Is the SAT an IQ Test?

Is the SAT an IQ test? Not officially—but it correlates 0.7–0.8 with real IQ tests and measures similar reasoning skills. SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, and LSAT all work like narrow IQ tests. Discover exactly how close they really are.

Dr. Russell T. WarneChief Scientist

The SAT has its roots in early twentieth-century intelligence testing. Its creator, Princeton psychologist Carl Brigham, worked on the Army Alpha and Beta intelligence tests used during World War I, and later used his experiences with those tests when he created the SAT. These early instruments aimed to measure general reasoning ability, and Brigham’s SAT was modeled on them. For several decades, the SAT resembled an intelligence test more closely than it does today, because it emphasized abstract reasoning and problem-solving ability.

Over time, the purpose of the SAT changed. The College Board shifted its focus away from aptitude and toward academic readiness. The modern SAT evaluates skills learned through schooling—reading comprehension, mathematical reasoning, and written expression. These are developed abilities that are closely related to instruction and curriculum in high school and college. Despite the many changes to the SAT’s content, it has always been used as a tool to predict academic success in a college setting.

What Intelligence Tests Measure

Modern intelligence tests are created from a different perspective. Instead of focusing on predicting outcomes in college, intelligence tests are created to measure broad cognitive abilities in a way that aligns with theory. Tests designed to measure intelligence, such as the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale or the Stanford-Binet, include tasks that are often unrelated to the things people learn in school. Additionally, the value of intelligence tests is more than just in their ability to predict one type of outcome. IQ predicts a wide variety of life outcomes in education, work, health, and other areas of life.

Research has consistently shown that SAT scores correlate strongly with IQ scores. Studies have found correlations between .7 and .8, depending on the population. This overlap means that both tests capture many of the same underlying cognitive processes. Their differences are in more of the tasks that each test uses and their reasons their scores are used. Fundamentally, there is enough overlap in underlying abilities that the SAT functions as an IQ test.

The most important difference between the SAT and IQ tests is that the SAT measures a narrower range of the facets of intelligence than IQ tests do. The SAT only has two sections: math and verbal. The best IQ tests have a much broader range of tasks and produce more subscales. The RIOT, for example, produces subscores for verbal reasoning, fluid reasoning, spatial ability, working memory, processing speed, and reaction time. This means that the RIOT (and most other IQ test batteries) produces a more complete understanding of a person’s cognitive abilities.

Because of its overlap with intelligence, the both tests can predict many of the same outcomes, even though the SAT was often not designed to do this. Ultimately, the SAT and IQ tests share historical roots and overlapping constructs, but they diverge in purpose, interpretation, and the breadth of abilities they measure. For those seeking an accurate assessment of cognitive functioning, professionally developed instruments like the RIOT remain the standard for valid and reliable measurement.

Watch “Human Intelligence vs. AI: What Really Defines ‘Smart’?” on the Riot IQ YouTube channel for a deeper look at how different tests measure intelligence.