You may have heard that the LSAT has a “curve” — but that word is slightly misleading. The LSAT does not use a traditional curve that adjusts your score based on how others performed on the same test. Instead, it uses a process called test equating: a statistical method that ensures a 160 on one LSAT means exactly the same thing as a 160 on any other LSAT, regardless of how difficult that particular test was.
Understanding how this works removes a lot of anxiety around “easy” vs. “hard” tests — and helps you interpret your score correctly. Use the free LSAT Score Calculator to see what your score means in percentile and school-fit terms.
Raw Score vs. Scaled Score
Every LSAT question is worth one point. Your raw score is simply the number of questions you answered correctly out of all scored questions (typically 73 questions on the current two-LR-section format).
Your scaled score — the 120–180 number reported to law schools — is derived from your raw score through a conversion table specific to that test administration. This conversion is what people mean when they say “the curve.”
Example: On a harder test administration, a raw score of 62/73 might convert to a 168. On an easier test, 62/73 might convert to a 165. The conversion adjusts for the difficulty of that specific test.
Why Equating Exists
LSAC needs scores from different test administrations to be comparable — because law schools receive applications from students who took the LSAT months or years apart. If a June 2024 test were significantly harder than an October 2024 test, applicants taking the October test would have an unfair advantage. Test equating eliminates that advantage by standardizing what each scaled score represents across all administrations.
How Equating Actually Works
LSAC embeds a small set of previously used questions (called the “experimental” or “unscored” section in older formats, or embedded anchor items in current digital testing) into each test administration. These anchor questions have known difficulty levels from previous administrations. By comparing how test-takers perform on the anchor items vs. the new questions, LSAC can statistically calibrate the difficulty of the new questions and adjust the raw-to-scaled conversion accordingly.
The result: harder tests have more “forgiving” conversions (you can miss more questions and still hit a given scaled score), and easier tests are less forgiving.
What Does “-6 Raw” or “-10 Raw” Mean?
You may see references like “this test had a -6 curve” or “-10 curve” in online LSAT communities. This refers to how many questions you could miss and still achieve a specific scaled score (often 170). A “-6 curve to 170” means you could answer 67/73 questions correctly and receive a scaled score of 170 — you could miss 6 questions. A “-10 curve to 170” means you could miss 10 and still score 170, indicating a harder test.
These are post-test estimates from the LSAT community comparing released conversion tables. LSAC does not publish conversion tables in advance.
Does a Harder Test Hurt You?
No — this is the key insight. Because equating adjusts the conversion, a harder test does not hurt your scaled score relative to an easier test. If you took a harder test and missed 10 questions, your scaled score reflects that difficulty. If you had taken an easier test and missed only 6 questions, you would receive the same scaled score.
The net effect: which test administration you take does not systematically advantage or disadvantage you. The equating process is specifically designed to prevent this.
Can You Game the “Curve” by Picking an Easy Test Date?
No. Because equating equalizes difficulty across test dates, there is no strategic benefit to choosing a test date hoping for an “easy” test. A harder test with a forgiving conversion produces the same scaled scores as an easier test with a strict conversion — that is exactly what equating is designed to achieve.
Choose your test date based on your preparation timeline, not on rumors about which test dates tend to be “easier.” See When to Take the LSAT for the right framework.
The Current LSAT Format and Equating
Since August 2024, the LSAT has two scored Logical Reasoning sections and one scored Reading Comprehension section — 73 total scored questions. The equating process works the same way as before: LSAC uses statistical anchor methods to ensure score comparability across administrations. The removal of Logic Games (Analytical Reasoning) in August 2024 did require recalibration of the equating tables, but the underlying methodology is unchanged.
Key Takeaways
- The LSAT “curve” is technically test equating — a statistical process, not a curve based on your peers’ performance
- Harder tests produce more forgiving raw-to-scaled conversions; easier tests produce stricter ones
- Your scaled score represents the same level of performance regardless of which test date you took
- There is no strategic reason to pick a test date hoping for an “easy curve”
- Your goal is the same on any test date: answer as many questions correctly as possible
Next Steps
- Use the LSAT Score Calculator to see what your scaled score means for admissions
- Read the LSAT percentile chart to see how your score compares nationally
- Check the new LSAT format guide for what changed in 2024
- Plan your test with LSAT test dates 2025–2026