What is a good LSAT score?
A good LSAT score is one at or above the median score at the law schools you want to attend. The field-wide reference points: a 150 beats about 37% of recent test-takers, a 160 beats about 71%, and a 170 beats about 94%. There is no single magic number — there is your list of schools, and each school's median.
The only definition that matters: the median
A school's LSAT median is the middle score of its most recent admitted class: half the class scored above it, half below. Admissions officers build classes around that number, and merit scholarships follow it. So "good" is always relative to a list:
- At or above a school's median: you are competitive there on the numbers.
- 1 to 3 points above the median: you are a strong candidate there, and this is where scholarship leverage starts.
- Below the median: the school is a reach on the numbers — possible, but the rest of your application has to do more work.
That is the same rule our score pages use: every LSAT score from 120 to 180, matched to law schools, built from the Fall 2025 medians of 196 ABA law schools (ABA 509 data via ILRG).
The reference points: where a score sits in the field
Percentiles describe the field, not your chances at a specific school — but they are the fastest way to read a score. These are the reference points from LSAC's published percentile table for the 2023–2026 testing years (the same table shown on our scoring guide):
| Score | Beats about this share of recent test-takers |
|---|---|
| 175 | 99% |
| 170 | 94% |
| 168 | 91% |
| 165 | 85% |
| 160 | 71% |
| 155 | 54% |
| 150 | 37% |
| 145 | 21% |
Two readings worth having: a 160 is not "ten points above average" in any meaningful sense — it puts you ahead of about seven in ten test-takers. And the middle of the field sits in the low-to-mid 150s, which is why a score in the 150s is a workable starting point for many schools and a diagnostic result, not a verdict.
Good for what, exactly?
- 170 and above (about the top 6%): at or above the published median at the large majority of ABA schools. At the most selective schools, medians run into the 170s — check your exact list before you call a score "enough."
- 165–169 (about the top 15%): above the median at most schools, and a scholarship-relevant score at many of them.
- 160–164 (about the top 29%): a genuinely strong score for a wide range of ABA schools — the band where "good" starts for most applicants with a national list.
- 155–159 (around the middle of the field and above): competitive at many regional schools, whose medians sit in this band.
- 150–154: below the midpoint of the field, but still at or near the median at a real set of ABA schools — the score pages show exactly which.
- Below 150: a starting point, not a result. The LSAT is a learnable test: score improvement is a matter of method and hours, and the band-by-band improvement timelines show what each jump typically takes, with the hour figures labeled as estimates.
Scholarships change the definition
For many students, "good" should mean "good enough to be offered money." Schools discount tuition to enroll students above their median, because medians feed rankings and reporting. That makes a score a few points above a target school's median worth real dollars — often more than the same points spent reaching for a slightly more famous school where you would sit below its median. Run your list both ways: the scholarships guide and the score pages use the same median data.
So what score do you need?
- Write down the schools you would actually attend.
- Read each school's median (the score pages list them per score, and every school page shows its own).
- Set your target at the highest median on your realistic list — then add a point or two of cushion if scholarships matter.
- Measure the gap. The free diagnostic returns a score-estimate range on the 120–180 scale, so you can see the distance between where you are and where the target sits. Every test on LSATPathway is built from original LSAT-style questions written for LSATPathway — not licensed LSAC material.
Working with a raw practice score instead? The score converter translates it to the 120–180 scale — labeled an estimate, because LSAC equates each test form separately.
Frequently asked questions
Is 160 a good LSAT score?
It beats about 71% of recent test-takers, and it sits at or above the median at a wide range of ABA law schools. Whether it is good for you depends on your list: check the medians of your target schools — law schools for a 160 LSAT is a reasonable place to start.
What is a good LSAT score for the most selective schools?
There is no single cutoff, and any site that gives you one is rounding aggressively. The most selective schools publish LSAT medians in the 170s, so a score in that range is the realistic target for that tier. Set yours from the actual medians of the schools on your list, not from a headline number.
What LSAT score do I need for a scholarship?
There is no fixed threshold. Merit aid follows medians: a score above a school's median is the strongest single lever you have, and the further above it, the stronger the offer tends to be. The same score can be full-price at one school and discounted at another — which is why the target is a median, not a number.
What is the average LSAT score?
The middle of the field sits in the low-to-mid 150s: on LSAC's published percentile table, a 155 beats about 54% of recent scores and a 150 beats about 37%. Treat "average" as background. Schools admit against their own medians, not against the national average.
My diagnostic score is low. Is my target out of reach?
A diagnostic is a starting line, not a verdict — it measures you before you have learned the test's methods, and nearly everyone has specific question types costing them most of their points. Find those first: the diagnostic breaks your result down by question type, and the study method is built around fixing the biggest leaks before adding speed.
Last updated October 21, 2026