GRE® vs LSAT®: Which Test Should You Take for Law School?
If you're applying to law school, you've probably heard that the GRE® is an option now. Maybe an admissions page at one of your target schools lists the GRE® beside the LSAT®, and you've started wondering whether the test you had planned to spend months on is still necessary.
That's a fair reading. The University of Arizona law school began accepting the GRE® in 2016, Harvard Law School followed in 2017, and according to ETS, more than 130 ABA-approved law schools accept the GRE® today, including every school in the top 14. For a long time the LSAT® was the default test for a JD, and at most schools it still is.
But acceptance runs school by school, and the two tests differ in ways that reach past the admissions table: where you can take them, what schools see when scores arrive, what else each score applies to, and how much room you get to retake. Those differences should guide the choice at least as much as any difficulty comparison, so that's where we'll spend this post.
Where the GRE® stands for law school in 2026
ETS publishes the two counts that matter for this decision on its own law school pages: more than 130 ABA-approved law schools accept the GRE®, and 197 use the LSAT®. ETS also notes that the American Bar Association recognized the GRE® as a valid admissions test in 2021, which removed the policy barrier that had kept schools from accepting it.
What those counts don't tell you is which side your schools fall on. More than 130 is a majority of the accredited field, but the gap between 130-plus and 197 exists, and schools land on both sides of it. Requirements also vary by program within a school: ETS's own guidance is to review each program's requirements, because a JD program can accept the GRE® while a joint degree it offers still expects the LSAT®, etc.
One disclosure before the comparisons: we coach the GRE® and the GMAT®, and the LSAT® isn't a test we teach. The structural facts in this post come from ETS and LSAC's own pages, and where a claim belongs to one of them, we attribute it. For anything LSAT®-specific, LSAC's site and each school's admissions page are the sources to verify against.
What each test asks of you
The GRE® runs about 1 hour and 58 minutes. You write one 30-minute Analyze an Issue essay, always first, then work two Verbal sections (12 questions in 18 minutes, then 15 in 23) and two Quantitative sections (12 in 21, then 15 in 26), in either order after the essay. Scores run 130 to 170 for Verbal and Quant separately, the essay is scored 0 to 6, you can skip questions, return to them, and change answers within a section, and an on-screen calculator is available for all quant questions.
The LSAT® is a different shape. Per LSAC, it's four 35-minute multiple-choice sections: two Logical Reasoning sections and one Reading Comprehension section scored, plus one unscored variable section, with a 10-minute intermission after the second section. The LSAT® Argumentative Writing sample is administered separately, online, on its own schedule, and while it isn't scored, LSAC won't release your score until a completed writing sample is on file. Scores run 120 to 180.
The content split is the practical difference. Half of the GRE® is mathematics, and its Verbal section leans on vocabulary in context through Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence questions. The LSAT® has no math section and no vocabulary testing. It's built on logical reasoning: evaluating arguments, drawing inferences, and reading dense material under time pressure. If you've kept up with math through work or coursework, that half of the GRE® is a rebuild rather than a crisis. If your strengths run to argument analysis instead, the LSAT®'s task set will look familiar after one practice test.
Which test matches your strengths is worth deciding with data rather than a feeling. ETS offers two free PowerPrep practice tests for the GRE®, and LSAC offers free official prep through its LawHub platform. One sitting with each gives you your own starting scores on both scales, which is more useful than anything a forum thread can tell you.
The differences that decide it
Where and when you test
The GRE® is offered at test centers and at home, with year-round scheduling, according to ETS. The LSAT® runs on a fixed calendar with several administration dates a year, and since August 2026 the multiple-choice portion is in-person at test centers for almost all test takers. LSAC announced that change in February 2026, citing test security, with limited exceptions, such as some accommodation-related cases.
The practical effect depends on where you live and when you're applying. A GRE® appointment can often be scheduled days away, from home if you want it, which matters when a deadline moved up or an application is almost ready. An LSAT® date is a trip to a center on a date LSAC set months earlier, so a mishandled test day usually means waiting for the next administration window. Our guide to the GRE® at Home vs Test Center covers what the at-home option involves.
What schools see
With the GRE®, ScoreSelect® lets you decide which scores to send, school by school, on test day or later, so a retake that went badly is a score you can hold back. The LSAT® works the other way: when schools get your LSAC report, it includes every score on your record.
Neither system is a trap. Plenty of applicants retake the LSAT® and apply with improved scores, and committees are used to reading those records. But if you want a retake to stay private, the GRE®'s reporting gives you that control and the LSAT®'s doesn't. Our ScoreSelect® guide covers the mechanics.
What else the score applies to
A GRE® score applies to law school, business school, public policy, and a wide range of graduate programs. The LSAT® applies to law school. If a JD/MBA or JD/MPP is anywhere in your thinking, or if you might apply to a master's program in the same season, one test can cover those applications, and no difficulty comparison changes that.
How much retake room you get
The GRE® can be taken once every 21 days, up to five times in any rolling 12-month period, according to ETS. The LSAT® allows three attempts per testing year, five within the current and past five testing years, and seven in a lifetime, and canceled scores count toward those limits. Both systems are workable. The GRE®'s limits are looser: a shorter wait between attempts, a rolling annual count, and no lifetime cap. If your plan involves several attempts, that difference compounds, because a retake you can schedule three weeks out is a retake you can plan an application around.
What it costs
The GRE® General Test is $249 in the United States. The LSAT® is $253 for the 2026-2027 testing year. At four dollars apart, cost isn't a deciding factor between these two, and both organizations offer fee-assistance programs if the fee is a barrier.
How schools compare the two scores
There's no official one-to-one conversion between GRE® and LSAT® scores, and schools differ in how they read the two. Admissions committees can compare percentiles, and many do. ETS also publishes a Comparison Tool for Law Schools, which estimates an LSAT® score from a pair of GRE® Verbal and Quant scores, with a prediction range of about plus or minus five points. LSAC, the LSAT®'s maker, doesn't endorse the tool.
Treat the tool's estimate as one reference point, not an official conversion or a guarantee of how a school will read your application. A five-point band on the LSAT® scale covers a lot of percentile ground. When a school publishes median admitted scores for both tests, those medians beat any converter.
The business-school version of this story went differently: ETS retired its official GRE®-GMAT® comparison tool in September 2026, and we covered what that means for applicants in that post. As of this writing, the law-school tool is still live on ETS's site.
A decision order for the choice
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Write down your school list, even a rough one. The list tells you whether you're choosing freely or choosing within a constraint.
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Check each school's admissions page for its current test policy, and note any conditions attached. ETS publishes a list of participating law schools, but the school's own page has the policy that applies.
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If your list is law-only and your practice tests show stronger Logical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension results than math results, the LSAT® may be the cleaner choice: it's accepted across the broadest set of law schools, and it concentrates on reading and reasoning rather than quantitative work.
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If every school on your list accepts the GRE®, and a business, policy, or other graduate program is anywhere in your plans, the GRE® gives you one score that can serve several applications. Compare that flexibility with your practice-test results before choosing.
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If any school on your list doesn't accept the GRE®, that school's stated requirement is the LSAT®, and a GRE® score won't satisfy it.
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If scholarship money is a big factor, email admissions offices and ask how they treat GRE® scores in merit decisions. Practices vary by school, and the answer is knowable in one email.
FAQ
Do law schools accept the GRE® instead of the LSAT®?
Yes, at a majority of schools. According to ETS, more than 130 ABA-approved law schools accept the GRE®, including every T14 school, and the ABA recognized the GRE® as a valid admissions test in 2021. A minority of schools still require the LSAT®, so check each school's admissions page.
Which law schools accept the GRE®?
ETS publishes a list of the 130+ ABA-approved law schools that accept GRE® scores for JD admissions, and it includes every top-14 program. Because requirements vary by school and program, confirm the policy on each school's own admissions page before you plan around it.
Is the LSAT® harder than the GRE®?
They're hard in different places. The LSAT® is all verbal reasoning: logical reasoning and reading comprehension, with no math and no vocabulary testing. The GRE® is half mathematics, and its Verbal section leans on vocabulary in context. The test that matches your strengths will probably feel easier, and a free practice test of each is the most direct way to find out which.
Do law schools see all my GRE® scores?
No. ScoreSelect® lets you choose which GRE® scores to send, school by school, on test day or later. The LSAT® works differently: schools receive every LSAT® score on your record through LSAC's reporting.
Can I take both the GRE® and the LSAT®?
You can, and some applicants do. It doubles your preparation load, and schools read the record they receive. If your school list accepts both tests, picking one and preparing thoroughly is usually the better use of the same weeks.
How many times can you take each test?
The GRE® can be taken once every 21 days, up to five times in any rolling 12-month period. The LSAT® allows three attempts per testing year, five within the current and past five testing years, and seven in a lifetime, with canceled scores counting toward those limits.
How do law schools compare GRE® scores to LSAT® scores?
There's no official one-to-one conversion. Committees can compare percentiles, and some use ETS's Comparison Tool for Law Schools, which estimates an LSAT® score from GRE® Verbal and Quant results within about plus or minus five points. When a school publishes medians for both tests, compare your scores to those medians.
Want to learn even more?
For the other big comparison in graduate admissions, and the dual-degree case:
For how score choice works on the GRE® side:
For the at-home testing tradeoffs the LSAT® no longer offers:
For the study plan that turns a test choice into a score:
For the retake math behind the GRE®'s side of this decision:
For what "easier" means when two tests weight different skills:
We also talk through decisions like this one on our podcast.
And if you'd like help making the call for your own school list, you're welcome to book a complimentary strategy session. We'll look at your target schools, your timeline, and your practice-test data, and help you decide which test to sit for.