What Does an IQ of 72 Mean?

An IQ of 72 is in the “Borderline” range. About 3.1% of people score lower and 96.9% score higher. It’s 1.87 standard deviations below the average of 100.

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Where an IQ of 72 sits on the bell curve (average 100, standard deviation 15)

IQ 72 in numbers

Classification
Borderline
Scores lower than 72
3.1%
How rare
1 in 32 people score this low or lower
Distance from average
-1.87 standard deviations
Mensa level (top 2%)
No, Mensa usually needs about 130+

What the “Borderline” range means

Scores from 70 to 79 are called borderline. About 7% of people are in this range. An online test can easily be off by several points, so a single low score shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

How does IQ 72 compare?

IQScores lowerClassification
620.56%Extremely low
671.4%Extremely low
723.1%Borderline
776.3%Borderline
8211.5%Low average

Frequently asked questions

Is an IQ of 72 good?

An IQ of 72 is below average, but online tests are only estimates. Tiredness or distraction can lower a score by several points.

What percentile is an IQ of 72?

An IQ of 72 is higher than about 3.1% of the population, and about 96.9% of people score higher.

How rare is an IQ of 72?

About 1 in 32 people score 72 or lower.