Overview of GMAT Score Percentiles
What are GMAT Score Percentiles?
Your GMAT Official Score Report will include a corresponding percentile for your Total Score, as well as for your score on each of the test's three sections—Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and Data Insights. Percentiles compare your performance to how well others did on the exam, and are the most accurate way to understand how you performed in relation to other GMAT test takers. This can be very helpful in understanding the applicants you will be competing with for a spot in the business program of your choice and assessing your odds of admission.
How Percentiles are Calculated
Percentile scores show what percentage of GMAT test takers you performed better than on the exam. For example, a percentile ranking of 80% means you got a better score than 80% of other test takers, while 20% scored higher than you.
Following are examples of GMAT Total Scores and their percentiles using recent data from GMAC. They are for both the current GMAT Focus edition, which became the new test in February 2024, and the previous 10th edition. Focus edition scores are on a scale of 205-805, and the 10th edition results are on a 200-800 scale. The chart shows comparable scores from both that are in the same percentile.
| Percentile | GMAT Total Score Focus Edition | GMAT Total Score 10th Edition |
| 100 | 735-805 | 770-800 |
| 91 | 655 | 700-710 |
| 83 | 635 | 680-690 |
| 72 | 605 | 650 |
| 62 | 585 | 620-640 |
| 52 | 565 | 600-610 |
| 43 | 545 | 570-580 |
| 32 | 515 | 530-550 |
| 20 | 475 | 470-490 |
| 12 | 445 | 440-450 |
| 5 | 385 | 350 |
| 0 | 205-265 | 200-210 |
GMAC has highlighted the scoring scale difference between the GMAT Focus edition and the 10th edition that's illustrated by these percentiles with its statement, "645 is the new 700." It explains that a common goal for students taking the GMAT 10th edition was a 700 score, which is equivalent to striving for a 645 on the Focus edition.
Section Percentiles
Most GMAT percentiles are published by Total Score instead of a section-by-section breakdown of Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and Data Insights. However, some schools will publish percentile data based on specific GMAT sections, especially if they have a particular focus on the skills tested. Section percentiles are helpful because the score itself doesn't tell the whole story. For example, a score of 85 (Focus edition) on the Verbal would place you in the 94th percentile, while an 85 on the Quant would place you in the 88th percentile. The disparity highlights that test takers score higher on the Quants section in general, so an 85 is considered more impressive in Verbal than it would be in Quants.
Comparison By Program & Schools
Your Official Score Report will show your Total Score percentile for each school you choose to send it to compared to the percentiles of all other students who applied to the same school and took the GMAT in the past five years. You can send your score report to up to five schools and programs for free, and to more for an additional cost.
Role in Business School Applications
Determining your score percentile is an important tool when assessing your odds of being admitted to your top-choice school. It also helps put into perspective how competitive a particular program is, as it will aid in understanding how these programs' expectations compare to the average test taker. At highly ranked institutions, average GMAT total scores are generally in the 90th percentile or above. Top U.S. full-time MBA programs, such as Harvard Business School, the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Wharton, and Columbia Business School, typically have average scores near the 95th percentile.
Admissions committees work with percentiles to evaluate and compare applicants. Schools are likely to be relying on percentiles to an even greater degree when making admissions decisions since the introduction of the GMAT Focus edition. It replaced the 10th edition as the only available test in February 2024, and since scores are valid for five years, schools can receive applications with scores from either version of the exam until early 2029. Because the two editions have different scoring scales, GMAC says it's not appropriate or accurate to compare students' scores across the versions. That makes percentiles an even more important measure of how a test taker performed and indicator of their ability.