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A single LSAT score lasts five years. LSAC reports it to law schools for up to five testing years, so a score you earn now remains usable across five admissions cycles, according to LSAC's LSAT scoring policy. When you apply, schools generally focus on your highest reported score.
By Ali Unar, JD candidate at Georgetown Law and founder of Lovare Institut. Last updated August 2026. Every figure on this page was verified in August 2026 against the sources listed below.
An LSAT score lasts five years. That is the period during which LSAC will report the result to the law schools you apply to through the Credential Assembly Service. The score holds its value the entire time, so a result from an earlier year counts the same as a recent one as long as both sit inside the window. LSAC reports scores for up to five testing years, so a result stays reportable for five years, according to LSAC's LSAT scoring policy.
The five-year lifespan applies to scored results only. A cancelled score is never calculated, though the fact that you registered for that administration may still be listed on your report, and an absence can appear as well. Once a score passes the five-year mark, LSAC removes it from your report, and there is no way to have an expired score reinstated for admissions.
Because an LSAT score lasts five years, you have room to test before applying, which helps if you plan gap years or a delayed start. Watch the expiration date on your strongest score; if it is close to leaving the window, retake the exam so a valid score stays on file. Most law schools consider your highest score, so a strong sitting keeps helping until it expires.
An old LSAT score can be used while it remains within LSAC's five-year reporting window. Scores from the five most recent testing years are reported to law schools, so an older in-window result is still valid. A score older than five years is no longer reported by LSAC and cannot be included on an application.
Most law schools take your highest LSAT score rather than an average of your attempts. The LSAT is not superscored, so schools do not stitch together sections from separate sittings; they use your best single score. Each score inside your five-year window still appears on your report, but the highest one usually drives the admissions decision.
Under current LSAC policy there is no limit on LSAT attempts within a single testing year; you may take the test five times within the current five-year reportable period and seven times over your lifetime, according to LSAC's Limits on Repeating the Test policy. Since every score lasts five years, retakes taken inside that window all appear on the report law schools receive when you apply.
Verified August 2026.
August 21, 2026
August 21, 2026