What’s a Good GRE® Score?

A good GRE® score is one that’s competitive at the programs you’re applying to. It may sound like I’m trying to dodge the question, but it’s genuinely the only useful answer. The same score can be outstanding for one field, and unremarkable for another.

Still, you need somewhere to start. Here’s what the average test taker scores, what different fields tend to look for, and how to turn that into a target for yourself.

If you’re looking for a definitive overview of the GRE®, visit our complete guide on GRE® basics

The Average GRE® Score

Across everyone who took the GRE® between 2022 and 2025, ETS reports these averages:

Source: ETS GRE® General Test Interpretive Data. Percentile approximations from the same document’s Table 1B.

Those averages are a useful anchor, but they’re also where a lot of confusion starts. The verbal and quant scales don’t behave the same way, so scoring “above average” on each means hitting very different numbers.

Why You Can’t Compare Your Verbal and Quant Scores

Here’s something that might surprise you: 160 on Verbal Reasoning is the 82nd percentile, while a 160 on Quantitative Reasoning is the 50th.

So if your score report reads 158V and 158Q, those numbers may look balanced, but aren’t in reality. The verbal score is at the 76th percentile and the quant score at the 45th. Our full percentile chart has the number for every score on both measures, and it’s worth a look before you judge your own results.

What Score Does Your Field Expect?

ETS also publishes average scores by intended field of graduate study, which is a better starting point than the overall average:

Source: ETS, Interpreting Your GRE® Scores 2026-27, Table 2. Based on seniors and non-enrolled college graduates who tested between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2025.

For a more granular version of this table, ETS publishes that data in their Interpretive Data by Graduate Major Field document. Please note, these averages are calculated based on everyone who intends to study in a field, not admitted-student averages at competitive programs, which often run higher.

The biggest takeaway from this chart: the balance shifts by field. Law and social sciences applicants lean verbal, physical sciences and engineering lean quant. That’s why it’s important you’re measuring your performance against the right metrics when it comes to the GRE®.

How to Set Your Own Target

National averages will only take you so far. Here’s the process we recommend:

1. List three to five programs you’re seriously considering.
2. Find their published GRE® data. Many programs post average or median scores for admitted students, sometimes broken out by section. Departmental pages often have more detail than the graduate school’s main admissions page.
3. Note which section they emphasize. A statistics program cares about your quant score in a way it won’t care about verbal, and the reverse is true for a comparative literature program. This will determine where your study hours should go.
4. Adjust for the rest of your application. If your research experience, GPA, or letters are unusually strong, you can sit at or slightly below the median. If something needs offsetting, aim above it.

If a program doesn’t publish score data (and plenty don’t) it’s entirely reasonable to email the admissions office and ask. Don’t be shy about it, asking the question may save you dozens of hours during your prep.

When Chasing a Higher Score No Longer Pays Off

Before you commit to months of additional prep, know that percentile gains get more expensive as you climb.

Going from 150 to 155 on verbal moves you from the 39th percentile to the 64th, which is a substantial jump in how your application reads. Going from 163 to 167 moves you from the 90th to the 97th, which is a genuine improvement, but a much smaller one for what will likely be considerably more work.

It’s worth asking whether your score is actually the weakest part of your application. If it’s already comfortably in your programs’ range, the same hours spent on your statement of purpose or your research experience may do more for your chances. And if you do decide to retake, our guide to GRE® attempts covers how to plan it sensibly.

What About a Perfect Score?

You almost certainly don’t need one. A 170 in verbal is the 99th percentile and a 170 in quant is the 89th, and while both are impressive, no admissions committee requires perfection in both sections. Chasing a flawless score is one of the more common ways applicants lose months they could have spent elsewhere, and the returns at the top of the scale are slim, if there are any to be found at all.