Where 123 sits on the bell curve
This score is 23 points above the average of 100, or 1.53 standard deviations. The shaded part of the curve, everyone who scores lower, covers about 93.7% of people.
What an IQ of 123 means
123 sits in the lower half of the Superior range (120 to 129). It is 1.53 standard deviations above the mean of 100, so about 94 in 100 people score lower.
The Superior range runs from 120 to 129. Range names come from the Wechsler scales; they are labels for parts of the curve, not hard lines, so 122 and 124 reflect almost the same performance.
Whether 123 counts as a good IQ score depends on the comparison: against everyone, or against the people you study or work with.
How rare is an IQ of 123?
If scores follow the standard bell curve, this is how many people you would expect to reach this score or higher:
- In a class of 30: about 1.9
- In an office of 250: about 16
- In a town of 10,000: about 626
- In a city of 1 million: about 62,597
123 compared with nearby scores
| IQ | Percentile | Range | How rare |
|---|---|---|---|
| 113 | 81st | High Average | 1 in 5.2 |
| 118 | 88th | High Average | 1 in 8.7 |
| 123 | 94th | Superior | 1 in 16 |
| 128 | 97th | Superior | 1 in 32 |
| 133 | 99th | Very Superior | 1 in 72 |
"How rare" counts people at that score or higher.
123 and the usual reference points
- 23 points above 100, the average by definition.
- 8 points above 115, one standard deviation above average (about the 84th percentile).
- 7 points below 130, two standard deviations above average and the usual Mensa line (top 2%).
- 22 points below 145, three standard deviations above average (about 1 in 741).
How much to trust a single score
No test measures IQ exactly. Clinical tests such as the Wechsler scales report a confidence interval of roughly 5 points either side, so a measured 123 is best read as "probably between 118 and 128". Shorter online tests carry wider ranges, which is why our free test shows a 90% range next to every result.
Scores also move between sittings. Tiredness, stress and practice with the puzzle types can each shift a result by a few points, so the range name tells you more than the exact number.
Frequently asked questions
Is 123 a good IQ score?
Yes. An IQ of 123 is in the Superior range (120 to 129) and higher than about 94% of people. About 1 in 16 people score 123 or higher.
What percentile is an IQ of 123?
An IQ of 123 is at about the 94th percentile. On the standard scale (mean 100, standard deviation 15) it is +1.53 standard deviations from the average.
How rare is an IQ of 123?
About 1 in 16 people score 123 or higher, which is 6.3% of the population.
How close is 123 to Mensa level?
It is 7 points below the usual Mensa line of 130, the top 2%. Any single score has a margin of error of several points, and only a supervised test counts for admission.
How accurate is an online IQ score of 123?
Treat it as a range, not an exact number. Clinical tests report a confidence interval of roughly 5 points either side, and short online tests have wider ranges, so read any single result as a band rather than an exact point.
Nearby IQ scores
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