GMAT Percentiles Explained

By Muntasir Jul 16, 2026 8 min read

TL;DR

A GMAT percentile shows the percentage of test takers you scored above. In GMAC's August 2026 table, a 655 Total Score sits at 89.6%, a 605 at 69.4% and a 545 at 41.7%.

Your scaled score never changes, but its percentile moves. GMAC states the values are subject to an annual update in the third quarter, using a rolling five year window of test taker data. Across the last refresh, these three scores each moved by under one percentage point. Your Official Score Report shows percentiles for the Total Score, each section, Content Domain, Question Type and Fundamental Skills.

Total Score	Percentile
655	89.6%
605	69.4%
545	41.7%

A 605 Total Score sat at 70.3 percent in GMAC's July 2025 percentile table. The same 605 sits at 69.4 percent in the August 2026 table. The scaled score did not move. The pool behind the ranking did. Percentile is a position against other test takers, so it shifts each time GMAC refreshes the data.

This guide covers what a percentile ranking measures, how often GMAC refreshes the table, and how Total Score percentiles compare with section percentiles. It also shows where each percentile appears on your Official Score Report and why a fixed score changes position from one table to the next. Every figure below comes from GMAC's published concordance tables and from mba.com. Movement between refreshes stays small, and GMAC states percentiles rarely shift dramatically year over year.

What a GMAT Percentile Means

GMAC defines a percentile ranking as the percentage of test takers you performed better than. A 75th percentile score outperforms 75 percent of the comparison group and trails the remaining 25 percent. The ranking describes your place in a pool of past test takers, not the raw count of questions you answered correctly. Two people holding the same scaled score from different tables hold different rankings.

The table below pairs Total Scores with percentile values from GMAC's August 2026 concordance table. Those values rest on GMAT Focus Edition results from July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2026. Percentile values are rounded to the nearest tenth of a percent.

Total Score	Percentile
805	100.0%
705	97.5%
655	89.6%
645	85.6%
605	69.4%
565	50.4%
545	41.7%
505	27.3%
455	15.7%
405	7.7%
305	1.5%
205	0.2%

GMAC notes some linked scores appear as a range because of differences in score bin sizes and observed frequencies. Rounding and bin sizes explain the small irregularities in the table, not an error in your score. Read your percentile as a position inside a large pool rather than an exact rank.

How Often GMAC Refreshes the Percentile Table

GMAC states the percentile values in the table are subject to be updated annually in the third quarter of the year. The August 2026 table replaced the July 2025 version on this schedule. Between refreshes the ranking tied to your score holds still, even as new test takers add data to the pool. GMAT scores stay valid for five years, so a score you earned early in your application timeline meets a newer table later on.

The Rolling Five Year Window

Each refresh draws on a rolling five year window of test taker data. The July 2025 table used results from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2025. The August 2026 table moved the window to July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2026, dropping the oldest twelve months and adding the newest twelve. The next refresh follows the same pattern under GMAC's stated annual schedule.

Consecutive tables differ by a small amount. The table below tracks four Total Scores across the July 2025 edition and the August 2026 edition. The last column gives the size and the direction of each move.

Total Score	July 2025 table	August 2026 table	Change
655	90.5%	89.6%	0.9 lower
605	70.3%	69.4%	0.9 lower
545	41.9%	41.7%	0.2 lower
505	27.1%	27.3%	0.2 higher

Each of these four scores moved by under one percentage point across a single refresh, and one of them moved upward. mba.com states percentiles rarely shift dramatically year over year. Treat a sub point move as routine table maintenance rather than a signal about your performance. Schools hold access to past and updated percentile information, so an older score keeps its context.

Total Score Percentile vs Section Score Percentiles

Total Score percentile and section percentile answer different questions. Total Score percentile ranks your combined performance against the whole pool. Section percentile ranks your Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning or Data Insights result against the same pool, one section at a time. The two sets never line up, because each section carries its own score distribution.

Section Score Percentiles

GMAC publishes separate percentile tables for Quantitative Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning, both built on the same July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2026 data period as the Total Score table. The columns below run from 90 down to 60 on the section scale. Read across a row to compare the standing attached to identical section scores.

Section Score	Quantitative Reasoning	Verbal Reasoning
90	100.0%	100.0%
89	96.6%	99.0%
88	95.4%	98.4%
87	93.4%	97.4%
86	90.9%	95.7%
85	87.8%	92.6%
84	84.6%	87.3%
83	80.1%	81.1%
82	75.3%	72.9%
81	69.8%	64.3%
80	63.9%	54.4%
79	57.3%	46.0%
78	50.2%	37.7%
77	43.4%	29.9%
76	37.7%	23.0%
75	32.6%	18.2%
74	27.6%	14.0%
73	23.4%	10.5%
72	19.9%	7.8%
71	16.6%	5.8%
70	13.8%	4.3%
69	11.4%	3.4%
68	9.1%	2.8%
67	7.2%	2.2%
66	5.4%	1.8%
65	4.1%	1.5%
64	3.1%	1.3%
63	2.4%	1.1%
62	1.8%	0.9%
61	1.4%	0.8%
60	1.0%	0.7%

Identical section scores carry different weight. An 80 in Quantitative Reasoning sits at 63.9 percent, while an 80 in Verbal Reasoning sits at 54.4 percent. The order flips near the top, where 85 reaches 87.8 percent in Quantitative Reasoning and 92.6 percent in Verbal Reasoning. A balanced pair of section scores rarely produces a balanced pair of percentiles.

GMAC publishes no Data Insights table beside these two. Data Insights percentile rankings are based on the previous three years of GMAT Focus Edition exams taken, a shorter window than the five years behind the Total Score table. Your own Data Insights percentile appears on your Official Score Report. Use the report for the current figure rather than a third party chart.

Score Scales and Measurement Error

Scales and error margins differ by score type. Standard error of measurement describes the expected spread around a single reported score. The table below lists the range, the step size and the standard error for each score on the GMAT Focus Edition.

Score Type	Scale	Increment	Standard error of measurement
Total Score	205 to 805	10 points	30 to 40 points
Quantitative Reasoning	60 to 90	1 point	3 points
Verbal Reasoning	60 to 90	1 point	3 points
Data Insights	60 to 90	1 point	3 points

Each section carries equal weight in the Total Score, so no section outweighs another in the combined result. The standard error figures above apply to one reported score, not to the gap between two sittings. A small difference between two Total Scores sits inside the range of measurement uncertainty, so read a minor move as noise rather than proof of progress. For the full breakdown of how section scores combine, read our GMAT scoring guide.

Reading the Percentile Line on Your Official Score Report

Your Official Score Report opens with a Performance by Section chart listing your Total Score, your three section scores and the percentile ranking for each. Subsection charts break the ranking down further, by Content Domain, by Question Type and by Fundamental Skills. Each of these charts rests on the most recent five years of data. The detail shows where inside a section your standing rises or falls.

One more chart compares you with a narrower group. Performance by Program and School sets your Total Score percentile against test takers who sent scores to the same program within the past five years. The chart appears only after you send your Official Score to at least one program. Admissions readers then see your position inside their own applicant pool, not only the global one.

Your unofficial Quantitative Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, Data Insights and Total scores appear on screen immediately after you complete the exam, and GMAC forbids recording, saving, screenshotting or printing them. Percentile rankings arrive later, with the Official Score Report. The report reaches your mba.com account within 3 to 5 days of the exam and occasionally takes up to 20 days. GMAC emails you once it is ready.

Schools receive a shorter version. The school score report carries your Total Score, your section scores and the percentile for each, along with your registration details and the date and delivery format of the exam. The detailed insight charts stay inside your own account. Set your target around the percentile line schools see, not only the raw score.

Why the Same Score Shifts Percentile Year to Year

Your GMAT scaled score never changes, while your percentile ranking moves over time. The 205 to 805 scale in 10 point steps stays fixed. Only the comparison group changes. Two forces drive the movement, and a third explains why separate lines on your report move on separate clocks.

The rolling five year data window drops the oldest twelve months and adds the newest twelve at each refresh, so the pool behind your ranking turns over one year at a time.
GMAC treats the percentile values as subject to an annual update in the third quarter of the year, so the ranking you quote depends on the publication date printed on the table.
Different lines use different windows: the Total Score, Quantitative Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning tables use five years of data, while Data Insights percentile rankings use the previous three years.

Track your standing with our GMAT score calculator, and see which range counts as strong in our guide to a good GMAT score. To move your percentile, work on the section holding you back, then repeat full length practice under real timing. Our GMAT practice tests and section drills are free, with no signup required.