IQ Test for Programmers and Tech Workers

Programmers and tech workers can take this IQ test in about 12 minutes: 25 logic and pattern puzzles, no sign-up to start.

What's your IQ?

Take the IQ test

25 questions · about 12 minutes

What would you score? Try question 1.

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Which option completes the grid? One tap, no sign-up.

The test at a glance

Questions
25 visual puzzles
Question types
5 sets, each easy to hard
Time
12-minute timer
Scoring
Same for every age, not age-adjusted
Cost
No sign-up to start. When you finish, you choose a report to see your result.

Scores are not age-normed, and this is not a clinical or diagnostic test.

Tech is full of puzzle people, and the industry spent years using brainteasers in interviews.

It is worth separating myth from evidence before you take an IQ test as a programmer.

Do you need a high IQ to code?

There is no good evidence for a cut-off. A 2006 paper claimed a simple test could split students into those who can and cannot learn to program, the "camel has two humps" result. One of its authors, Richard Bornat, formally retracted the claim in 2014.

Brainteasers fared no better. In 2013 Google's head of people operations, Laszlo Bock, told the New York Times that brainteaser interview questions were "a complete waste of time" for predicting how people would perform.

How this test works for programmers

Two of the five question types map loosely onto everyday programming thinking. Sequence questions ask you to infer the next step in a process. Rule questions ask you to work out a transformation and apply it. The other three cover patterns, spatial reasoning and analogies.

  • No code, maths or domain knowledge involved.
  • Timed at 12 minutes, so treat it as a focused sprint, not a take-home.
  • A great score does not make a great engineer. Experience, communication and judgement do most of that work.

What scores mean for tech workers

You will see claims online that software engineers average 120 to 130. There is no reliable study behind a specific number. Tech workers probably do score above average as a group, but people across a wide range of scores do excellent work in the field.

IQ Test for Programmers and Tech Workers: FAQ

What is the average IQ of a programmer?

There is no trustworthy figure. Claims of 120 to 130 are repeated widely without a published source.

Do tech companies use IQ tests?

Few use IQ tests by that name. Some use cognitive aptitude tests such as the CCAT in early screening, but most rely on coding exercises and interviews.

Is logical reasoning the same as IQ?

It is one part of it. Full IQ tests also measure verbal ability, memory and processing speed.

Should I put an IQ score on my CV?

No. Employers cannot verify an online result, and a number without context tends to raise eyebrows rather than open doors. Projects and experience say far more.

Are programmers better at rule and sequence puzzles?

Possibly, since those questions reward the stepwise thinking programmers practise, but there is no reliable data comparing programmers with other groups on this test.

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What's your IQ?

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Take the IQ test

25 questions · about 12 minutes

Sources

  1. Dehnadi, S., & Bornat, R. (2006). The camel has two humps (working title). Middlesex University.
  2. Bornat, R. (2014). Camels and humps: a retraction. Middlesex University.
  3. Bryant, A. (2013, June 19). In head-hunting, big data may not be such a big deal. The New York Times.