What LSAT Score Do I Need to Get Into Law School?

October 12, 2026

This article was originally published on September 2020 and was fully updated on October 12, 2026 to reflect the latest information and recommendations.

Are you prepping for your Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or researching colleges that offer J.D. degrees? If so, then a top question you have is, "What LSAT score do I need to get into law school?"

Although the average score hovers around 151, many law schools accept lower scores or require higher results. Furthermore, better scores may give you access to more scholarship and grant funds. To determine what score you need, it's essential to understand each school's requirements.

In this post, you will learn how LSAT scoring works, what different scores mean, and how to achieve your desired outcome for the best chances of getting into your top schools.

How are Law School Admission Test scores computed?

When you take your LSAT, you'll get a raw score, scaled score, and percentile score. Your raw score is the number of questions you answered correctly, whereas your scaled score uses a Score Conversion Chart to give you a result between 120 and 180. Lastly, your percentile score shows you where you stand compared to all test-takers over the last three years.

Many schools also provide details about the LSAT percentiles of their entering classes. This information tells you about the percentage of accepted students with various LSAT scores. If you fall below the 25th percentile of accepted students at a school, 75% of accepted students had scores higher than you. If you fall above the 50th percentile of accepted students at a school, then 50% of students at scores lower than you.

Before taking the LSAT, it's vital to examine your list of target law schools and their admissions statistics. Doing so helps you pick an LSAT goal and predict your chances of acceptance.

What LSAT score do I need to get into law school?

According to U.S News, Among the 196 ranked law schools that reported the median LSAT score for incoming full-time students in fall 2025, the overall median was nearly 160. Meanwhile, among the 17 ranked schools with the highest-scoring students, including ties, the overall median score was hovering around 170.

To find out what LSAT score you'll need, examine information about each college’s J.D. program and application process. Specifically, you're looking for the school's median scores, LSAT percentiles, and acceptance rate data. Here is the typical way to view LSAT score ranges:

120-147 Low (You will struggle to get into any law school)
148-156 Mid (You will likely get into law school, but may struggle to get into highly ranked schools)
157-164 High (You can get into more highly ranked schools and may receive a greater level of fiscal support)
165-180 Exceptional (You can write your ticket to most schools and have a shot at the most selective schools)

Find your school on the LSAC official guide to ABA-approved law schools. Click on the school, then scroll to the bottom of the page. Here you'll find a chart showing the applicant profile for the college. You'll see a list of LSAT score ranges on the left side, and along the top, you'll find GPA ranges. The graph shows you which combinations improve or reduce your chance of acceptance.

The key numbers to look at are the 25th and 75th percentile accepted LSAT score for a school. These numbers show that 50% of all students accepted by a school had an LSAT score between those two numbers. Some schools have wider ranges than others.

Generally, if your score is within that 25th-75th percentile range, you have a good shot of getting into that law school. If your score is above that 75th percentile number, you could likely consider it a safety school. If your score is below the median, and especially if your score is below the 25th percentile for a school, you want your Undergraduate GPA (UGPA) to be at or above the school’s median to have a good shot at the school. However, if your score is 5 or more points below a school’s median, or more than a few points below that 25th percentile number, you will struggle to get in, even with a very high UGPA. In that case, you should definitely consider retaking the LSAT or applying to schools with a different score profile

ARE MY RESULTS A GOOD OR BAD SCORE?

Are you wondering what a good LSAT score is? Although that factor is mostly defined by individual law schools, for many colleges, you'll need a score of over 150 to consider applying. Generally, you will want something at or above the 25th percentile for a particular school to give yourself a good chance of acceptance. But remember, 25% of accepted students had scores below a school’s 25th percentile score, so there can still be opportunity as a stretch school if you fall in that range.

Keep in mind, you may be able to balance an LSAT score that barely meets a school's requirements with a stellar GPA, resume, and well-written personal statement. Don’t let a disappointing result get you down. Instead, develop methods to get a better score next time or prove yourself in other ways.

CAN I GET INTO LAW SCHOOL WITH A LOW LSAT SCORE?

Some schools accept lower scores. In fact, LSAC recommends schools avoid using a cut-off score. But, it's important to read each school's FAQ pages, as this is where colleges may report the average lowest score they typically accept.

This information, combined with the median range of LSAT scores for that school (25th to 75th percentile range), gives you a good idea of what score you need. You'll also find further details about how to offset a poor score using your application or supplementary materials. Take time to review each school’s prerequisites and requirements while you’re there.

ONU Law provides a summer starter program to help those with lower LSAT scores. Once you complete ONU’s eight-week summer program, you'll be automatically enrolled in the fall entering class.

HOW MANY QUESTIONS DO I NEED TO GET RIGHT?

Every LSAT test imposes strict time limits, and it's a hard exam requiring logical thinking and reading comprehension. The test itself has four sections, two logical reasoning sections which are scored, one reading comprehension section which is scored, and the fourth section, which could be either type, but is experimental and unscored. In total, there are about 100 questions on each test, with about 75 of the questions (i.e. three of the four sections) being scored. This means you need to get ~42 out of 75 scored questions correct to get an LSAT score of 150; ~55 out of 75 of the scored question correct to get a 160; and ~67 out of 75 scored questions correct to get a 170.

CAN I RETAKE THE LSAT?

Typically, all LSAT scores are reported to schools, but for the most part they only use your highest result during the admissions process. The LSAT is offered eight different times per year. But, according to LSAC, you can only take it a total of seven times during your lifetime. (There is no longer a limit on the number of times you can take it in a year, so long as you do not go over the lifetime limit).

So, yes, you can retake the LSAT, but it's essential to consider each effort equally important and avoid taking the official LSAT as a form of practice.

Does my LSAT score affect scholarships?

Your LSAT score makes the difference between getting a small scholarship or getting 75% of your school cost covered. For example, at ONU, the median score in the latest incoming class was 150. Students scoring this number or higher may qualify for various scholarships and grants.

However, U.S. News details an LSAC report, saying, "Over the last 10 years of admission cycles, the number of applicants with 160 to 180 LSAT scores declined 34%." This suggests that scoring in this range gives you access to more scholarship and grant monies.

How do I get a high LSAT score?

Once you've determined your LSAT score goal, then it's time to develop a plan. Preparing for the LSAT takes months. Of course, you'll want to study and study some more (and take practice tests!). But there are other things you should do to ensure your LSAT score gets you into a good school. Use these test prep and J.D. degree planning tips for promising results.

Mix up your back up schools

Prioritize your list of colleges and get familiar with at least one school that accepts lower scores. While you don't want to aim for a low score, you should give yourself options to keep in mind.

Explore schools using the Law School Rankings from the Internet Legal Research Group (ILRG). You can sort the list of 196 schools according to GPA, LSAT scores, acceptance rates, and more. For instance, recent data for ONU shows:

Low LSAT score: 147
Median LSAT score: 151
High LSAT score: 152
Acceptance rate: 42.2%

Review school's acceptable supplementary documents

Head to each law school's website for FAQ pages and guides. You'll find information about their range of scores and reasons why they'd accept a lower LSAT score. Many colleges also offer additional application details that explain how supplementary documents can help you get around a low score, such as writing an addendum.

Some law schools, like ONU, provide summer starter programs to help those with lower LSAT scores. For instance, once you complete ONU’s eight-week summer program, you'll be automatically enrolled in the fall entering class.

Use official LSAT practice tests to study

It is NOT a good idea to try and wing your LSAT test. Nor should you take it the first time as a practice for yourself. Instead, use official LSAT practice exams. These accurately mimic the pressure and time limits that you’ll face during your real exam. You should ideally aim to take and review at least 10 practice tests before each official exam that you take (and likely many more!) Putting yourself under this pressure while exploring sample questions gives you an accurate sense of the test-taking experience.

Furthermore, practice tests give insights into your strengths and weaknesses. Spend extra time improving your weak spots to avoid missing too many questions in certain areas. You can access section-specific study guides and other resources to strengthen the spheres you struggle with. Free or low-cost sources include:

How long should you study for the LSAT?

Everyone comes to the LSAT with a different level of preparedness from their life experiences and education. A philosophy major who studied symbolic logic has simply done more relevant reading and logic activities throughout their college career than a communications major. Similarly, a paralegal who has been out of college for several years may have more reading comprehension experience than someone who just graduated with the same criminology degree.

The important thing is to determine where you are starting and what specific aspects of the LSAT you need to improve on (reading strategy, multiple-choice approach, time management, or logic deductions, as just a few examples) and then create a study plan for yourself to drill those aspects. Your study plan should also include frequent practice tests, at least 1-2 per week, to give you material to review and to help you assess your progress.

Some students get the score they want on the first try, others study for a year or two before they are ready. Generally, you want to take your first practice LSAT and start studying in the Summer or Fall of your junior year of college so that you have about a year, and both your junior and senior summers, to study hard to get your target score before applications open in the Fall of your senior year.

What you should not do is take an official test and then turn right around and take another official test two months later without planning to devote a significant amount of time to practice and taking practice tests. The LSAT is a skills test, not a memorization test, and it takes time and consistency to build your skills. Give yourself that time, dig in, and improve before taking the official test again.

What about the LSAT Writing Section?

You may have heard that law schools do not care about the LSAT Writing section, and you can certainly still find this advice in older areas of the internet. But that is no longer true.

In the world of AI, it is easy to hide deficiencies in a student’s reading and writing skills in a pre-prepared personal statement and addendum. But it is next to impossible to mask writing deficiencies in your LSAT Writing section answer.

As a result, schools are increasingly using the LSAT Writing section to evaluate students’ preparedness for law school. This is especially true for students with lower LSAT and UGPA numbers.

Law schools will look at your LSAT Writing section answer in a vacuum to see if you understood the task, wrote a complete essay, used good grammar and vocabulary, organized your thoughts well, and persuasively communicated your argument. They will also compare it to your personal statement. They expect that your personal statement will be more polished than your LSAT Writing section answer, but if the difference in style and quality is large, they may have questions.

These days, a great LSAT Writing section can only help your application, while a bad one can be outright disqualifying on its own. So, give it some attention!

Your reading comprehension and logical reasoning practice for the LSAT will already help you develop some of the tools you need to succeed in the LSAT Writing section, but dedicated practice using old prompts is essential to master the timing, structure, and polish of a great answer.

So, especially if you are “on the bubble” for a particular stretch school, pay extra attention to the LSAT Writing section! It can be the difference maker and set you apart from your competition with otherwise similar application statistics.

Enlist help preparing for your LSAT

Whenever possible, get outside help in prepping for your LSAT test. Start by checking to see if individual schools offer free resources or counseling. Next, consider enrolling in an LSAT prep course. You'll find on-site and online options that deliver 30 to 100+ hours of instruction. Prep classes may give:

Access to prominent law instructors
Self-paced, live, and interactive courses
Various prep exams, practice sets, and on-demand content
LSAT improvement guarantees
Extra coaching sessions

If you find that you're really struggling with a specific section of the LSAT, consider working with a tutor. A tutor can offer new study and test-taking tips, assess your weaknesses, and provide solutions. However, if you notice you're having issues staying on track with your studies, you may benefit from a coach or mentor. Coaches and mentors support your wellbeing while helping you reach your goals. For instance, a coach will hold you accountable for your objectives and give you specific insight into how to improve!

Find out what LSAT score you need and achieve it

Don't let a school's LSAT score range put you off. Instead, look for ways to achieve that score and get into your most desired schools. If you struggle with test-taking, consider selecting a variety of schools that accept lower results or commit to retaking the test. So, weigh your options, set a goal, then work hard to achieve the outcome you need. Do not get discouraged, some people study for a year or two to get the score they want. It can be hard, but with dedication and intention, it is possible!