gre score percentiles give you an idea of how well your gre scores stack up against other gre test takers. each score corresponds to a percentile, which tells you the percentage of students who scored below you. we’ll share the current verbal reasoning and quantitative reasoning percentiles for 2024-2025 (using ets’s most recent data) so you can find where your section scores fall. finally, we will share tips to help you figure out which gre score percentile to aim for. let’s get to it!
gre scores and percentiles: table of contents
- what is a good percentile on the gre?
- the gre’s “big 3” benchmarks
- what percentile is my gre score? try our interactive gre score percentile calculator!
- ets’s gre percentiles 2024-2025: all verbal and quant percentiles
- what percentile should i aim for on the gre?
- improving your gre score
what is a good percentile on the gre?
just like a good gre score overall, a “good” percentile on the gre general test varies a lot, depending both on the school and the type of program. percentiles and exam scores will be different for each section of the exam. to get an idea of how this works, let’s look at a few example standards for 2024-2025 gre percentiles.
- the economics program at the university of california davis currently requires 60th or higher percentile in verbal (30th if you’re a non-native english speaker), and at least the 70th percentile in quant.
- mit’s sloan school of business class of 2025 had verbal scores ranging from 65th to 97th percentile and quant scores between 52nd to 87th percentile for the middle 80% of the class.
we can get a closer look at the gre percentile bands for each section here:
the gre’s “big 3” benchmarks
as you can see, many degree programs especially favor the 50th and 60th gre percentile benchmarks (meaning you scored better than 50% or 60% of students who took the gre). other graduate admissions offices like to see you reach a benchmark score of 155 points. additionally, some admissions programs may ask for one of these “big three” 50th/60th/155-point benchmarks on one section of the gre, while asking for a different benchmark on another section. in short, you definitely need to do your research when determining scores that will make you a competitive applicant.
interactive gre percentile calculator
if you took a practice test or used an online gre score calculator to predict your score, you can use those numbers to get an idea of your percentiles. simply adjust the sliders for each section to see both your section percentiles and your gre total score.
ets’s gre percentiles 2024-2025
looking for all the possible scores and percentiles? ets is kind enough to post their gre score report with percentile rankings and score conversion chart.
i’ve reproduced the charts of the 2024-2025 gre score percentiles below. the first table shows the percentile that corresponds to each verbal reasoning score and quantitative reasoning score, separated by one-point increment on the 130-170 scaled score gre score range. the second table shows the analytical writing section percentiles, separated by half-point increment.
gre percentiles 2024-2025
| score | verbal percentile | quantitative percentile |
|---|---|---|
| 170 | 99 | 92 |
| 169 | 99 | 87 |
| 168 | 98 | 83 |
| 167 | 97 | 78 |
| 166 | 96 | 74 |
| 165 | 95 | 70 |
| 164 | 93 | 66 |
| 163 | 91 | 63 |
| 162 | 89 | 60 |
| 161 | 86 | 57 |
| 160 | 84 | 53 |
| 159 | 80 | 50 |
| 158 | 77 | 48 |
| 157 | 73 | 45 |
| 156 | 69 | 42 |
| 155 | 65 | 40 |
| 154 | 59 | 36 |
| 153 | 55 | 34 |
| 152 | 48 | 31 |
| 151 | 43 | 29 |
| 150 | 39 | 25 |
| 149 | 34 | 23 |
| 148 | 30 | 21 |
| 147 | 26 | 18 |
| 146 | 23 | 15 |
| 145 | 21 | 13 |
| 144 | 18 | 11 |
| 143 | 16 | 9 |
| 142 | 13 | 8 |
| 141 | 11 | 6 |
| 140 | 9 | 5 |
| 139 | 8 | 4 |
| 138 | 6 | 3 |
| 137 | 5 | 2 |
| 136 | 4 | 2 |
| 135 | 3 | 1 |
| 134 | 2 | 1 |
| 133 | 2 | 1 |
| 132 | 1 | – |
| 131 | 1 | – |
| 130 | – | – |
awa percentiles 2024-2025
| score | percentile |
|---|---|
| 6.0 | 99 |
| 5.5 | 98 |
| 5.0 | 92 |
| 4.5 | 83 |
| 4.0 | 59 |
| 3.5 | 41 |
| 3.0 | 16 |
| 2.5 | 8 |
| 2.0 | 3 |
| 1.5 | 1 |
| 1.0 | – |
| 0.5 | – |
| 0.0 | – |
what percentile should i aim for on the gre?
you’re probably wondering how your gre score percentiles affect your chances of admission. as you saw earlier from my uc davis and mit examples, in a very broad sense, a “good” gre score is the percentile your target school would ideally like to see. but “aim for what your school wants” is perhaps too broad to be helpful. there are numerous factors involved in the admissions decisions and most of those aren’t determined by the gre alone. and there are certainly a few ground rules for percentiles, no matter where you want to go to school.
my universal recommendation is that you check where you stand compared to the gre score percentiles above. then have a look at the forums to see other students’ experiences.
however, even if your target school allows scores in the lower ranges, such low scores could still be a red flag for an admissions officer. and if you’re below the 50th percentile in verbal, quant, and awa, your score probably isn’t going to impress anyone. so although being below 50th percentile in just one section of the test isn’t always a deal-breaker, you should avoid being in the bottom half of the percentiles if possible.
how to achieve a perfect gre verbal score (or get close!)
feeling particularly ambitious? we put together a video on how to achieve a gre verbal score of 170! don’t worry—even if your school doesn’t require this kind of score, you can still take advantage of these tips.
check the scores for your academic discipline
if, for example, you’re wondering about gre scores for your engineering program, then your peers aren’t going to be exactly the same as the standard gre test-takers (think: lots of math).
in this post on average gre scores, you’ll see that the average verbal score for engineering majors is 151, the 46th percentile. in this case, being at 50th or just over could make you quite competitive. on the other hand, the average quant score is 160. so if you want to go to grad school for engineering, you’ll need a quant section score that’s 61st percentile or higher.
to figure out the best minimum percentile for your discipline, check out the rest of that table in average gre scores post. then compare your average score to the percentile information in this post.
for a detailed and a bit complicated breakdown of percentiles by major, see pages 25-27 of the official gre guide to the use of scores.
look at requirements for your target school’s program
after checking your discipline, remember school-by-school percentile requirements are all different. and top graduate school programs like harvard, stanford, and the like are looking for higher gre score percentiles than your discipline might require. this is where our post on gre scores for top schools comes in. you can use this post to compare the scores needed for your discipline against your target school to find which gre percentile to aim for. for top ranked business schools that also accept the gre for their mba programs, you’ll want to check out their average gre scores as well.
to use one last example, let’s say you want to study biological sciences at ucla.- average gre scores for life sciences
- verbal: 151 (46th percentile)
- quant: 150 (30th percentile)
- ucla’s average gre scores for biological sciences
- verbal: 159-163 (81st to 92nd percentile)
- quant: 156-160 (49th to 61st percentile)
therefore, you’ll want to aim for well above the 50th percentile for this program.
improving your gre score
ultimately, knowing all about gre score percentiles and program requirements is only part of the battle. once you have the knowledge about what your target score should be, you need a plan to achieve it. if you’re looking to improve your gre score percentile, think about giving magoosh gre prep a shot. you can start with our free gre prep app and see if a little extra dedication to prep helps your confidence.
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50 responses to “gre score percentiles – what does your score mean for you? (2025 update)”
about how many questions can you miss on the verbal and quantitative sections in order to obtain a score in the range of 150-155 in each section?
hey yamil!
unfortunately it’s hard to say exactly, since the weight of the questions changes between sections. that means missing 10 in the first section is not the same as missing 10 in the second section. as 150-155 is around the average score, you should have a decent sized cushion to work with. 🙂
best,
chris s
hey chris
i have one week left to give my gre. iam not doing well on verbal and analytical section. in verbal i think iam not good in reading comprehension and in awa, i always feel iam short of ideas.can you please help me with some good sources which can guide me in the next week to get a good score.
also my college is asking for a score more than 50 th percentile which i guess requires 300 marks in total.
hey binc! first off i recommend taking advantage of all the resources on this blog. we’ve got loads of awa posts so i definitely think that’s where you’ll get most of the information. also check out this one week gre study schedule. that should put you on the right track. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi chris.
you are a one man wrecking-crew when it comes to dispensing sage advice pertaining to the world of graduate studies 🙂
i have my own scenario i would love for you to advise me on. i am going back to school after a lengthy hiatus to study political science or history (still deciding). i know i can score well on writing and the verbal section, but my quantitative score is going to be very low- and frankly, i don’t even want to bother cramming all that math garbage into my head (nothing personal for you math lovers, but i am a creature of the humanities!).
do you think programs will look down on my low quantitative scores, even though i hope to encounter little to no math during my graduate scholarship?
thank you very much,
from tucson, az
hey michel! i recommend cramming at least enough to get around 151 (the average score). any lower than that and you might have a tough go of it. 🙂
best,
chris s
i scored a 150 on quant and a 157 on verbal (after 5 years outside of academics not doing math) with a score pending for the aw. i am trying to get into an environmental studies or food studies phd program. i concede that my quant score is low, but i will have my previous ms in food science, a published work, strong recommendations, and previous 3.5 gpa. should i retest?
it’s really hard to say since it varies program to program. for many phd programs, research fit and ability is much more important than the gre, so make sure that aligns and you might be able to overcome the math score. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi chris,
i am looking forward for an opportunity in phd marketing in these following universities:
1. university of houston, main campus
2. rice university, houston
3. texas a&m university, college station
my gre score is 304 (vb-151, qt-153), aw is still awaited, my toefl exam is scheduled in nov,13 (hoping for 100 above), can u please suggest me that whether i should go for another gre test.
thanks
hey tripti! unfortunately i’m not extremely familiar with the phd in marketing programs, particularly at those schools. try to reach out to the schools to see what information you can find!
best,
chris s
hi chris,
in need of help. i scored 313 on gre (v 154, q 159, awa 4.5). i am looking forward to phd cs/mis. there is lot of info on ms and required gre scores but unfortunately not much info on phd. can these scores help me get a decent university. i have 4 years of work experience as a test analyst in an us mnc.
should i retake gre? that would be really difficult for me though. please advise.
thanks.
hey ansh! essentially for phd, you should just tack on a few points to both scores to whichever program you’re looking at. 🙂
best,
chris s
hey chris,
i scored a 314 in the gre (q=162;v=152;awa=4)
i am looking to pursue a masters in cs at usc, gatech, rutgers-new brunswick and university of florida- gainsville.
could you help me out, whether or not my scores are appropriate for the universities where i wish to apply.
thanks alot for your time.
hey raj! i’m not sure about rutgers or uf, but you can check out the post i wrote about usc gre scores. that should give you an idea if you’re in the right direction. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi chris
i am trying to figure out what my gre score is worth. i got q163 and v159. gpa3.7. i want to apply to a graduate program in bioinformatics. where can i find information regarding average gre scores in different universities in this subject?
thank you!
hey adam! i’d check out us news to start and then head over to my post gre scores for life sciences programs. it won’t line up exactly with your field but you can extrapolate the data a bit to to get a better idea of what you’ll need. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi,
do engineering colleges give a higher weightage to quant scores?
eg. if i want to pursue an ms in cs, and have a score of only 154 in verbal, will it affect my chances of getting in, even with a good score in quant of 168.
also, my essay score is pretty good, i got a 5.5/6. will that in any way help compensate for my low verbal score?
hey karishma!
at that range i don’t think it matters so much. i’d focus on other parts of your app, especially your sop. solid writing there and a 5.5 on the awa should work well to give the adcoms confidence. 🙂
best,
chris s
chris,
it looks like your table doesn’t match the concordance ets table. just an fyi.
thanks for the post.
hey james! good catch. looks like the version i grabbed originally was an earlier release of the numbers from ets. i’ve updated them to reflect the most recent percentiles, though they’ve shifted just a bit. 🙂
thanks!
chris s
hey chris, a score of 152 you listed on your table as 52%. but on the ets it is listed as 49%. does ets update their ranking or did i miss something?
thanks
hey adil! it’s fixed now. looks like they updated it slightly. thanks!
chris s
hi chris,
i just took the gre and scored 158v/158q, i want to apply for an mba program at probably the top 10 business schools (harvard, upenn, haas). gpa: 3.6.
should i take the gre again? i’m not sure what the averages are for business school, i see a lot of different #s. what score do i need to break in order for me to have a shot at these schools? i know there are many other factors that determine acceptance, but just score alone, what does my score mean?
thanks!
hey susan!
your score is unfortunately a bit low for the top mba programs. check out this post for more help with what the gre scores are for business programs. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi chris,
thank you for this blog and your insight.
gre: v- 154 q-158 awa-3.5
undergrad gpa:3.35
extracurricular: very involved; sga president, fraternity, etc.
work experience: two years in government consulting
what do you think about my chance getting into a top mba program? my number one choice is harvard!
thanks,
hey jason! check out this post for a better idea of gre scores for mba programs:
gre scores for business programs
best,
chris s
hey chris,
i got a 304(158quant+146 verbal) on my gre recently.
i want to pursue cs(as major) in ms.what are my chances of getting funding in these universities:-
1.north carolina state university
2.univ of north carolina,charlotte
3.univ of tennessee
4.east carolina university
hey rakesh! i unfortunately don’t know what it will take to get funding in those schools, as even in the lower ranking unis, funding for cs can be hard to come by. good luck though!
best,
chris s
i just completed the gre today and received a 154 in v. and a 147 in q. obviously, i do not know the scores for the aw section yet. i will admit due to an overly busy schedule i was not able to put in as much study time as i would have preferred. i feel as though i could have scored slightly better in the v, but as for the q i know i gave it my all. i am in the process of applying to library and information science programs some of which require the gre and others do not. interestingly enough the program that requires the gre does not list any necessary scoring ranges. i have an unbeatable undergraduate gpa–4.0, so there is some disconnect here. i am not sure if my performance was a result of having too many irons in the fire, anxiety, or both, but my question would be do you think i should retest? i take myself very seriously as a student and do not want my scores to deter any admissions boards members.
hello erin! unfortunately those scores might deter more than a few admissions committees. i don’t know the level of schools you plan to apply to, but both your scores would probably fall below the average for the top 100 programs in your field. that’s not to say it’s guaranteed to be one way or another, as there are a lot of variables to be considered, but your score is not going to help you in any way. your gpa is great, and if it’s from a top tier uni, even better. check out this post for more help with the retake decision:
should i retake the gre?
best,
chris s
hi, chris,
i would really like your feedback. i got 155v 168q (still waiting for the awa), but during my test the computer crashed 3 times! i think these problems damaged my verbal score (since when they let us continue, i had to read the texts again and lost lots of time). do you think this verbal score will hurt my chances at a top10 in neuroscience/neuroeconomics? i’m a internatinal student, so maybe they don’t expect a high verbal score, but i don’t know exactly how this works.
thanks!
hey bruno! that’s really terrible. i read about this happening to others and those people reached out to ets to reschedule a test. it’s a bit laborious convincing ets that you deserve a free retake, but if you push hard enough, it might just work. anyway, to your point, i can’t really say for certain how much the score considerations change based on your native language, i’m sure it varies from program to program, and even case to case. reach out to the schools you’re interested and see if they can shed some light. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi chris,
do you have any hard data on school reported gre scores for masters vs phd students in public policy/admin? it is hard to discern this from sites i have looked at. i got my master’s many years ago and am looking to pursue a phd in the field. i recently took the gre after a pretty intensive focus on the quant. unfortunately, effort was not reflected in my score (q156). i was shooting for 75th percentile, which seemed like a good cut off point. at this point, i am not sure i want to re-endure the torture of the test, to try for extra 2-3 points in quant (i took gre a little over year ago with minimal prep and received a q155).
any ideas, suggestions, appreciated. verbal is not a problem for me (v170) but sense i get is admcoms value quant scores much more for these programs.
thanks.
hey michael! unfortunately almost all data on gre scores isn’t hard, but some kind of conjecture. in my series on gre scores, i’ve come up with a way to figure out a likely range of scores, but even then it’s still just doing the best i can with the limited information provided. just a quick look at some of the top programs from public administration from my gre scores for elite universities post shows that you’d fall into the range of appropriate scores. this however is a melange of masters/phd level, so your quant should be higher than what you see in the average, since you’ll be expected to do more research. unfortunately i can’t say one way or another about retaking it. all i can say is that not all studying is equal. i wouldn’t count yourself out of a better quant score. studying for the gre isn’t about being intensive it’s about being focused on reducing your weaknesses. 🙂
good luck in your applications!
best,
chris s
hello, please suggest me possible universities for my profile for ms in cs fall 2014. it will majorly help me decide.
gre=299( verbal-146, quant-153) [not taking gre again]
awa-3.5
toefl- expecting 90
10th= 94.88%
12th=87.5%
engineering (cse) 72.2% with no backlogs [cgpa-3.75/4]
[college- bms institute of technology (vtu)]
working for oracle financial services software from august2013.
extracurriculars:
1.author of one research paper published on “international journals”
2. author of one technical paper *presented* in national conference
3.brand ambassador for “cognizant technology solutions”
4. campus ambassador for “springfest” iit_kharagpur
5. social work = currently member of civil defence , government of karnataka. (also have 5 days training certificate along with membership certificate)
8.android and windows phone app developer.published one application on respective platforms on microsoft and samsung official websites.
10.cordinated and organized few events in college
and i was the official broucher designer for our college fest
11. working for an ngo which helps school students education.
thanks in advance.
hey shivu! that’s quite a lot you’ve got going for you! i can’t recommend any universities in specific for you to go after, but rather offer some advice. really think hard about what you want to do after grad school. “cs” isn’t specific enough. life goals, ambitions, etc. know all of that about yourself. then start looking at cs programs (us news is a good place to start) in depth and you’ll see which program can get you where you want to go. i’d also check out the forums online, search for other people interested in the same area and you’ll find a wealth of information. hope this helps!
best,
chris s
hi..
i am planning to do ms in top universities from us. i took my gre today, n got v-140 and q-160 n now waiting for the a score. what do u think? should i try for the second attempt? or shud i send this score? because i am taking my btech degree in civil engineering from the very prestigious college and even my cgpa is 8.01 out of 10 where topper is of 8.50. and many people say that for civil the competition is less. so shud i try with this score?
hey kalyani! that verbal score is definitely a bit on the low side and might give some adcoms pause, but it’s tough to say for certain since an application is a lot more than just a gre score (and your undergrad gpa). check with the programs directly to see if they can shed some light for you. 🙂
best,
chris s
hi,
i’m planning for ms in aerospace engineering. took my gre today and scored 310 (q-158, v-152) awaiting the aw. is it good enough to get into any of the top 10 colleges for fall 2014?
cbse 10th – 91.2%
cbse 12th – 95.4%
and a cpga of 9.24/10 of the first 3 years (one more year to go).
any help is appreciated.
hey pawan! check out this post for more info on engineering programs:
gre scores for engineering programs
best,
chris s
hi 🙂 i’m a student looking to apply to a masters program in political science. i took it one year ago and it’s time to decide to take it once more before i start applying to ma programs in the coming months. i scored a 156v, 155q, and a 5 in the writing section. i feel like if i do take the time to write another exam, i feel the score i might obtain at best will only be marginally better. at the same time, i feel like it’s taking a risk because i may score lower than a 5 in the writing section. i feel like my scores are on the fence when it comes to the right course of action to take. any advice?
hey jn! since you’ve got a couple months, you should commit to studying for a certain period of time and then try a few practice tests. if you see an increase in score (even if slight!), then dedicate yourself to studying more and then sign up for the test. there’s not much to lose. you could also sign up for magoosh premium, since we have a 5 point increase guarantee! 😉
best,
chris s
hello, chris,
i am very interested in your feedback. i took the gre last year and earned a 149 in verbal, a 152 in quant, and a 5.0 in aw. after months of studying long and hard (with numerous practice exams – including the ets practice exam), i took the gre again. i received the same exact scores – a 149 in verbal, a 152 in quant, and a 5.0 in aw.
the test i took this year was after i spent many hours studying, and after i scored above 70th percentile in all categories on numerous practice exams (including the ets practice tests).
i had a decent undergraduate gpa of a 3.81, and i have two years of solid work experience (it will be three years when i begin a graduate program). i’m interested in applying to part-time business schools (all of the schools i’m looking at denote that they want their applicants to have a cumulative gre score of 75th percentile or above).
do you think i should take the gre again?! or, is it not worth it since i received the same exact scores both times (without studying for the first time and with a lot of studying for the second time)?
thank you in advance for your feedback!
hello! if the schools explicitly state they expect your score to be in the 75th percentile or above, then you should try to get as close to that as possible! while it may be disheartening to study and still not increase your score, remember that how you study is just as important as how long you study! check out these resources for more help:
best gre books
gre study guides
ultimate gre guide
good luck!
chris s
hi,
i am planning for admission in the next spring (jan 14). but i am not able to get any slots for writing the gre computer based test before november. so , i wanted to know can i start applying to colleges now itself and send the scores later. will that be considered like the normal process? because if i apply in november, then it’d have already crossed the deadline for most of the colleges.
please suggest.
thanks
unfortunately most universities will consider your application incomplete without the scores and so when the deadline passes you won’t have completed applications. my recommendation is to reach out to the admissions committees of the schools you want to apply to and let them know your dilemma. hopefully they can work something out for you. 🙂
best,
chris s
does this mean a perfect verbal score on the new gre is considered less of an achievement compared to the old gre, and a perfect quant score a greater achievement? did the verbal section become easier and the quant harder?
you got it right! it was a much greater accomplishment to get a perfect score on the verbal of the old gre. conversely, it is much more difficult to get a perfect math score on the new gre. luckily schools know this as well. 😀
chris
hi… recently i gave gre and scored 302 ( q 155, v 147, aw – 3) . i want to do ms in usa, but only when i get a scholarship in any form, otherwise it won’t be possible for me bcoz of my weak financial aid. my scores uptill now are 10th – 83%, 12th – 82.6% , be – 72.64% ( c.e. stream) , currently working in a software firm as web developer and have 2.8 yrs of experience. do i have any possibility to have
any good institution for ms so that after my degree completion i can easily get a job there? beside this, i came to know about integrated phd from other sources, which includes ms(1.5 yrs) + phd (2.5 yrs) thus overall making 4yrs course and heard its easy to get scholarship in phd programme as compared to ms. i am preferring for ms but if that can’t be done ( may be bcoz of financial lagging or academical results ) then i will go for the later i.e. phd. please guide me.
while many things in life can be made on a financial basis, i really strongly disagree with making education decisions purely on financial reasons. it’s certainly easier to get scholarships for your phd, but remember that getting your phd is not the same thing as getting a masters. you have to really want a phd to survive the rigors of the program. i’m not saying don’t go for it, just make sure you know what you’re getting into. additionally, the requirements for gre scores will be even more stringent in phd programs than masters. it might worthwhile to look into retaking the gre. 🙂
best,
chris s