What Is a Good GMAT Verbal Score?

Most GMAT test-takers set a total GMAT score goal early in their GMAT journey—in fact, it’s advisable to do so. The tricky part is figuring out specific goals for GMAT section scores. In particular, setting a GMAT Verbal score goal can be tough. For various reasons, test-takers often aren’t sure how important Verbal scores actually are for business school admissions.

In this article, you’ll get the lowdown on:

• what is considered a good GMAT Verbal score
• what the average GMAT Verbal score is
• how business schools tend to view Verbal Reasoning scores when assessing GMAT performance overall
• what kind of Verbal section score you may need to earn a seat at top MBA programs
• how to determine what your target Verbal section score should be.

Here are all the topics we’ll cover:

• How Is the GMAT Scored?
• GMAT Score Percentiles for Verbal Reasoning
• Do I Need a High GMAT Verbal Score for Business School?
  • The Importance of Balanced Section Scores
• What Is an Average GMAT Verbal Score?
• What Is a Good GMAT Verbal Score?
  • GMAT Verbal Scores: General Perceptions
• How to Determine Your GMAT Verbal Score Goal
  • GMAT Verbal Scores for Top MBA Programs: Case Studies
  • Competitive GMAT Verbal Scores for Top MBA Programs
• Key Takeaways
• What’s Next?

Let’s start by reviewing how the GMAT is scored.

How Is the GMAT Scored?

As you may already know, after you sit for the GMAT, you actually receive 4 different scores:

• a Quantitative Reasoning section score
• a Verbal Reasoning section score
• a Data Insights section score
• a GMAT Total score

So, you receive a score for each test section and an overall score.

Your GMAT Total score is calculated based on your performance in the Quant, Verbal, and Data Insights (DI) sections. Each section carries equal weight in determining your Total score.

However, the Total score does not use the same score range as the section scores. The table below shows the GMAT score ranges.

Note that, although there are slightly more Verbal Reasoning questions on the GMAT than Quant or Data Insights questions (23 vs. 21 and 20, respectively), the GMAT Verbal score range is the same as the Quant and Data Insights score ranges.

Notice also that section scores are given in 1-point increments, whereas the Total score is given in 10-point increments.

KEY FACT:

Your Quant, Verbal, and Data Insights performances are used to calculate your GMAT Total score, with each section weighted equally.

For a detailed breakdown of how the GMAT is scored, check out our guide to the GMAT scoring system.

For now, let’s take a look at the GMAT score percentiles for the Verbal section and what they mean.

GMAT Score Percentiles for Verbal Reasoning

Every GMAT score you receive is associated with a percentile ranking. Percentile rankings show how your scores stack up against the scores of other GMAT test-takers.

For instance, say you score 87 on the Verbal section. As you’ll see in the chart below, V87 is in the 98th percentile of GMAT Verbal scores. So, a V87 means that you scored better in Verbal Reasoning than 98% of all GMAT test-takers.

KEY FACT:

Every GMAT score you receive is associated with a percentile ranking.

Generally, GMAT score percentiles are based on the scores of all GMAT test-takers worldwide in the most recent 3-year period that GMAC (the test-maker) has collected data for. The current GMAT score percentiles are based on data from 596,550 tests administered from July 2019 to June 2024.

So, what do these percentiles indicate? For one, notice that GMAT Verbal scores in the 88-90 range put you in the top 1% of test-takers. Even a score of 87 is pretty uncommon: only 2% of test-takers achieve V87+.

We also see that a Verbal score of 84 lands you in the top 10% of test-takers. Once a Verbal score gets into the low 80s, the percentile rankings drop more precipitously. For example, scores of 81 and 80 land you in the 67th and 57th percentiles, respectively.

The takeaway is that it’s relatively difficult to earn a very high GMAT Verbal score. After all, if earning a Verbal score of 85+ (94th percentile and up) were easy, more test-takers would achieve it!

KEY FACT:

Your GMAT Verbal score percentile compares your Verbal score with those of all GMAT test-takers in a recent 5-year period.

Of course, the question is whether you actually need a high Verbal score for business school admissions. Let’s discuss.

Do I Need a High GMAT Verbal Score for Business School?

It’s no secret that MBA programs tend to be highly quant-driven. So, many GMAT test-takers wonder whether business schools really care about Verbal scores.

Remember, each GMAT section score factors equally into your Total score. So, to

earn a high GMAT score overall, your safest bet is to aim for high scores in every section. Particularly if you’re applying to top MBA programs, performing at a high level on the Verbal section will be important.

To earn a high GMAT score overall, your safest bet is to aim for high scores in every section.

Moreover, business schools typically prefer to see “balanced” GMAT section scores as opposed to wildly divergent ones. Let’s discuss.

The Importance of Balanced Section Scores

Undoubtedly, MBA programs generally have a higher standard for Quant performance than for Verbal performance. And generally, MBA programs respond better to a great Quant score alongside an average Verbal score than to the reverse. (The jury is still out on how Data Insights scores factor into that equation.)

Nevertheless, you’ll need to demonstrate management-level reading comprehension and critical reasoning skills, which are what the Verbal section tests. For analyzing case studies and for graduate coursework in general, the ability to read, process, and analyze written information quickly is crucial.

So, if you perform well in Quant and DI but tank Verbal, admissions committees may wonder whether you have all the necessary skills for tackling graduate-level courses.

Thus, you want to aim for relatively balanced section scores. Now, keep in mind that “balanced” section scores don’t necessarily mean numerical scores that exactly match. After all, the same numerical score means something different in each section—this is where score percentiles come in handy. For example, a DI score of 84 puts you in the top 3% of all test-takers for that section. In Quant, that same score puts you in the top 15%. So, it’s much harder to earn that 84 in Quant than in DI.

As for Verbal, the good news is that even top MBA programs don’t expect all applicants to be in the top 1 or 2%. Of course, if your Verbal score dips too low, then your Total score will probably miss the mark.

TTP PRO TIP:

Business schools prefer to see relatively balanced section scores on the GMAT.

With all of that in mind, let’s take a look at how business schools generally view different Verbal score ranges.

What Is an Average GMAT Verbal Score? 

Based on the 2019-2024 scoring data we examined earlier, GMAC calculated the mean (average) GMAT Verbal Score as 79.28. So, a Verbal score of 79 (48th percentile) indicates that you scored better than roughly half of all GMAT test-takers did. On the other hand, it also indicates that you scored worse than roughly half of all test-takers. In other words, you’d be smack in the middle of the pack.

Now, smack in the middle of the pack for test-takers worldwide is not necessarily the same as “middle of the pack” for your target schools. A GMAT Verbal score considered average or good at one school may be below average (or excellent) at another.

KEY FACT:

The average GMAT Verbal score among test-takers worldwide is approximately 79.

Of course, given the average score of recent GMAT test-takers, we do have some idea how Verbal scores are perceived. Those score ranges can be useful in determining what Verbal score to shoot for when starting your GMAT preparation. So, let’s look at how various GMAT Verbal score ranges are generally regarded in the business school admissions landscape.

What Is a Good GMAT Verbal Score?

What is considered a “good” Verbal score is different for every MBA applicant, because applicants have different backgrounds and profiles. If you’re a liberal arts major with little quantitative experience, schools may scrutinize your Quant score particularly closely. If you’re an accounting major who works in finance, schools might give your Verbal score a second look. Schools want to assess whether you have the full range of necessary skills to succeed in an MBA program.

So, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of what a good GMAT Verbal score is. Simply, a good Verbal score is one that gets you to the Total score needed for your targeted MBA programs. Furthermore, if your targeted schools publish the median or average GMAT Verbal scores of their incoming classes, then you’ll have a better sense of what is considered “good” at those schools.

TTP PRO TIP:

In general, a good GMAT Verbal score is one that gets you the Total score you need for the MBA programs you’re targeting and meets the incoming class average.

All that said, there are general standards that business schools have as to how they view GMAT Verbal scores ranges:

GMAT Verbal Scores: General Perceptions

Generally speaking, a score in the low 80s is a competitive Verbal score for a wide range of MBA programs. A score of 82, for example, places you in the 76th percentile, meaning that you scored in roughly the top 25% in Verbal. A score of 83 places you in the 84th percentile, meaning that you scored in roughly the top 15%. 

If, on the other hand, you earn a Verbal score of around 80, you’ll still be within the averages at many MBA programs (i.e., your score will be “good”). However, your score may be a bit lackluster for higher-ranked programs.

TTP PRO TIP:

Generally speaking, a Verbal score in the low 80s will be competitive for a wide range of MBA programs.

Of course, an impressive Quant score or other aspects of your profile may compensate for an underwhelming GMAT Verbal score. Let’s dig into that next.

How to Determine Your GMAT Verbal Score Goal

We know that MBA programs place greater emphasis on Quant scores than on Verbal scores. Add to that the following two facts, which we know from comparing Quant score percentiles to Verbal percentiles:

• It’s harder for most GMAT test-takers to score high on Verbal than to score high on Quant.
• Lower numerical scores in Verbal yield higher percentile rankings than they would in Quant.

What does this mean? Even at top MBA programs, your numerical Verbal score doesn’t need to be as high as your numerical Quant score for you to be a competitive applicant. That said, for admission to the top MBA programs, you will probably need pretty impressive scores in all GMAT sections.

Let’s look at the Harvard Business School class of 2025 as an example.

GMAT Verbal Scores for Top MBA Programs: Case Studies

The Harvard Business School (HBS) Class of 2025 test scores are legacy GMAT scores (prior to November 7, 2023), but we’ve provided the current GMAT score equivalents:

• Median GMAT Total score: 740, which equates to a 685-695 (96th-98th percentile) on the current version of the GMAT. 
• Median Verbal score: 42, which equates to a current GMAT score of 87-88 (98th-99th percentile). 
• Median Quant score: 48, which equates to a current GMAT score of 80-82 (64th-76th percentile)

Now, say you’re the “average” HBS applicant. Your GPA and work experience align with incoming class averages, and you’re not in an underrepresented or overrepresented group. In that case, you want to at least hit the median scores to put yourself in the “safe zone.” Your GMAT scores will look solid and won’t raise any red flags. Well, earning a V87 or V88 is no easy feat! 

Now let’s say you’re in a heavily represented group, such as Finance or consulting, and you basically align with the average GPA and work experience. Or, perhaps you’re coming from a less-represented industry, but your GPA is a little on the low side, or your work experience is a little light compared to the averages. In that case, you may want to beat the median scores to compensate for a lacking aspect of your profile or to stand out among a sea of similar applicants. In addition to having a great Quant score, an outstanding Verbal score is one way to make your application stand out because very high Verbal scores are rare.

On the other hand, perhaps you’re from an underrepresented group, and your GPA, work experience, and recommendations are stellar. In that case, you could still be an attractive candidate with a Verbal score below the median. This is particularly true if your Quant score is still fairly high.

Competitive GMAT Verbal Scores for Top MBA Programs

As we just saw, setting your Verbal score goal (or any score goal) requires balancing several factors unique to you. Researching the incoming class profiles of your targeted programs is an essential first step. However, you must also consider what the strengths and weaknesses of your application are.

TTP PRO TIP:

To set your Verbal score goal, research the incoming class profiles of your targeted programs and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your application.

That said, to be competitive at top business schools, a safe target Verbal score is somewhere in the top 10% of GMAT test-takers, so 84+. Does a Verbal score in the low 80s or high 70s disqualify you from admission to top schools? No, certainly not. Going back to our HBS example, the incoming class profile shows that the Verbal score range of admitted students includes scores in the high 70s and low 80s. Maybe some of those students had fantastic Quant scores. Maybe they had unique and impressive backgrounds.

So, do some detective work and some clear-eyed self-evaluation. Keep in mind that an unimpressive Quant score is more likely to give admissions a reason to reject you than an unimpressive Verbal score is.

Remember also that an outstanding Verbal score can “put the icing on the cake” of a great Quant score and boost your Total score. If you’re applying to top programs, there are many other applicants who have strong math backgrounds and high Quant scores. That impressive Verbal score may help you stand out!

TTP PRO TIP:

All else equal, for admission to top MBA programs, a safe Verbal score to aim for 84+, which puts you in the top 10% of GMAT test-takers.

Key Takeaways

Remember the following when setting your GMAT Verbal score goal:

• The average GMAT Verbal score among test-takers worldwide is approximately 79.
• To earn a high GMAT score overall, your safest bet is to aim for high scores in every section.
• Business schools prefer to see relatively balanced section scores on the GMAT.
• In general, a good GMAT Verbal score is one that gets you the Total score you need for the MBA programs you’re targeting and meets the incoming class average.
• In general, a Verbal score as low as the low 80s will be competitive for a wide range of MBA programs.
• To set your Verbal score goal, research the incoming class profiles of your targeted programs and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your application.
• All else equal, for admission to top MBA programs, a safe Verbal score to aim for 84+, which puts you in the top 10% of GMAT test-takers.

What’s Next?

Now that you know what a good Verbal section score is, learn what a good GMAT Total score is.

If you’re ready to start your GMAT Verbal prep or need to increase your Verbal score, these articles can help:

GMAT Critical Reasoning: 8 Essential Tips

GMAT Reading Comprehension Tips: Top 8 DOs and DON’Ts

If you’re wondering how to improve a GMAT Verbal score or need a more effective GMAT Verbal score improvement strategy, check out our top 10 Verbal tips and tricks.

GMAT Verbal score not improving despite ample practice? Check out our top 3 GMAT Verbal practice tips.

And for GMAT study tips for the Quant section, you’ll want to check out our top 10 Quant preparation tips.

Happy studying!

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