What Is a Good AMC Score? Percentiles, Cutoffs, and Honors

A good AMC score depends on which contest you took and what you're aiming for. As a quick rule of thumb: a "good" score sits comfortably above the middle of the field for your contest and grade, and a "strong" score approaches the next milestone — a recognition award like Distinction, or an AIME invitation on the AMC 10 or AMC 12. The exact numbers move every year, so the more useful question isn't "what number is good?" but "good compared to what?"

This page explains how to read your score against percentiles, cutoffs, and honors for each contest, with the most recent verified AIME-qualifying cutoffs and recognition thresholds from the official source.

Last updated: May 2026. Cutoff and recognition figures below are from the official MAA AIME threshold announcements — see the source note at the end.

What counts as a good AMC score?

Three things decide whether a score is "good":

1. The contest. The AMC 8 (25 questions, no penalty for wrong answers) is scored differently from the AMC 10 and AMC 12 (25 questions, with points for correct answers and for unanswered questions). A raw number that's strong on one contest can be average on another.
2. Your grade and goals. A score that's excellent for a sixth grader on the AMC 8 reads differently for an eighth grader. On the AMC 10/12, "good" often means "did it qualify me for the AIME?"
3. The year. Cutoffs and the difficulty of each contest shift from year to year, which is why the same raw score can mean different things in different years.

A practical way to read your result: look at how far you are from the relevant milestone for your contest — a recognition threshold, or the AIME cutoff — using the most recent year as a reference point while remembering the bar moves annually.

Good score by contest level: AMC 8, AMC 10, AMC 12

AMC 8

The AMC 8 is for students in grade 8 and below. Because there's no penalty for wrong answers, scores tend to spread differently than on the AMC 10/12. A reasonable way to frame it:

• A mid-range score is typical for a first-time test-taker.
• A clearly above-middle score is a good result, especially for younger students.
• The top end is recognized through Honor Roll and Honor Roll of Distinction.

The AMC 8 does not feed into the AIME, so there is no AIME cutoff to clear — the meaningful targets are the recognition awards.

AMC 10

The AMC 10 is for students in grade 10 and below. Here, "good" is often defined by AIME qualification: clearing that year's AMC 10 cutoff earns an AIME invitation. A strong AMC 10 score is one that meets or clears the cutoff for the version you took (A or B). See the verified cutoffs below.

AMC 12

The AMC 12 is for students in grade 12 and below and covers a broader syllabus. As with the AMC 10, the most meaningful benchmark for many students is the AIME cutoff for the version they took. Because the AMC 12 and AMC 10 use different qualification rules and different contest content, their cutoffs should be compared carefully. A lower raw cutoff on one contest does not mean that contest is easier.

AMC score distributions and percentiles

A percentile tells you the share of test-takers who scored at or below you. It's the fairest single way to judge a result, because it already accounts for how hard a given year's contest was.

How to use the idea, even without a published table in front of you:

• Below the middle of the field: a solid starting baseline, with clear room to grow.
• Above the middle: a good result for that year's field.
• Near the top: approaching recognition or AIME-qualifying territory, depending on the contest.

MAA reports official percentile information for each contest and year. If you have your raw score, match it against the official statistics for the same contest, version, and year — and always compare within a single year, since the same raw score can land at different percentiles across years. We don't reproduce a percentile table here, because percentile figures should be read from the official release for the exact year you care about rather than estimated.

AMC cutoffs explained

A "cutoff" on the AMC 10 and AMC 12 is the score that earns an AIME invitation. The MAA AMC program determines these cutoff indexes each year. For the AMC 10, at least the top 2.5% of scorers across the A and B competition dates are invited; for the AMC 12, at least the top 5% of scorers on each version are invited. Once the cutoffs are set and announced, they are not changed.

A few points that trip people up:

• A and B can differ. The AMC 10A and 10B (and 12A and 12B) can have different cutoffs in the same year.
• AMC 10 and AMC 12 differ. They use different qualifying percentages and have separate cutoffs; clearing one does not imply the other.
• Cutoffs change yearly. A number from a past year is a reference point, not a guarantee for the next one.

AIME-qualifying cutoffs (most recent years)

These are the official AIME-qualifying scores for the two most recent cycles. Cutoffs are labeled by AIME year; the AMC 10/12 contests are administered the prior November.

The swing between years — for example, the AMC 12A cutoff moving from 76.5 to 96 — is a good illustration of why you should treat any single year's number as a reference, not a fixed target.

AIME cutoffs and qualifying scores

The AIME (American Invitational Mathematics Examination) is the next round after the AMC 10/12. You qualify by meeting your year's AMC 10 or AMC 12 cutoff.

How AIME cutoffs are set

The MAA AMC program sets the cutoff each year from that year's AMC 10 and AMC 12 results, so that at least the top 2.5% of AMC 10 scorers and at least the top 5% of AMC 12 scorers are invited. Because those percentages differ, the AMC 10 and AMC 12 cutoffs are not the same, and the A and B versions can differ as well. Once announced, a year's cutoffs are fixed.

AMC 10 vs AMC 12 qualifying paths

Both contests can lead to the AIME, through separate cutoffs:

If you take more than one eligible AMC 10/12 version in a season, compare each score against the cutoff for that specific contest version. (Note: there are separate, stricter rules for the AIME itself — a student takes the AIME only once, and taking both AIME I and AIME II leads to disqualification.)

For a fuller walkthrough, see how to qualify for AIME through AMC 10 and AMC 12.

Honor Roll and Honor Roll of Distinction

Beyond AIME qualification, the AMC contests recognize high scorers with named awards. The two top tiers are Distinction and Honor Roll of Distinction, with Honor Roll of Distinction being the higher of the two. (You may see the older term "Distinguished Honor Roll" in materials from past years; the current wording is Honor Roll of Distinction.)

These thresholds are published per contest, per version, and per year, the same way AIME cutoffs are. Here are the official AMC 10 and AMC 12 recognition thresholds for the two most recent cycles:

AIME 2026 cycle

AIME 2025 cycle

The AMC 8 also recognizes top scorers with Honor Roll and Honor Roll of Distinction, but those thresholds are released through a separate official report. We don't list AMC 8 numbers here until they're confirmed against the official source, rather than estimate them.

How to turn your score into a study plan

A score is a starting point, not a verdict. The useful next step is to find out where the points went — which topics, and how much time each question cost you — and then practice deliberately against that.

A simple routine that works:

1. Set an honest baseline. Take a timed practice test under real conditions so your starting point reflects how you actually perform.
2. Review by topic and timing. Sort your misses by topic, and look at where time drained away. A question you rushed and a question you ran out of time on call for different fixes.
3. Practice the weak spots, then re-test. Work the specific topics that cost you points, then take another timed test to see whether the pattern changed.

Math Prep Pro is built around that loop. You can take timed AMC practice tests for AMC 8, AMC 10, AMC 12, and AIME, then use the topic and timing analytics and AI-generated test reviews to see which topics and pacing patterns are holding your score back. The idea is practice with feedback, not just more questions — so each test points to what to work on next.

It won't promise a number. What it gives you is a clearer picture of your strengths, weak spots, and pacing, so your practice time goes where it counts.

FAQ

Source note

The AIME-qualifying cutoffs and the Distinction and Honor Roll of Distinction thresholds on this page are taken from the official MAA AIME threshold announcements for the 2024–25 and 2025–26 cycles (published by the Mathematical Association of America, which administers the AMC and AIME). The qualification rule — that the MAA determines cutoff indexes each year, inviting at least the top 2.5% of AMC 10 scorers and at least the top 5% of AMC 12 scorers, with cutoffs fixed once announced — is from the official MAA competition policies and invitational competition pages. AMC 8 recognition thresholds and full score-distribution/percentile tables are released through separate official MAA reports and are not reproduced here until confirmed against that source. Cutoffs and thresholds change each year; always confirm against the official announcement for the year you care about.

Official sources:

• MAA 2025–26 AIME Thresholds: https://maa.org/news/2025-26-aime-thresholds-are-now-available/
• MAA 2024–25 AIME Thresholds: https://maa.org/news/aime-thresholds-are-available/
• MAA AMC Policies: https://maa.org/student-programs/amc/maa-american-mathematics-competitions-policies/
• MAA Invitational Competitions: https://maa.org/maa-invitational-competitions/