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What Does a 70 IQ Mean?

A 70 IQ is far below the average of 100. About 2 in 100 people score lower than 70. Clinical reports would call 70 Very Low in WISC-V wording and Borderline in the traditional WAIS-IV wording.

Percentile
2.28
How rare
1 in 44 score 70 or lower
WISC-V wording
Very Low
Traditional wording (WAIS-IV)
Borderline
Distance from 100
2 SD below
On an SD 16 test
about 68
On an SD 24 test
about 52
Our test's usual range here
up to 84 (90%)
Where 70 sits on the IQ curveA bell curve with a marker at 70. The shaded area to the left is the share of people who score lower; 70 is at the 2.28th percentile.7010013070

What does a 70 IQ mean?

A score of 70 is two standard deviations below the average of 100. On most IQ tests one standard deviation, the typical distance from the average, is 15 points, so 70 is 30 points away.

70 sits near the bottom of the 70 to 79 band, 10 points below the next band up. About 6 in 100 people score from 70 to 79, the band that holds 70. A 70 on its own is not a diagnosis of anything. Intellectual disability needs limits in two areas at once. One is reasoning, shown by a score around 70 or as high as 75. The other is adaptive behavior: the conceptual, social and practical skills of daily life. Both must begin before age 22.

What percentile is an IQ of 70?

A score of 70 is at the 2.28th percentile. That percentile is the share of people who score lower than 70, not the share of questions right. Five points higher, 75 is at the 4.78th percentile.

How rare is an IQ of 70?

About 1 in 44 people score 70 or lower. In a town of 100,000 people, about 2,300 would score 70 or lower.

For every 100 people who score exactly 100, about 14 score exactly 70. These figures for 70 come from the normal curve that IQ scales are built on, and the IQ calculator works out any other score.

What would 70 be on other tests?

Not every test would print 70 for this position. Older Stanford-Binet forms and many school tests use a standard deviation of 16; there, the same position as 70 is about 68. On a scale with a standard deviation of 24, used by the Cattell test, it is about 52. 70, 68 and 52 all mean the same percentile.

Is 70 a good IQ score?

The scale does not grade the person behind a 70; it places one result among other people’s results. As a position, 70 is far below the average of 100. What a 70 is useful for depends on the purpose, and a single online result is too rough for decisions about school, work or support. A 70 describes some kinds of reasoning on one test, on one day, and leaves out a great deal that matters, such as effort, knowledge and character.

What should you do with a 70 result?

First, look at where the 70 came from. An online 70 is a rough estimate, and any single score moves between sittings. If you need an assessment for school, work or support after a 70, a psychologist can give a full test and look at everyday skills too. The IQ scale guide explains scores like 70 with care.

What does an online result of 70 mean?

An online result of 70 is an estimate. When our test shows 70, the estimated range next to it usually reaches below 70, the lowest score our test reports, so it is shown as “up to 84” or close to that. That range for 70 is provisional: it comes from our scoring model and a simulation, not yet from real test takers. Our methodology shows how the range is made.

An unsupervised online 70 may also run a little high: a large review found a gap of about 3 IQ points. Taking the same kind of test again usually raises a score like 70 a little, mostly on the first retakes. Our guide are IQ tests accurate covers this in depth.

To see where your own result falls next to 70, take the free IQ test. It has 30 questions and shows an estimated range with every result.

Scores near 70

  • 71 IQ: 1 point higher, at the 2.66th percentile.
  • 72 IQ: 2 points higher, at the 3.1st percentile.
  • 73 IQ: 3 points higher, at the 3.59th percentile.
  • 74 IQ: 4 points higher, at the 4.15th percentile.

Look up any score from 70 to 160, not only those near 70, in the score explorer.

FAQ

What percentile is 70 IQ?

A score of 70 is at the 2.28th percentile. That means about 2.28 percent of people score lower.

Is 70 IQ low?

70 is below the average band. About 2.3 in 100 people score 70 or lower. A single 70 is not a diagnosis.

How many people have an IQ of 70?

On a whole-number scale, about 0.4 percent of people score exactly 70. About 1 in 44 people score 70 or lower.

Can an online test show 70?

Yes, as an estimate with a range: on our test a 70 usually comes with an estimated range shown as “up to 84” or close to that.