37+ People With the Highest IQ in the World Ever Recorded

When asked who has the highest IQ in the world, most people will think of Einstein. The famous physicist indebted humanity with his discoveries, but as far as the purported IQ score goes, he’s far from the most intelligent person ever.

To uncover these geniuses, we’ve done our research and examined IQ experts’ opinions, and finally, we’ve condensed the fruits of our labor into a comprehensive list of people with the highest IQ scores, detailing their notable achievements and significance.

So, let’s dive in.

Key Takeaways

• Marilyn vos Savant became the girl with the highest IQ in the world in 1988, with a score of 228.
• It’s speculated that there are people with higher IQs than Marilyn’s, but most never officially took an IQ test.
• Unofficially, William James Sidis had the highest IQ in the world, with a score in the 250–300 range.

Who Has the Highest IQ in the World?

Marilyn vos Savant, an American columnist, holds the title of having the highest recorded IQ in the world. Her score of 228 earned her a place in the Guinness Book of World Records Hall of Fame in 1988.

However, many controversies surround the claim that Marilyn is the smartest person alive. Most notably, Guinness removed the “Highest IQ” category in 1990 since it concluded the data was too unreliable.

In addition, there are numerous rumors about the invalidity of the test Marilyn took, as well as claims that an accurate ranking is impossible to determine when so many highly intelligent people never took an IQ test or revealed its results.

Whatever the case, Marilyn’s score certainly belongs on the list of the highest IQs in the world, along with Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla, and other geniuses whose brilliant minds set them apart from the crowd.

Fun fact: Japan is the country with the highest average IQ in the world (106.49), but surprisingly few Japanese people actually made it to the highest IQ list!

The Top 38 Highest IQs in the World: A 2023 List

Although most of the following 38 individuals never took an IQ test, experts consider them the most intelligent people in the world. Let’s take a closer look, counting down to the person with the highest IQ in history.

#38. Albert Einstein

People with the highest IQ in the world - Albert Einstein

According to expert estimates, Albert Einstein’s IQ was approximately 160. And although that might not be the highest IQ ever, his brilliant mind helped him become one of the best-known physicists of all time.

Einstein’s proudest achievement and most significant contribution to physics was the theory of relativity. However, it was his discovery of the photoelectric effect that actually earned him the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921.

#37. Quentin Tarantino

The famous American director and screenwriter Quentin Tarantino is known for his highly stylized, classic films such as Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. What’s less known about him is that he has one of the highest IQs in the world—reportedly as high as Einstein’s at 160.

#36. Stephen Hawking

Stephen Hawking is the greatest physicist after Einstein, who largely relied on his predecessor’s research on relativity to investigate black holes and discover the so-called Hawking radiation.

However, Hawking’s connection to Einstein doesn’t end there. According to experts, the two brilliant physicists also have the same IQ—around 160.

#35. Ramarni Wilfred

Credit: afrotech.com

Ramarni Wilfred may not have notable achievements like others with the highest IQ in the world, but that’s because he’s only around 20 years old. At 11, this London boy scored 162 on an IQ test administered to him after he impressed his teachers and parents with his well-thought-out essay on justice.

#34. Michael Kearney

Michael Kearney’s IQ is a topic of much controversy; it is often stated to be 325, which would make him the person with the highest IQ in the world. However, it’s far more likely that this score was miscalculated and that his actual IQ is 168.

Regardless of his real IQ, Kearney holds the record as the youngest college graduate ever—he was only 10 when he got his degree. Nowadays, he’s a teaching assistant with dreams of becoming a game show host.

#33. Paul Allen

It may come as a surprise that Paul Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft, was actually more intelligent than his friend and colleague Bill Gates. While Gates’ IQ is estimated at around 157–160, Paul Allen’s is said to have been in the 160–170 range.

Though Allen is the less known of the two Microsoft co-founders, his contributions are by no means small. He also started the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence and was involved in deep-sea exploration projects.

#32. Judit Polgar

Judit Polgar is a retired Hungarian chess grandmaster with an estimated IQ of 170 and is often considered the best female chess player of all time. She held the number one spot on the top women’s chess player rankings from 1989 until 2014 when she retired from professional chess.

However, she’s certainly one of the best players, even when both genders are taken into account. In 2005, she earned a spot among the top 10 players in the world, ranking at number eight.

#31. Jacob Barnett

Young physicist Jacob Barnett was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, but that didn’t stop him from getting a master’s degree at the Waterloo Institute for Theoretical Physics at only 15.

With an IQ of 170, Barnett continues to impress his fellow students and professors at the Perimeter Institute, where he works as a researcher while pursuing his Ph.D.

#30. Cleopatra

Egypt’s famous queen is best known for her unparalleled beauty and many high-profile love affairs. But there was far more to Cleopatra than that—according to expert estimates, she had an impressive IQ of 180.

That’s not surprising considering that she ruled Egypt for three decades, spoke 12 languages, and received an education in mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy. To this day, she’s seen as one of the most dynamic rulers of ancient Egypt.

#29. Galileo Galilei

A statue of Galileo Galilei

Galileo Galilei, an Italian astronomer from the 17th century, had an approximate IQ of 185. Using his skills and intelligence, he improved the telescope enough to observe distant planets, resulting in the discovery of Jupiter’s moons.

Afterward, he began advocating for heliocentrism, which brought the Inquisition to his door. He was accused of spreading heresy and forced to spend the rest of his life under house arrest.

#28. Srinivasa Ramanujan

Srinivasa Ramanujan, an Indian mathematician with an estimated IQ of 185, made significant contributions to the theory of numbers. His knowledge of mathematics was particularly impressive because he was almost entirely self-taught, not having enough money to afford higher education.

#27. Garry Kasparov

Garry Kasparov is a Soviet-born chess grandmaster who became the world champion in 1985 when he was only 22. With 15 years of consecutive world championship victories from 1985 to 2000, he is still considered one of the best chess players ever, despite his retirement in 2005.

However, even Kasparov’s IQ of 190 was no match for an IBM supercomputer, Deep Blue, which defeated him in 1997. The famous game between the chess grandmaster and the computer was actually a rematch—Kasparov had defeated it a year earlier, but the upgraded version proved a worthy opponent.

#26. Magnus Carlsen

Magnus Carlsen, a Norwegian grandmaster with an IQ of 190, is currently the best chess player in the world. Since 2011, he’s been the highest-rated chess player on the FIDE world rankings and the first to simultaneously hold three of the greatest chess titles.

#25. Mislav Predavec

Mislav Predavec, a Croatian math professor, is in a similar league as Magnus Carlsen, with an estimated IQ of 190.

However, unlike Carlsen, Predavec showed quite an interest in the concept of intelligence, establishing his own high-IQ society called GenerIQ. This society only accepts individuals with an IQ score higher than 171.

#24. Richard Rosner

Richard Rosner, an American television writer, is hardly the type of person one would normally associate with an IQ of 192. Although his most notable achievements include writing and producing several quiz shows and Jimmy Kimmel Live!, what’s quite interesting is that he also claims to have been a bouncer, a nude model, and a stripper.

#23. Isaac Newton

Isaac Newton’s IQ of approximately 193 easily ranks among the highest IQs in the world. The famous English mathematician and physicist was a crucial figure in the Scientific Revolution, which took place in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Aside from discovering the law of universal gravity, which he is most known for, Newton also postulated three laws of motion and developed infinitesimal calculus.

#22. Nicolaus Copernicus

The discoveries of Nicolaus Copernicus, a Polish astronomer and polymath with an IQ in the 160–200 range, changed how science viewed our solar system. Before Copernicus, astronomers thought the Earth was the center of the universe; afterward, it was the sun.

Copernicus’ heliocentric theory in the 16th century inspired many physicists and astronomers during the Scientific Revolution. Among them were Galileo Galilei, Kepler, Newton, and Giordano Bruno.

#21. Marie Curie

As the first and only woman to win two Nobel Prizes (for physics and chemistry), Marie Curie was unquestionably a genius. Her estimated IQ score confirms it, too—apparently, it was somewhere in the 180–200 range.

Marie Curie’s research into radioactivity and contributions to chemistry, science, and medicine are invaluable. Thanks to her, X-ray machines can be found in every hospital, and radiation is used for cancer treatment.

#20. Voltaire

Voltaire, one of France’s most influential Enlightenment writers and philosophers, had an estimated IQ between 190 and 200. His best-known works are Letters Philosophiques and the satirical novel Candide, which criticized and ridiculed Christianity, noblemen, and philosophers.

#19. Francis Galton

British scientist and anthropologist Francis Galton, whose IQ is approximately 200, made numerous contributions to criminology, medicine, and meteorology. In fact, his research into fingerprinting for identification, conducted in the 19th century, has proven instrumental in arresting criminals to this day.

#18. Sho Yano

Credits: alchetron.com

With an estimated IQ of 200, Sho Yano attended university when he was 9, graduated at 12, and received a doctorate in molecular biology at 18. He also became the youngest person to receive an MD from the University of Chicago at only 21.

#17. Edith Stern

Edith Stern’s IQ of 203 became apparent when she was still a child. By the time she turned five, she had read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica. With her father’s encouragement to pursue academics, she completed her bachelor’s degree by age 15 and went on to obtain her master’s.

Afterward, Stern became vice president for research and development at IBM. This role clearly suited her, as she was soon named a master inventor with 120 patents to her name.

#16. Gottfried Leibniz

Gottfried Leibniz, a German philosopher and mathematician, is considered one of the last polymaths, with an IQ between 182 and 205. Along with Newton, he contributed to the invention of calculus, but his influence spans numerous disciplines, including philosophy, theology, law, linguistics, and history.

#15. James Maxwell

The Scottish scientist James Maxwell contributed so much to physics that even Einstein recognized him as the greatest physicist since Newton. In many ways, his formulation of electromagnetic theory allowed Einstein to develop his own ideas and ushered in the era of quantum physics.

So, it’s hardly surprising that Maxwell’s IQ is in the 190–205 range—superior even among scientists.

#14. Evangelos Katsioulis

Evangelos Katsioulis, a Greek psychiatrist, public speaker, and life coach, is said to have scored 205 on the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale.

He has degrees in several fields, including medicine and philosophy, and founded the World Intelligence Network—a meta-society that facilitates communication between high-IQ societies.

#13. Emanuel Swedenborg

Emanuel Swedenborg, a Swedish 18th-century theologian, scientist, and mystic, had an estimated IQ between 165 and 210. His deep interest in the spiritual world, which he cultivated through interpreting Scripture, culminated in his famous book Heaven and Hell.

#12. Hypatia

Hypatia, born in Alexandria, Egypt, was the first female mathematician, philosopher, and astronomer that we have a record of. With an IQ of approximately 170–210, she earned quite a reputation in her time, becoming a philosophy teacher.

Unfortunately, her philosophy went against Christianity, which quickly made her an enemy of religious zealots. She was brutally murdered at their hands, but her name remained etched in history.

#11. Nathan Leopold

Nathan Leopold proves that a high IQ doesn’t always correlate with achievements that lead to the betterment of society. On the contrary, Leopold, whose IQ is around 210, used his intelligence to commit the “perfect murder.”

Leopold and his friend Richard Loeb, both college graduates at 18 and 17, kidnapped and killed a 14-year-old boy in 1924. Despite their thorough planning, they were caught and arrested soon after, each earning life imprisonment and an additional 99 years for kidnapping.

#10. William Shakespeare

A book about the plays of William Shakespeare

Considered the greatest poet in the English-speaking world, William Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, 38 plays, two narrative poems, and other works. His contributions to the English language and literature are second to none.

Hence, it is no surprise to find out that Shakespeare’s estimated IQ was 210. The Bard wasn’t just skilled with words—he was also one of the smartest people in history.

#9. Kim Ung-Yong

Thanks to his IQ of 210, Kim Ung-Yong, a South Korean civil engineer, became a best-selling author when he was only three. The book contained his essays in German and English, two of the five languages he could speak fluently.

#8. Leonardo da Vinci

Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci is best known for his timeless paintings—the intriguing Mona Lisa and the magnificent Last Supper. His estimated IQ of 180 to 220 made him the true definition of a Renaissance man, taking an interest in fields such as anatomy, engineering, architecture, optics, and geology.

#7. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Although he’s best known as the author of Faust, the German poet Goethe was also a philosopher, statesman, scientist, and astronomer.

With an IQ between 210 and 225, he was one of the smartest people who ever lived, and his literary works and ways of thinking left a permanent mark on both his native Germany and the world.

#6. Chris Hirata

Japanese-American astrophysicist Chris Hirata has an IQ of 225—among the highest IQs in the world. Even as a child, he exhibited extraordinary intelligence, winning a gold medal at the International Physics Olympics when he was only 13.

Nowadays, Hirata works at Ohio State University, researching the accelerating expansion of the universe and dark energy and designing the next generation of telescopes for NASA.

#5. Terence Tao

Australian mathematician Terence Tao is often considered to have the highest IQ in the world right now. Experts place it at around 230, making him potentially smarter than Marilyn vos Savant.

However, Tao showed little interest in taking an IQ test, focusing instead on his biggest love: math. Often called the Mozart of Mathematics by his colleagues, he is now doing math-related research as a professor at UCLA.

#4. Ainan Cawley

Singaporean prodigy Ainan Cawley is said to have an IQ of 263, although that score was never confirmed by an IQ test. His brilliance is unquestionable, though; he memorized 521 digits of pi and the entire periodic table at nine.

However, Cawley chose not to pursue a career in science. Instead, he directed a film and became a musician in 2013.

#3. Nikola Tesla

Nikola Tesla’s IQ falls somewhere between 160 and 300, making him potentially the most intelligent man to have ever lived. Considering that our world wouldn’t be even close to what it is today without his inventions, that estimate may not be far off.

Tesla’s most significant inventions include the first AC induction motor and transformer that enabled efficient transportation of electricity across long distances and the Tesla Coil—the system that could transmit electricity wirelessly.

#2. Carl Gauss

Carl Gauss is often regarded as the greatest mathematician of all time, and his contributions to various branches of mathematics are invaluable. Thanks to his impressive IQ between 250 and 300, the German genius advanced number theory, geometry, probability, and many other related fields.

Gauss’ immense intelligence is reflected in the fact that he figured out the date of his birth all on his own. His mother, an illiterate woman, never recorded or remembered the exact date, so at 22, Gauss devised a formula to calculate it—it was April 30th.

#1. William James Sidis

With an IQ between 250 and 300, William James Sidis could speak eight languages when he was eight years old, including the one he made up on his own. In 1909, at 11 years old, he enrolled at Harvard as the youngest person ever to be accepted there.

However, as bright as Sidis’ future seemed, his intelligence brought unwanted fame that he considered a burden.

In an effort to escape the “child prodigy” image, he often took on simple jobs like collecting streetcar tickets and did his best to avoid the spotlight. As a result, most of the books he published were written under a pseudonym, and he never lived up to his full potential.

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Final Thoughts

High IQ can play a huge role in success, but it’s hardly a deciding factor. Although most people on this list are impressive, that’s often not only due to their intelligence. After all, Nathan Leopold is supposedly more intelligent than Einstein, yet his only accomplishment is earning himself a life in prison.

Ultimately, it’s not that important whether your IQ score is average or on par with Tesla—what really matters is what you use your intelligence for.