IQ score guide
Percentile
87%
Rarity
1 in 8
this high or higher
Classification
High average
On the standard scale (mean 100, SD 15), a score of 117 sits 1.1 standard deviation above the mean — the 87th percentile, meaning it matches or beats about 87% of the adult population. Test manuals file it under "high average" (about 16% of people).
What a score like this predicts, statistically: faster learning of novel, abstract material, and easier entry to intellectually selective paths. What it does not predict for any individual: outcomes. Within any profession, once past its entry demands, conscientiousness and accumulated expertise dominate — the tailwind is real, but modest.
Yes — 117 is comfortably above average, higher than about 87% of people. It sits in the range typical of demanding academic and professional environments.
About 1 person in 8 scores 117 or higher — it marks the 87th percentile, 1.1 standard deviation above the mean.
Almost certainly, by a little. Even excellent tests carry ±3–5 points of measurement error, online tests more, and the same person swings several points between good and bad days. Read 117 as "probably between 110 and 124" from a good test — wider from a casual one. Any result quoted without an error range is overclaiming.
Nearby scores: IQ 112 · IQ 116 · IQ 118 · IQ 122 · or see the whole scale.
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