u/Content_Attention816

Using 2022-2025 scoring data, the percentile for a 180 LSAT score among test takers was 99.9th. In fact, I don't think it has ever been lower...

Until now. Using 2023-2026 scoring data, a 180 is a 99.8th percentile score when rounded to tenths/99.85th percentile when rounded to hundredths.

What's interesting, though, is that 2023, 2024, and 2025 are constants in this data. The new percentile just drops 2022 and adds 2026, which suggests there were a LOT more 180-scorers in 2026 than 2022.

The percentile shift may seem small, but it strikes me as quite significant given that the number of 180s in a given year is in the hundreds and that this data includes 3 years of constants.

I don't think it's possible to say how many more are being scored year-over-year because LSAC doesn't release the number of scores earned in a given year. Although LSAC released the number of applicants from last cycle and the year before that earned each score ( https://report.lsac.org/VolumeSummaryOriginalFormat.aspx ), applicants in a given year use scores from multiple cycles.

I love statistics, but I'm not an expert. Anyone have theories or different ways of interpreting this? Is it possible to draw any more definitive/precise conclusions?

Here's historical tests administered data if anyone finds that useful ( https://report.lsac.org/TestTakers.aspx ), but LSAC may use reportable scores instead of administered for calculating percentiles and I think we only have access to the number administered for older cycles.

Also posted in r/lawschooladmissions. Posting here because the belief that 15low is average may influence LSAT testing/retaking decisions.

For 2023-2026 test takers, a 150 is actually a 36.6th percentile score, a 151 is 39.8th, and a 152 is 43.4th. 154 is the 50th percentile.

Among 2025-2026 law school applicants' highest score, the median is a 157. A 152, the most commonly cited average I see, is a 29.5th applicant percentile score. 150 is below the 23rd applicant percentile.

That second dataset is probably more relevant if you’re applying to law school. Not everyone who takes the LSAT becomes an applicant and law schools only report highest score. Many law school applicants, if not the majority, have multiple LSAT scores. In 2025-2026, first-timers represented just 46.9% of test takers.

Full applicant percentile chart:

LSAT	25–26 Applicant Percentile	24–25 Applicant Percentile
180	99.64%	99.73%
179	99.40%	99.44%
178	98.99%	99.04%
177	98.36%	98.57%
176	97.69%	97.85%
175	96.76%	97.05%
174	95.70%	95.94%
173	94.23%	94.65%
172	92.46%	93.10%
171	90.73%	91.38%
170	88.45%	89.43%
169	86.13%	87.43%
168	83.82%	85.19%
167	81.26%	82.80%
166	78.63%	80.30%
165	75.67%	77.44%
164	72.70%	74.65%
163	69.46%	71.63%
162	65.94%	68.41%
161	62.67%	64.80%
160	58.95%	61.31%
159	55.44%	57.84%
158	51.80%	53.91%
157	48.03%	50.23%
156	44.31%	46.45%
155	40.50%	42.39%
154	36.77%	38.60%
153	33.16%	34.96%
152	29.47%	31.15%
151	26.03%	27.26%
150	22.66%	23.98%
149	19.88%	21.10%
148	17.25%	18.29%
147	14.83%	15.77%
146	12.63%	13.42%
145	10.65%	11.20%
144	8.97%	9.57%
143	7.50%	8.10%
142	6.18%	6.66%
141	5.03%	5.48%
140	4.10%	4.47%
139	3.38%	3.66%
138	2.80%	3.04%
137	2.36%	2.52%
136	1.96%	2.02%
135	1.59%	1.62%
134	1.28%	1.30%
133	1.03%	1.09%
132	0.84%	0.90%
131	0.66%	0.70%
130	0.54%	0.57%
129	0.43%	0.47%
128	0.36%	0.40%
127	0.30%	0.34%
126	0.24%	0.28%
125	0.21%	0.22%
124	0.18%	0.18%
123	0.15%	0.15%
122	0.12%	0.13%
121	0.10%	0.11%
120	0.00%	0.00%

Sources:
https://www.lsac.org/data-research/data/lsat-percentiles

https://report.lsac.org/VolumeSummaryOriginalFormat.aspx

https://report.lsac.org/TestTakers.aspx

The applicant percentile data points and median is hand-calculated from Volume Summary.

I feel like people still think the average LSAT score is closer to 150. It’s not.

For 2023-2026 test takers, a 150 is actually a 36.6th percentile score, a 151 is 39.8th, and a 152 is 43.4th. 154 is the 50th percentile.

Among 2025-2026 law school applicants' highest score, the median is a 157. A 152, the most commonly cited average I see, is a 29.5th applicant percentile score. 150 is below the 23rd applicant percentile.

That second dataset is probably more relevant if you’re applying to law school. Not everyone who takes the LSAT becomes an applicant and law schools only report highest score. Many law school applicants, if not the majority, have multiple LSAT scores. In 2025-2026, first-timers represented just 46.9% of test takers.

Full applicant percentile chart:

LSAT	25–26 Applicant Percentile	24–25 Applicant Percentile
180	99.64%	99.73%
179	99.40%	99.44%
178	98.99%	99.04%
177	98.36%	98.57%
176	97.69%	97.85%
175	96.76%	97.05%
174	95.70%	95.94%
173	94.23%	94.65%
172	92.46%	93.10%
171	90.73%	91.38%
170	88.45%	89.43%
169	86.13%	87.43%
168	83.82%	85.19%
167	81.26%	82.80%
166	78.63%	80.30%
165	75.67%	77.44%
164	72.70%	74.65%
163	69.46%	71.63%
162	65.94%	68.41%
161	62.67%	64.80%
160	58.95%	61.31%
159	55.44%	57.84%
158	51.80%	53.91%
157	48.03%	50.23%
156	44.31%	46.45%
155	40.50%	42.39%
154	36.77%	38.60%
153	33.16%	34.96%
152	29.47%	31.15%
151	26.03%	27.26%
150	22.66%	23.98%
149	19.88%	21.10%
148	17.25%	18.29%
147	14.83%	15.77%
146	12.63%	13.42%
145	10.65%	11.20%
144	8.97%	9.57%
143	7.50%	8.10%
142	6.18%	6.66%
141	5.03%	5.48%
140	4.10%	4.47%
139	3.38%	3.66%
138	2.80%	3.04%
137	2.36%	2.52%
136	1.96%	2.02%
135	1.59%	1.62%
134	1.28%	1.30%
133	1.03%	1.09%
132	0.84%	0.90%
131	0.66%	0.70%
130	0.54%	0.57%
129	0.43%	0.47%
128	0.36%	0.40%
127	0.30%	0.34%
126	0.24%	0.28%
125	0.21%	0.22%
124	0.18%	0.18%
123	0.15%	0.15%
122	0.12%	0.13%
121	0.10%	0.11%
120	0.00%	0.00%

Sources:
https://www.lsac.org/data-research/data/lsat-percentiles

https://report.lsac.org/VolumeSummaryOriginalFormat.aspx

https://report.lsac.org/TestTakers.aspx

The applicant percentile data points and median is hand-calculated from Volume Summary.

Hey! I am a new UH alum and recently got a prefect score on the LSAT.

It's no secret that there can be tremendous costs associated with LSAT prep. A lot of people cannot afford to spend multiple months and thousands of dollars working with a tutor. I'd even argue that most prep courses are overpriced and underdeliver.

With the Fall semester on the horizon and each LSAT point worth ~$10,000 in scholarships, I want to offer one hour of free 1:1 tutoring to as many UH students as I can manage. I'd be happy to talk strategy, break down questions and concepts, share resources, etc.

If you're interested, comment or DM!

Compared to last year's cycle, there was an 18% increase in applicants with a 175+ and a 41% increase with a 180. Meanwhile, applicant LSAT scores increased 7.8%.

Compared to 2022, applicant LSAT scores increased 30.72%, and 175+ applicants increased 88%.

LSAT	Number of Applicants	Applicant Percentile Rank
170	1,767	88.39%
171	1,339	90.69%
172	1,371	92.43%
173	1,134	94.21%
174	816	95.69%
175	722	96.75%
176	516	97.69%
177	482	98.36%
178	320	98.99%
179	181	99.41%
180	275	99.64%

https://report.lsac.org/VolumeSummaryOriginalFormat.aspx

https://report.lsac.org/VolumeSummary.aspx

EDIT: "applicant LSAT scores" refers to the number of applicant LSAT scores.

On test day, all that matters is selecting the right answer choice. If you get the answer right, you get the same points regardless of whether it was the result of 5 minutes of intense deliberation or an outright guess. To be in the best possible position on test day, though, a key focus of practice should be to select correct ACs and eliminate wrong ones for the right reasons.

Now, not every question you get correct needs to be thoroughly reviewed. But I think a lot of questions, if not most (especially early on), should be. This applies even to high PT scorers. Why?

1. If you get a question right for the wrong reason, you may have mistaken confidence about your approach on a future question. In my opinion, this is one factor that helps explain large score variance between sections/PTs. This can obviously apply to hard questions where you're between 2 ACs and stumble into the right one, but also to numerous other questions where you simply didn't need a perfect grasp of the relevant concept(s) to get the question right. When I personally redid a few difficult questions from when I just began studying for the test, I actually got some questions wrong that I previously got correct.

2. An "easy" question can be made difficult by including a more compelling wrong AC or by making the right AC less obvious. By studying the process you used to get questions right, you can build habits that produce a buffer against more difficult versions of questions/questions types. I like to try to think about what could've made a wrong AC correct, or what would've caused me to rule out a correct AC.

3. Accurate pattern recognition. Each LSAT question has a structure, a skeleton if you will. Understanding at a high level how the structure of the question and the ACs (as opposed to just the content) leads to the right answer will make you better in those inevitable situations where the content just isn't clicking.

A common inclination is to just reviewed flagged questions. Resist it. I have stumbled across numerous questions that I got right (and didn't flag) where I simply overlooked or misread something, or didn't see why a wrong AC was so compelling. Although it sounds somewhat paradoxical, making the LSAT harder for yourself by iterating so much and challenging your own intuitions can actually make the LSAT easier in the long run.

How can you do this? I used 7sage, LSATHacks (free), and powerscore (free) for question explanations, often using all of them for even just one question. One thing I focused on was explaining why I thought each wrong AC was wrong before viewing the explanation and making sure it matched. There were actually a few times where I disagreed with a reason for ruling out an AC or a justification provided for the right one (or a miscellaneous comment made during explanation). That doesn't mean I think the question was bad, but I do think that even published explanations by experts are fallible. Train your brain to test explanations rather than simply accepting them.

tl;dr: don't just focus on getting questions right, get them right for the right reasons.