What is Ben Stein’s IQ?
A Columbia economics degree and a Yale law degree, an “elected valedictorian” claim and no IQ test on record.
Ben Stein has no published IQ score; our Ben Stein IQ estimate is 125–140 on the usual scale (mean 100, SD 15), as of November 2026. It rests on a Columbia degree in economics, a Yale law degree and a career as a lawyer and law professor, not on a test. No sourced figure circulates for him.
Ben Stein’s estimated IQ
- A Bachelor of Arts in economics from Columbia University in 1966, listed “with honors” in Contemporary Authors (Encyclopedia.com); Wikipedia gives the degree without that note.
- A law degree from Yale Law School in 1970, which Wikipedia says made him “elected valedictorian of his class”; no class rank is published.
- Early work as a poverty lawyer in New Haven and Washington and as a trial lawyer for the Federal Trade Commission (Wikipedia).
- Teaching posts at American University, the University of California, Santa Cruz and Pepperdine University’s law school, where he was a professor of law and economics from about 1990 to 1997 (Wikipedia).
This is an inference from degrees and a legal and teaching career, not from a test. “Elected” valedictorian suggests a class vote, not a ranking, and the claim rests on one source, so it carries little weight here. Ben Stein has published no school or adult test result, so the range is moderate and low in confidence.
- Born
- November 25, 1944, Washington, D.C.
- High school
- Montgomery Blair High School, Silver Spring, Maryland (1962)
- University
- Columbia University, Bachelor of Arts in economics (1966)
- Law degree
- Yale Law School (1970); Wikipedia says his class elected him valedictorian
- Early legal work
- Poverty lawyer in New Haven and Washington; Federal Trade Commission trial lawyer
- Teaching
- American University, UC Santa Cruz, Pepperdine law professor from about 1990 to 1997
- Circulating figure
- None found; no IQ score, Mensa listing or school test score is published
What an IQ of 125–140 actually means
Set the claim aside for a moment. If someone genuinely scored in this range, here is what that would represent.
| Score range | Classification | Share of people | What it indicates |
|---|---|---|---|
| 85 – 114 | Average | ~68% | The range most people fall into. |
| 115 – 129 | Above average | ~13.6% | Roughly one person in seven. |
| 130 – 144 | Gifted | ~2% | The threshold most high-IQ societies use. |
| Above 144 | Highly gifted | ~0.1% | Figures above this range are extrapolated from the curve rather than measured. |
Percentages are approximate and describe a normal distribution. The same number means different things on tests with different standard deviations.
Thirty questions gives you a measured position on this exact scale — your score, your percentile and the ability breakdown behind it.
Find out in 30 minutes →Who Ben Stein is
Who is Ben Stein? Benjamin Jeremy Stein was born on November 25, 1944, in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. He is an American writer, lawyer, economist and actor, and he graduated from Montgomery Blair High School in 1962 (Wikipedia).
What does Ben Stein’s education show? He took a Bachelor of Arts in economics at Columbia University in 1966, studying under the economist C. Lowell Harriss, and a law degree at Yale Law School in 1970 (Wikipedia; Contemporary Authors). Wikipedia adds that his Yale class elected him valedictorian. Degrees are evidence of ability, not a score.
Is Ben Stein smart? “Smart” is a label, not a score. His documented record is academic and legal: two degrees at Columbia and Yale, work as a poverty lawyer and a Federal Trade Commission trial lawyer, and law and economics teaching that included a Pepperdine professorship from about 1990 to 1997 (Wikipedia). See other actors we have checked, average IQ by education level, or compare your own result on the same scale with the IQ Metrics test.
By Elora Mercer, Celebrity Research WriterFigures checked by Leon Falkner, Data & Research AnalystReviewed by Aarav Vardhan, Editor-in-Chief · Last reviewed November 2026
Ben Stein: the documented record
The estimate above rests on this record. Every entry here is a matter of public fact, which is more than can be said for the number itself.
- 1944Born November 25 in Washington, D.C.
- 1962Graduates from Montgomery Blair High School.
- 1966Graduates from Columbia University with a Bachelor of Arts in economics.
- 1970Graduates from Yale Law School; Wikipedia says his class elected him valedictorian.
- After 1970Works as a poverty lawyer in New Haven and Washington, then as a Federal Trade Commission trial lawyer.
- About 1990Becomes a professor of law and economics at Pepperdine University’s law school.
- About 1997Ends his Pepperdine professorship.
Why no figure circulates
Following a claim back to its first appearance is the part almost nobody does — and it is what most people are actually asking.
Ben Stein IQ searches lead to no number. Neither Wikipedia’s biography nor the Contemporary Authors entry reprinted on Encyclopedia.com states an IQ score, a Mensa membership or a school test result, and a web search for a stated score found none with a test and a date. If you meet a figure, ask which test, which year and which source; for how such labels turn into numbers, see where celebrity IQ numbers come from.
What is Ben Stein’s estimated IQ if he has never published a score? A range inferred from documented achievement, 125–140 here. That sits level with Hugh Laurie (120–140) and below Stephen Fry (130–145) and Mayim Bialik (140–155), who holds a doctorate. On the usual scale a 125 is about the 95th percentile and a 140 about the 99.6th; our IQ percentile calculator shows the steps in between.
Did Ben Stein really graduate first in his Yale Law class? Wikipedia says only that he was “elected valedictorian of his class.” “Elected” points to a class vote, not to the highest grades, and neither the Contemporary Authors entry nor the Bloomberg Law interview introduction we read mentions it. We found no published class rank. Law-school results sit in a population with a high average, as the average IQ of lawyers and what a good LSAT score means show.
How we read a number →Birth date and place, Montgomery Blair High School (1962), the Columbia degree in economics (1966), the Yale Law degree (1970) with the “elected valedictorian” statement, his early legal work and his teaching posts. The article gives no IQ.
Lists Columbia University, B.A. (with honors), economics, 1966, and Yale University, LL.B. (law), 1970. It does not mention a valedictorian honor or an IQ.
Introduces him as a graduate of Columbia University and Yale Law School. It does not mention a valedictorian honor or an IQ.
Confirms the identifier Q816605 is the American actor, writer, commentator and lawyer, not a namesake.
Photograph by Murray State, February 4, 2011, licensed CC BY 2.0.
Ranges used for comparison: Laurie 120–140, Fry 130–145, Bialik 140–155 (completed doctorate).
Wikipedia, Contemporary Authors and a web search for a stated score found no IQ test result, Mensa listing or school test score for Ben Stein.
The sources behind our estimate
The figures that circulate for Ben Stein, what we were able to confirm, and where the two diverge.
People search for “Ben Stein IQ” and “Ben Stein IQ score,” but we found no page that gives a number for him with a test, a date and a source.
Wikipedia’s biography and the Contemporary Authors entry give degrees, posts and honors, and no IQ, Mensa listing or school test score. The documented items are his two degrees and his legal and teaching career.
With no circulating figure to audit, the range is the only IQ number on the page. It sits level with Hugh Laurie (120–140) and below Stephen Fry (130–145) and Mayim Bialik (140–155), whose ranges rest on more specific records. The placement is a judgment, not a measurement.
Want a number that does hold up? Every figure on this page is somebody’s claim. Take the 30-question test and get a percentile you can check rather than a figure you have to trust.
Ben Stein — frequently asked
What is Ben Stein’s IQ?
Ben Stein has no published IQ score. Our estimate is 125–140 on the usual scale (mean 100, SD 15), inferred from his Columbia and Yale degrees and his legal and teaching career, not from a test.
Did Ben Stein really graduate first in his Yale Law class?
Not as far as any source shows. Wikipedia says his class “elected” him valedictorian, which points to a vote. No class rank is published, and the other biographies we read do not mention the honor.
Is Ben Stein smart?
“Smart” has no fixed meaning. He holds a Columbia degree and a Yale law degree and worked as a lawyer and law professor. Those are documented marks of ability, but they are not a test score.
Where did Ben Stein go to college and law school?
He studied economics at Columbia University (Bachelor of Arts, 1966) and law at Yale Law School (1970), after graduating from Montgomery Blair High School in 1962.
How does Ben Stein compare with Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry and Mayim Bialik?
Our ranges are Stein 125–140, Laurie 120–140, Fry 130–145 and Bialik 140–155. None of the four has a published IQ test, so the gaps are judgments from their records.
Has Ben Stein taken an IQ test?
He may have, but no result is public. We found no school score, Mensa listing or test report for him, so this page says so instead of guessing a number.
What would an IQ of 125 to 140 mean?
On the usual scale a 125 is about the 95th percentile and a 140 about the 99.6th. Treat it as an IQ Metrics estimate from his record, not as a result from an IQ test.
How does my IQ compare with Ben Stein?
You can find out in about fifteen minutes. The IQ Metrics assessment is 30 questions, scored on the same 100-mean scale used throughout this page, so your result and the estimate above are at least expressed in the same units — one measured, one inferred. Once you have a number, the leaderboard shows where it would sit, and how we score and norm it explains the benchmarking.
Where does this estimate come from?
From the documented record rather than a test — the method is named above and set out in full under how we read a number. Compare it against the other actors profiles, starting with Natalie Portman.
- Take the 30-question IQ test — get a measured score and percentile of your own
- Average IQ by country — how the scale behaves across populations
- How IQ Metrics scores its assessment — the method behind our own number
- More on how IQ testing works — reliability, error and what a score can and cannot say
- More actors profiles — same field, same method
More actors
Photograph of Hugh Laurie by Jeroen Komen (Montreux Jazz Festival, July 9, 2012), CC BY-SA 2.0. Cropped and with background removed for the portrait above. · Photograph by Elena Ternovaja (Berlinale, February 17, 2024), CC BY-SA 3.0. Background removed for the portrait above. · Photograph by iDominick, CC BY-SA 2.0. Background removed for the portrait above.
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