PSAT Score Range: Complete Chart, Percentiles & What Your Score Means
The PSAT score range runs from 320 to 1520, built from two section scores — Reading & Writing and Math — each scored from 160 to 760. Below is a full breakdown of the PSAT score range by percentile for 10th and 11th graders, plus how section scores, National Merit cutoffs, and score bands fit together.
320–1520Total PSAT score range
160–760Each section’s score range
~950–1000Average PSAT total score
1400+Typical National Merit range
PSAT Score Range at a Glance
The chart below visualizes the full 320–1520 PSAT score range broken into six performance bands, based on College Board’s 11th-grade user-group percentiles.
Bands reflect approximate 11th-grade user-group percentiles from College Board’s PSAT/NMSQT research tables.
PSAT Percentile by Score (11th Grade, User Group)
Each bar shows the approximate percentile at that PSAT total score for juniors (11th-grade user group). Source: College Board Research.
Full PSAT Score Range & Percentile Table
This table maps every 10-point mark across the PSAT score range to its nationally representative and user-group percentile, for both 10th and 11th graders. “Nationally representative” estimates how a score compares to all U.S. students in that grade, including those who never take the test. “User group” compares a score only to students who actually sat the PSAT — a tougher, more competitive benchmark.
National Merit range (1400+)Excellent (1200–1399)Above average (1050–1199)Average (900–1049)Below average (750–899)Needs improvement (<750)
PSAT Score
10th Nat'l Rep %ile
10th User %ile
11th Nat'l Rep %ile
11th User %ile
1520Perfect Score
99+
99+
99+
99+
1510
99+
99+
99+
99+
1500
99+
99+
99+
99+
1490
99+
99+
99+
99+
1480
99+
99+
99+
99+
1470
99+
99+
99+
99+
1460
99+
99+
99+
99+
1450
99+
99+
99+
99+
1440
99+
99+
99+
99+
1430Nat'l Merit Range
99
99+
99+
99+
1420
99
99
99
97
1410
99
99
99
97
1400
99
99
99
97
1390
99
99
99
96
1380
99
99
99
96
1370
99
99
99
96
1360
99
99
98
95
1350
98
98
98
95
1340
98
98
98
94
1330
98
98
97
94
1320
98
98
97
93
1310
97
97
97
93
1300Excellent
97
97
96
92
1290
97
97
96
91
1280
96
97
95
91
1270
96
96
95
90
1260
96
96
94
89
1250
95
95
94
88
1240
95
95
93
87
1230
94
94
92
86
1220
94
94
92
85
1210
93
93
91
84
1200Very Good
92
92
90
83
1190
91
92
89
82
1180
91
91
88
81
1170
90
90
87
80
1160
89
89
86
78
1150
88
88
85
77
1140
87
87
84
76
1130
86
87
83
74
1120
84
86
82
73
1110
83
84
81
72
1100Above Average
82
83
79
70
1090
81
82
77
69
1080
79
81
76
67
1070
78
80
74
66
1060
76
79
73
64
1050
75
77
70
62
1040
73
76
68
61
1030
71
74
65
59
1020
69
73
63
57
1010
67
71
61
56
1000Average
65
70
59
54
990
63
68
57
52
980
62
67
55
51
970
60
65
53
49
960
58
63
51
47
950
56
61
48
45
940
54
60
46
44
930
52
58
44
42
920
50
56
42
40
910
48
54
39
38
900Below Average
46
52
37
37
890
44
50
35
35
880
42
48
33
33
870
40
46
31
31
860
38
44
29
30
850
36
42
28
28
840
33
40
26
26
830
31
38
24
25
820
28
35
21
23
810
26
33
20
22
800Well Below Avg
24
31
18
20
790
22
29
15
18
780
19
27
14
17
770
17
25
12
16
760
15
23
10
14
750
13
21
8
13
740
11
19
8
12
730
9
17
7
10
720
8
15
5
9
710
6
14
3
8
700Low Range
5
12
2
7
690
4
11
2
7
680
3
10
1
6
670
2
9
1
5
660
2
8
<1
5
650
1
7
<1
4
640
1
6
<1
4
630
1
6
<1
3
620
1
5
<1
3
610
<1
5
<1
3
600Very Low
<1
4
<1
3
590
<1
4
<1
2
580
<1
4
<1
2
570
<1
3
<1
2
560
<1
3
<1
2
550
<1
3
<1
2
540
<1
3
<1
2
530
<1
3
<1
2
520
<1
2
<1
1
510
<1
2
<1
1
500Minimal
<1
2
<1
1
490
<1
2
<1
1
480
<1
2
<1
1
470
<1
1
<1
1
460
<1
1
<1
1
450
<1
1
<1
1
440
<1
1
<1
1
430
<1
1
<1
1
420
<1
1
<1
1
410
<1
1
<1
1
400Bottom Range
<1
1
<1
1
390
<1
1
<1
1
380
<1
<1
<1
<1
370
<1
<1
<1
<1
360
<1
<1
<1
<1
350
<1
<1
<1
<1
340
<1
<1
<1
<1
330
<1
<1
<1
<1
320Minimum Score
<1
<1
<1
<1
Understanding the PSAT Score Range
The full PSAT score range — 320 to 1520 — isn’t a raw count of correct answers. It’s a scaled score built from two section scores that College Board converts using item-response theory, then adds together. A student can’t calculate a final score just by tallying right answers, since the digital PSAT is adaptive: performance on the first module of each section determines the difficulty of the second module.
Why the PSAT Score Range Tops Out at 1520, Not 1600
The PSAT and SAT sit on the same underlying scale, but the PSAT score range caps at 1520 because the test excludes the small number of hardest question types reserved for the SAT. That’s intentional — the PSAT is a preliminary, lower-stakes checkpoint, so its score range is narrower at the top by design, not because it’s scored differently.
Nationally Representative Percentile
Estimates how a score compares to all U.S. students in that grade — including the many who never sit the PSAT at all. This population skews lower-achieving, so nationally representative percentiles run higher for the same score.
User Group Percentile
Compares a score only to students who actually took the PSAT/NMSQT or PSAT 10 in the past three years. Because test-takers skew more academically prepared, this is the tougher, more realistic benchmark for planning.
Section Scores Within the PSAT Score Range
Every total PSAT score is the sum of two section scores, each falling within its own 160–760 range:
Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW): 160–760, covering reading comprehension, grammar, and rhetorical skills.
Math: 160–760, covering algebra, problem-solving, data analysis, and advanced math.
College Board’s benchmark for “on track” performance rises by grade: 430 EBRW / 480 Math for 10th graders, and 460 EBRW / 510 Math for 11th graders. Meeting both benchmarks signals grade-level college readiness within the broader PSAT score range.
PSAT/NMSQT vs. PSAT 10 vs. PSAT 8/9 Score Ranges
Test
Total Score Range
Section Score Range
Typical Grade
PSAT 8/9
240–1440
120–720
8th & 9th
PSAT 10
320–1520
160–760
10th
PSAT/NMSQT
320–1520
160–760
10th & 11th
SAT
400–1600
200–800
11th & 12th
National Merit Selection Index & the PSAT Score Range
Only 11th-grade PSAT/NMSQT scores count toward National Merit. Instead of using the raw total score, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation calculates a separate Selection Index, which weights the Reading & Writing section double:
Selection Index = (2 × EBRW Score + Math Score) ÷ 10
The Selection Index ranges from 48 to 228. State cutoffs for Semifinalist status vary by year and by state — typically landing somewhere in the low-to-mid 200s — and correspond to PSAT total scores roughly in the 1400–1520 band, the top slice of the PSAT score range.
Roughly the top 1% of PSAT/NMSQT scorers nationally are named Commended Students or Semifinalists each September, based on Selection Index cutoffs set state by state.
What Counts as a “Good” Score Within the PSAT Score Range?
“Good” depends on grade level and goal:
10th grade: A score around 1050–1100+ puts a sophomore comfortably above average and on pace for a strong junior-year result.
11th grade: A score around 1160–1200 sits near the 75th percentile — a solid, above-average result relative to other juniors.
National Merit hopefuls: Scores need to reach roughly the top 1% of the PSAT score range, generally 1400 and above, though exact cutoffs shift by state each year.
Percentile data sourced from College Board Research, “PSAT/NMSQT Nationally Representative and User Percentiles.” Figures reflect the current digital PSAT/NMSQT and PSAT 10 score scale (320–1520). National Merit cutoffs are announced annually by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation and vary by state and graduating class — always confirm current-year figures with NMSC before relying on them for planning.
