IQ 120: meaning, percentile and rarity
An IQ of 120 sits in the above average range on the standard scale (mean 100, standard deviation 15). 90.88% of the reference population scores below this level, and 9.12% scores above it.
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- 90.88% of people score below IQ 120, and 9.12% score above it.
- Rarity
- About 1 in 11 people score IQ 120 or higher.
- Distance from the mean
- 20 points above the mean of 100 — about 1.33 standard deviations.
90.88% of people score below IQ 120, and 9.12% score above it.
What range does IQ 120 fall into?
An IQ of 120 sits in the above average range.
Scores in this range are clearly above the average and are often labeled superior in clinical scales. The 120 to 129 band is above roughly 90% of the reference population.
How rare is IQ 120?
About 1 in 11 people score IQ 120 or higher.
Frequently asked questions
- Is an IQ of 120 a good score?
- An IQ of 120 sits in the above average range, with about 90.88% of a normal population scoring below it. Whether that counts as good depends on what the score is used for — and no single online result should be treated as a definitive measure of ability.
- How rare is an IQ of 120?
- In a normal distribution, about 1 in 11 people score IQ 120 or higher.
- What percentile is an IQ of 120?
- 90.88% of the reference population scores below IQ 120. That is its percentile rank — a position on a scale from 0 to 100, not the share of questions answered correctly.
This page describes the theoretical normal distribution (mean 100, standard deviation 15) for educational purposes. It is not a clinical assessment or a diagnosis.