Question
Does Mensa tell you your IQ?
Short answer
Not in the United States. American Mensa says it does not give test takers a detailed report, a percentile rank or an IQ score; the result is whether you qualified, meaning you scored at or above the 98th percentile. If you want an actual IQ score, you need a full test from a qualified professional.
Want your own number? The test is 25 visual puzzles, about 12 minutes, no sign-up.
What you learn from a Mensa test
American Mensa defines a qualifying score as at or above 98 percent of the general population (American Mensa: testing), and says it does not give test takers a detailed report, a percentile rank or an IQ score (American Mensa: testing page). In practice the result is a yes or a no: you qualified for membership, or you did not.
One American Mensa local group describes the admission test as two separately timed, proctored tests, where a 98th percentile score on either one qualifies (South Texas Mensa: testing). A format like that is designed to find a cutoff, not to place you precisely.
Try one · Pattern Recognition
Which tile comes next?
Tap the option you think is right, or show the answer.
Show the answer
The missing tile shows a very large outlined arrow pointing right (option 2).
How to solve it
- Compare neighboring tiles and name what changes each time.
- From tile to tile, the arrow turns a quarter turn clockwise.
- The fill cycles outline, solid and hatched, then starts again.
- Everything else stays the same from tile to tile.
- The last tile shows a very large hatched arrow pointing up. Apply each change once more.
- So the missing tile shows a very large outlined arrow pointing right.
That was 1 puzzle. The full test has 25.
If you want a number
- A clinical assessment gives a Full Scale IQ and index scores. American Mensa accepts, among others, a Wechsler Full Scale IQ of 130 or 130 on the Stanford-Binet 5 (American Mensa: qualifying scores), so one well-run assessment can answer both questions. See what a Full Scale IQ is.
- An online estimate gives you a rough number for curiosity. Ours reports an estimated IQ with a confidence range. It cannot be used for Mensa.
Reading a qualifying result
Qualifying tells you that you scored at or above the 98th percentile on that day, which is about 131 or higher on a standard deviation 15 scale. It does not tell you whether you are at 131 or 151. For how rare scores at the top are, see the top 2 percent and what IQ you need for Mensa. For the test format, see the Mensa admission test.
Sources
- American Mensa. Testing (results policy). www.us.mensa.org/testing
- American Mensa. Admission testing. www.us.mensa.org/join/testing/
- American Mensa. Qualifying test scores. www.us.mensa.org/join/testscores/qualifying-test-scores/
- South Texas Mensa (American Mensa local group). Testing. southtexas.us.mensa.org/testing.php