American Presidents Ranked by IQ

Did you know that John Quincy Adams is considered to be the most intelligent US President based on IQ and that John F. Kennedy was considered to be a poor student despite having a high IQ score? If you're familiar with US history or politics, you've likely heard plenty of debates about the best and worst presidents. But what about the smartest? Is it possible to objectively measure the intellectual horsepower of America's past leaders and compare them to each other? Well, that's exactly what we're going to attempt in this video – by ranking US presidents according to their IQ.

▬Contents of this video▬
00:00 - Intro
00:27 - 10. Abraham Lincoln – 150
01:31 - 9. Franklin D. Roosevelt – 150.5
02:47 - 8. Barack Obama – 155
03:40 - 7. John Adams – 155
04:48 - 6. James Madison – 155
05:35 - 5. Jimmy Carter – 156.8
06:28 - 4. Bill Clinton – 159
07:19 - 3. John F. Kennedy – 160
08:01 - 2. Thomas Jefferson – 160
08:38 - 1. John Quincy Adams – 175
09:14 - Outro

Now, before we dive in, it's worth acknowledging that IQ is just one measure of intelligence, and it's not without controversy or limitations. It's also important to note that the historical record isn't always clear on the exact IQ scores of every president – we'll be relying on estimates and anecdotal evidence in some cases.

So, what's the range of presidential IQs? As it turns out, there's a pretty significant gap between the highest and lowest scores. On the high end, we have some of the most renowned intellectuals in American history – men who were accomplished scholars, inventors, and polymaths. On the low end, we have presidents who were widely regarded as mediocre or worse, both in terms of their intellect and their overall performance in office. While we’d love to cover all of the US Presidents in this video, we only have enough time to count down the top 10 US presidents.

American Presidents Ranked by IQ

[mopeandtookiis]

If the first IQ test didn't come out until 1904, and if you can tell someone's IQ without them having to take the test, then what's the point of an IQ test?

[captainamerica]

Shocked that Jefferson was not #1. His accomplishments are incredible.

[heidibee]

When an I.Q. is based on a guesstimate one cannot help doubting its accuracy. Also, it seems to me that an impressive I.Q. does not guarantee an impressive performance. Life is a hands-on challenge.

[dennisfeitz]

I'm surprised Herbert Hoover wasn't on it. Graduating from Stanford and solving how to feed 9 million people in Belgium during WW1

[donnakissinger]

It’s not so much about how high the IQ is as what you do with it and ALOT of common sense.

[radiophodity]

2:38
FDR's paralytic illness was initially diagnosed as polio, but has since been attributed to Guillain–Barré syndrome, a rapid-onset muscle weakness caused by the immune system damaging the peripheral nervous system.

[julenepegher]

High IQ’s are great but what about just good old common sense!

[anthonyaraujo]

Please do "Ranked LOWEST by IQ" episode... pretty please?

[SJR_Media_Group]

*_WOW... you were pretty smart posting this... thank you..._*

[pms]

Where did you get Obama's IQ? It estimated, at best, to be no higher than 130. All of his college and graduate records are sealed...still to this day.

[surferpam]

President Kennedy was not an indifferent student, he was, in fact, dyslexic as was his son.

[armsdude]

In numbers, I am guessing that Trump's I.Q. is half his waist measurement

[kwdement]

where is TR? I fully expected him to top the didn't even make it? You are mistaken.

[robme]

IQ testing did not even begin until 1904. Evaluating intelligence of presidents before then is just opinion. And not every president since then took an IQ test.

[Mark-yypy]

Common sense outshines high IQs every time.

[johnguglielmini]

do a video on the iq of all the presidents not just the top 10

[jackdavis]

Very informational episode and I thought that Lincoln and Jefferson would be ranked higher on this list.

[figmo]

I think I'd find the lowest 10 list more entertaining. I was a bit surprised about JQ Adams being #1, but OTOH, these were *estimated* IQs.

[razzledingle]

Woodrow Wilson and Teddy both had IQs in the 150s, just above FDR.

[madpsych]

All IQ scores are reported in whole numbers and many psychologists may provide confidence intervals. It's very difficult to score as high as 150 and encountered it once in my 20 years of giving IQ tests.