Your first week of LSAT prep: a 7-day starter guide
A 7-day starter guide for week one. One small task per day. By Sunday you will know your baseline, the test structure, and the three skills everything else builds on.
Plan tools: the study plan generator builds a custom schedule, and the free diagnostic finds your starting point.
Who this plan is for
This guide is for you if you are starting from zero and want a clear first week. No materials to buy, no big decisions. Just seven days, one task each.
The plan, week by week
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Day 1: take the diagnostic
- Take the free diagnostic. Do not study first. You need a true baseline.
- Note your score and which section felt hardest.
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Day 2: learn the test
- Read how the LSAT is structured: two LR sections, one RC, one experimental.
- Learn how scoring works: every question counts the same, no guessing penalty.
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Day 3: argument structure
- Learn conclusion versus premises.
- Practice on ten short arguments. Find the conclusion in each.
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Day 4: conditional logic
- Learn if/then statements and the contrapositive.
- Write ten contrapositives by hand.
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Day 5: RC method
- Read one passage with the structure method: one-line summary per paragraph.
- Answer its questions. Check every answer against the text.
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Day 6: review
- Re-do every question you missed this week.
- Write one sentence about what each miss taught you.
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Day 7: rest and plan
- Rest. Seriously.
- Pick your plan for week two based on your diagnostic and your weekly hours.
Rules for this plan
- Do not buy five prep books this week. One task a day is the whole job.
- Your diagnostic score is information, not a verdict.
- If a day gets skipped, do it the next day. Do not double up.
- Write things by hand this week. It sticks better.
- Week one is about starting, not about speed.
Start with a real baseline
Every plan here starts with the free diagnostic. Know your starting score before you spend a single study day.
More study plans
- 140s starter plan - a 12-week plan for a 140s diagnostic score.
- 150s starter plan - a 12-week plan for a 150s diagnostic score.
- 160s starter plan - a 10-week plan for a 160s diagnostic score.
- 5-hours-a-week plan - a 16-week plan for 5 study hours per week.
- 10-hours-a-week plan - a 12-week plan for 10 study hours per week.
- 15-hours-a-week plan - a 12-week plan for 15 study hours per week.
- 20-hours-a-week plan - an 8-week plan for 20 study hours per week.
- RC-focused plan - a 10-week plan that puts Reading Comprehension first.
- LR-focused plan - a 10-week plan that puts Logical Reasoning first.
- balanced plan - a 10-week plan for even scores with no clear weak section.
- 5-point retake plan - an 8-week plan to gain about 5 points on a retake.
- 10-point retake plan - a 12-week plan to gain about 10 points on a retake.
- final month plan - a 30-day plan for the last month before the test.
- final week plan - a 7-day taper for the week before the test.
- summer intensive - an 8-week full-time summer LSAT plan.
- winter break intensive - a 4-week winter break LSAT plan.
Last updated October 12, 2026