What Was Albert Einstein's IQ?
Einstein never took a modern IQ test, so his real IQ is unknown. The number often quoted, around 160, is an estimate.
The short answer
You will often see 160 (sometimes 190 or more) given as Albert Einstein's IQ. These are estimates from people looking back at his achievements. No test result exists, and IQ tests in their modern form were still being developed during his life. A score above about 130 puts someone in roughly the top 2% of people, but IQ does not measure creativity, curiosity or persistence.
What we do know about his mind
- 1905, his "miracle year": papers on special relativity, E = mc², the photoelectric effect (which won the 1921 Nobel Prize) and Brownian motion.
- 1915: general relativity, which describes gravity as curved space-time.
- Thought experiments: he imagined chasing a beam of light and riding in a falling lift.
- Maths: he was strong at it from a young age, despite the myth that he failed.
Equations behind the fame
The most famous result is E = mc²: energy equals mass times the speed of light squared. It explains why the Sun shines, which you can see in our Nuclear Fusion simulator. The Physics Formulaspage lists the equations used across school physics.
Frequently asked questions
What was Albert Einstein's IQ?
Nobody knows. There is no record that Einstein ever took a standardised IQ test. Figures such as 160 or 190 are guesses, not measurements.
Where does the 160 IQ figure come from?
It is a widely repeated estimate for geniuses of his stature. It has no documented test behind it.
Did Einstein fail maths at school?
No. He mastered calculus by about age 15 and excelled at maths and physics. The story that he failed maths is a myth he himself denied.
What made Einstein so influential?
Imagination and persistence rather than a number: the 1905 papers on special relativity, E = mc², the photoelectric effect and Brownian motion, then general relativity in 1915.
