You’ll get your UCAT score before you apply to Medical School, which means you can be strategic about which UCAT university you apply to. But how is the test scored? And what is a good UCAT score?

How Is The UCAT Scored?

Prior to 2025, the UCAT was scored out of 3600, and marks were spread across four sections: Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, Abstract Reasoning and Decision Making. However, as of 2025 some changes have been made to the UCAT, the most significant of which being the removal of the Abstract Reasoning (AR) subsection. This means the new total score is out of 2700.

Your performance on each of these sections is scaled to a score between 300 and 900 and then added together to get your overall UCAT score.

The Situational Judgement section is scored differently in the UCAT and the UCAT ANZ. In the UK, you’ll be put into one of four bands, depending on your performance. SJT band 1 is the highest, and band 4 is the lowest.

Certain Medical Schools will automatically reject candidates with band 4 in Situational Judgement.

In the UCAT ANZ, the SJT score is between 300 and 900 and follows the scoring of the other subtests.

This is how UCAT scores are broken down:

  • Verbal Reasoning: Score between 300 and 900
  • Quantitative Reasoning: Score between 300 and 900
  • Decision Making: Score between 300 and 900
  • Situational Judgement: Score between Band 1 and Band 4 in the UK, or between 300 and 900 in UCAT ANZ

UCAT Percentiles

Your UCAT percentile tells you how you performed on the test compared to other candidates. The higher your percentile is, the better you performed.

For example, if you’re in the 90th percentile, this means that you scored higher than 90% of test-takers. A top 1% UCAT score would put you in the 99th percentile.

Percentiles are converted into deciles, so the 90th percentile becomes the 9th UCAT decile, the 80th percentile becomes the 8th UCAT decile, and so on.

UCAT Deciles

Every year, UCAT scores are sorted into deciles, with each one representing 10% of candidates. The higher your UCAT score is, the higher your decile will be – so the 9th decile is the highest and the 1st decile is the lowest.

A score in the 9th decile means you are in the top 10% of test-takers. At the other end of the scale, a score in the 1st decile means that you have scored in the bottom 10%.

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When Do I Get My UCAT Test Results?

You’ll get your UCAT test results immediately after you finish the test. Your results will be handed to you as you leave the test centre.

Your UCAT score will also be available online via your Pearson VUE account, but you should allow up to 24 hours for them to be uploaded.

Your results will be shared with the universities you’ve applied to on the application deadline, after which UCAT universities will then be able to see your scores.

The 2025 UCAT test was bookable from 18th June and testing started from 8th July, finishing 26th September. The registration page is here.

What Is A Good UCAT Score?

Historically, a UCAT score above 2800 (ie an average of 700 in each section) is usually considered good. However, this can vary each year depending on other candidates’ performance. As Abstract Reasoning has been removed, we can subtract 700 (the average section score) from 2800, giving us an estimated good score for 2025 onwards of 2100. 

Scoring in the top 20% would be considered a high UCAT score, so the 8th decile (the 80th percentile) or higher. For 2025, the 8th decile was in fact exactly 2100. In 2024, a score of 2780 (2050 without AR) would have been a high UCAT score in the UK – or 2700 in Australia and New Zealand.

Technically, a ‘good’ UCAT score is whatever score gets you above the threshold of your chosen UCAT universities. That’s why understanding how to use your UCAT score when you shortlist Medical Schools is so important (we can guide you on this via application advice).

Find out more: Where To Apply With A High UCAT Score

What Is An Average UCAT Score?

The average UCAT score changes each year – but is generally between 620 and 630 per section. 

In 2025 the average UCAT score was 630, or a total of 1891 in the UK. This was a score in the 5th decile, or the 50th percentile.

This is the same as 2024’s average score of 630 (a total of 2523)

For Australia and New Zealand, the average score in 2024 was 647 or a total of 2588.

Find out more: Where To Apply With An Average UCAT Score

What Is A Low UCAT Score?

A low UCAT score is generally below 610 per section. You can still get into Medicine with a low UCAT score – but you will need to be very strategic about where you apply.

If you have a low UCAT score, you should identify universities which have low UCAT cut-offs and avoid applying to universities that will rank you by UCAT score alone.

In terms of the lowest UCAT score accepted, Sunderland says that your score must be within the top 8 deciles and Keele has stated a cutoff score of 1700.

Find out more: Where To Apply With A Low UCAT Score

What UCAT Score Is Needed For Medicine?

There is no single minimum UCAT score that you need in order to get into Medical School – it depends on how each UCAT university uses scores.

Some will rank applicants by score, which means you need to score as high as possible to stand a chance of being shortlisted. Some need you to beat a low cut-off score to be considered.

Some will assess your application based on things like A-Level grades instead, which means you have a chance of being shortlisted even with a lower UCAT score.

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Final 2025 UCAT Scores

In 2025, there were 41,354 UCAT test-takers. The mean UCAT score was 1891. 

The mean scores for each subtest were:

  • Verbal Reasoning – 602
  • Decision Making – 628
  • Quantitative Reasoning – 661

The final deciles for the 2025 UCAT were:

  • 1st decile – 1580
  • 2nd decile – 1680
  • 3rd decile – 1760
  • 4th decile – 1820
  • 5th decile – 1880
  • 6th decile – 1950
  • 7th decile – 2010
  • 8th decile – 2100
  • 9th decile – 2220

Among the 2025 test-takers, 21% achieved a Band 1 in Situational Judgement. 39% scored in Band 2, 29% in Band 3 and 10% in Band 4.

Find out more via our 2025 UCAT Scores Analysis.

Previous UK UCAT Scores

Based on past UCAT scores, students usually struggle the most with Verbal Reasoning, with the average score at 602 in 2025 and 601 in 2024. In comparison, students tended to be most comfortable with the now removed Abstract Reasoning, getting an average score of 653 in its last year as a subtest. 

Quantitative Reasoning scores had been falling since 2021 to 2024, but have increased in 2025 to 661. This appears to be the subsection students are most comfortable with now. Decision Making scores tend to vary and the average was 628 this year.

The easiest way to compare previous year scores is by reviewing the scores for each decile or percentile – but please remember that these don’t include the Situational Judgement results because that’s scored differently. Additionally, these scores include Abstract reasoning, which future scores will not contain.

UK UCAT deciles for previous years:

Decile Ranking2019202020212022202320242025
1st2170217021502120215021401580
2nd22802290227022502270
22601680
3rd23602370236023402360
23601760
4th24202450243024202440
24401820
5th2480251025002500251025201880
6th25402580257025702580
25901950
7th26102650264026602660
26802010
8th26902730273027502760
27802100
9th26902850285028802890
29202220

Previous average scores for UK:

2019202020212022202320242025
Verbal Reasoning565570572567591
601602
Quantitative Reasoning662664665658649
649661
Abstract Reasoning638653651659652653N/A
Decision Making618625610616623
620628
Total 2483251124992500251625231891
Average620628625625629630630

Scoring is different for Situational Judgement,  but as you can see below, most students scored Band 2 in this section.

UK Situational Judgement scores:

2019202020212022202320242025
Band 410%9%16%14%9%
13%10%
Band 333%24%33%31%26%
38%29%
Band 240%36%36%36%39%
36%39%
Band 117%30%14%20%25%
13%21%

Previous UCAT ANZ Scores

Decile Ranking202020212022202320242025
1st215021502130216021501610
2nd228022802260229022901710
3rd237023602360238423901780
4th244024402450247024801850
5th252025202530255025701930
6th259026002610263026602000
7th268027002710273027702090
8th278028102830284029002190
9th292029202980300030602310

How Is My UCAT Score Used?

When it comes to shortlisting candidates, Medical Schools will use your UCAT score in three different ways:

  • Candidates will be ranked by score, and only the top-scorers will be shortlisted
  • A cut-off score will be defined, and you’ll only be shortlisted if you meet this
  • Scores will be viewed holistically alongside everything else that makes up your application

Discover how each university will use your UCAT score.

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