
The 98th percentile cutoff, accepted tests, and the difference between supervised admission and home tests.
IQ test types compared
Wechsler, Stanford-Binet, Raven's, Cattell, and modern online IRT tests — what each measures and when to use them.

What does an IQ of X mean?

IQ of 85
One SD below mean · 16th percentile · Low Average band
IQ of 100
Population mean · 50th percentile · Average band
IQ of 115
One SD above mean · 84th percentile · High Average band
IQ of 120
Top 9% · Superior band
IQ of 130
Top 2.3% · Highly Gifted · Mensa cutoff
IQ of 140
Top 0.4% · Genius band
IQ of 145
Top 0.13% · Three SDs above mean · Profoundly Gifted

Test yourself

All the guides above describe what scores mean. To find out where you actually sit, take the calibrated 20-minute test:

Take the Core Brain IQ test →