What Is Ashley Rickards's IQ? The Actress and Mensa
You have probably seen the number in a listicle: Ashley Rickards's IQ is "around 135," usually printed next to a photo from Awkward. and a note that she is a card-carrying member of Mensa. The honest version is a little more precise than the caption. The ~135 figure is a media number that gets copied from one celebrity roundup to the next, and no source shows Rickards publishing a certified score. What is documented is more meaningful: she has been a member of Mensa since 2011, and Mensa only admits people who score in the 98th percentile or higher on a supervised, standardized IQ test. That threshold sits at roughly 130 to 132 depending on the test, so a membership card is real, external evidence of a top-2% result - regardless of whether the exact "135" is accurate.
In other words, treat 135 as a plausible ballpark and the Mensa membership as the actual signal. One is a number a journalist wrote down; the other is a qualification she had to earn under test conditions. Below is the full breakdown - what the sources say, what her early high-school graduation does and does not tell us, and how to read celebrity IQ claims like this one without getting fooled by a confident-looking three-digit number.
What is Ashley Rickards's IQ, in one table?
Here is the answer first, then the evidence. As of 2026, the claim rests almost entirely on her Mensa membership; the specific "135" has no primary source attached to it.
| Claim | Value | Source type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reported IQ | ~135 | Media / listicle figure | Repeated in celebrity roundups; no certified score published by Rickards |
| Mensa membership | Yes, since 2011 | Primary (Mensa profile) | Requires a tested score in the top 2% |
| Implied floor from Mensa | ~130-132+ | Standard psychometric threshold | 98th percentile on a supervised, standardized test |
| Early high-school graduation | At age 15 | Biographical (Mensa, Wikipedia) | Evidence of ability, not an IQ measurement |
The takeaway: the direction of the evidence is consistent - Rickards is measurably above average - but only the Mensa membership is anchored to a real, gatekept test. The 135 is decoration on top of that.
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Is Ashley Rickards actually in Mensa?
Yes - and this is the part that holds up. Mensa's own member spotlight lists Rickards as a member since 2011, and she has spoken about joining to be part of an intellectually stimulating community. Mensa International admits only people who score at or above the 98th percentile on an approved, proctored intelligence test. There is no interview, no essay, and no way to buy in: you either clear the score cutoff on a supervised exam or you do not.
That is why membership is worth more than any quoted number. A celebrity "IQ of 135" in a magazine could be a guess, a rounded figure, or a self-report with no test behind it. A Mensa membership is a pass/fail credential tied to an actual sitting. So even if you throw the "135" out entirely, the membership still tells you Rickards tested somewhere in the top 2% of the population - roughly IQ 130 and up on a 100-mean, 15-SD scale.
What about the ~135 figure specifically?
The precise "135" is where honesty matters. In researching this piece I could not find a primary source - no clinic report, no on-the-record interview where Rickards names a number, no Mensa document listing a score. Mensa does not publish members' actual IQ scores; it only certifies that you cleared the percentile bar. So the 135 almost certainly originated in a celebrity-IQ listicle and then propagated by copy-paste, the way most famous IQ numbers do.
Is 135 plausible? Completely. It is just above the Mensa entry threshold, so it is internally consistent with what we know. But "plausible and consistent" is not the same as "measured and cited." If you want the defensible version to repeat, say: Rickards is a Mensa member, which places her tested score in the top 2% (roughly 130+). That claim is sourced. "Her IQ is 135" is a claim you cannot actually back up, so treat the exact digit with a shrug.
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Does graduating high school at 15 prove a high IQ?
It is strong supporting evidence, not a score. Rickards graduated from high school at age 15, two to three years ahead of the typical timeline. Accelerating through school like that usually reflects some combination of ability, motivation, family support, and opportunity - and in her case it lines up neatly with a later Mensa qualification. It is the kind of biographical detail that makes the top-2% story believable.
But it is worth being precise about what it does and does not show. Early graduation is a life outcome, not a psychometric measurement. Plenty of very bright people finish school on the normal schedule, and finishing early can also reflect a flexible program, homeschooling, or a career (acting) that made an accelerated path attractive. So the graduation fact strengthens the overall picture without being an IQ number in its own right. Stacked next to the Mensa membership, though, the two point the same way.
How should you read a celebrity IQ claim like this?
Use a simple three-tier ladder. It sorts almost every famous IQ story you will ever read:
- Verified credential. A gatekept qualification like Mensa membership. Someone had to clear a real, supervised test. Rickards has this. It is the gold standard for a celebrity claim because it cannot be faked with a confident sentence.
- Documented self-report or estimate. A person names a number in an interview, or a researcher estimates one from biography. Useful context, but unverified and often rounded.
- Listicle number with no source. A three-digit figure that appears in roundups with no citation. The "135" for Rickards lives here. Not necessarily wrong - just unbacked.
Most famous IQ figures - Einstein's "160," the various "genius" numbers you see under old photos - never rise above tier 2 or 3, because the person never took a modern, standardized test. Rickards is unusual precisely because she has a tier-1 credential. That is what makes her a genuinely interesting case rather than another caption you should ignore.
Where does that leave the real answer?
The defensible summary, as of 2026: Ashley Rickards is a Mensa member (since 2011) who graduated high school at 15, which together place her tested intelligence solidly in the top 2% of the population - roughly IQ 130 or above. The widely repeated "~135" is a reasonable, on-brand estimate but not a number anyone has documented. If you want to cite one fact about her intelligence and be right, cite the Mensa membership.
Curious where you would land on the same scale Mensa uses? A standardized test scored against a 100 mean and 15-point SD is the only way to move a number from tier 3 to tier 1 - for a celebrity or for yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is Ashley Rickards's IQ?
A: She is reported at around 135, but the verifiable fact is her Mensa membership, which places her in the top 2% (roughly IQ 130+). No primary source documents an exact certified score; the "135" is a media figure, while the Mensa credential is real, gatekept evidence of a tested top-2% result.
Q: Is Ashley Rickards really a Mensa member?
A: Yes - she has been a member since 2011. Mensa admits only people who score at or above the 98th percentile on a supervised, standardized IQ test, so her membership is a documented credential rather than a self-reported number.
Q: Where did the "135" IQ number come from?
A: From celebrity-IQ listicles, not a primary source. It gets copied from one roundup to the next. It is plausible because it sits just above the Mensa entry threshold, but no clinic report, interview, or Mensa document confirms that specific figure.
Q: Does graduating high school at 15 mean she has a high IQ?
A: It supports the picture but is not a score. Early graduation reflects ability plus motivation and opportunity; it is a life outcome, not a psychometric measurement. Combined with her Mensa membership, it makes the top-2% story credible.
References
- Mensa Member Spotlight: Ashley Rickards - American Mensa's own profile confirming membership since 2011 and early high-school graduation.
- Ashley Rickards - Wikipedia - Biographical overview, including her Mensa membership and graduation at age 15.
- American Mensa - Qualifying Test Scores - Official explanation of the 98th-percentile admission requirement.
Last updated: July 13, 2026
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