Comparing their minds is difficult because Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking used different types of genius to change physics. Einstein excelled at deep physical intuition and foundational concepts, while Hawking excelled at complex mathematics and astrophysics. ·r/explainlikeimfive
Neither Albert Einstein nor Stephen Hawking ever took a standardized IQ test. However, historians and psychologists generally estimate both of their IQs at around 160.
Many people have recorded or estimated IQ scores higher than Albert Einstein's estimated score of 160, including Marilyn vos Savant, Terence Tao, and Christopher Hirata. Albert Einstein never actually took an official IQ test; his score is an estimate based on historical biographers.
Stephen Hawking never publicly shared an IQ score, though popular estimates frequently place it at 160.
Verdict. Einstein edges ahead on the objective measure of transformative impact: his theories reshaped every branch of physics and spawned technologies that define modern civilisation. But Hawking's achievement demands its own category.
Stephen Hawking deeply admired Albert Einstein's genius, praising his General Theory of Relativity as foundational to modern physics. However, Hawking famously disagreed with Einstein's rejection of quantum mechanics. In a Time Magazine interview, Hawking stated he would ask Einstein why he refused to believe in black holes, a phenomenon implied by his own equations.
Neither Elon Musk nor Albert Einstein has an officially verified, tested IQ score in public records, making any direct comparison speculative. Internet estimates informally place Musk around 155 and estimate Einstein at 160 or higher, but psychologists treat these numbers as unverified cultural myths rather than scientific facts.
Elon Musk's exact IQ is unknown because he has never publicly released the results of a verified, official intelligence test.
Yes, Stephen Hawking was widely considered a genius. He made groundbreaking theoretical contributions to astrophysics and cosmology, most notably discovering that black holes emit radiation (known as Hawking radiation).
The first genius IQ score was around 140. That's about one in every 250 people. But one leading researcher in the 1940s suggested that a genius should have an IQ over 180. That's about one in every 2 million people.
Lady Gaga’s IQ is widely reported to be 166, though this is an estimate. The number stems from her elite academic background as a teenager—including a top-tier score on admissions tests used for gifted youth programs—rather than a publicly verified, official, standardized IQ test.
There is no verified, publicly available IQ score for Mark Zuckerberg. Any specific numbers circulating online, which commonly estimate his score to be around 145 to 152, are speculative and not based on official, professionally administered tests.
No, an IQ score of 72 is not considered good; it is below average and falls into the category of borderline intellectual functioning, just above the threshold for an intellectual disability.
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s IQ is widely reported by various entertainment and pop-culture sources to be around 132 to 135.
Stephen Hawking was not objectively the "smartest" person in the world, as intelligence cannot be accurately measured by a single number. However, he was widely considered one of the greatest theoretical physicists and cosmologists of the modern era. His estimated IQ was around 160, though he famously dismissed such metrics, saying, "People who boast about their IQ are losers".
Because Leonardo da Vinci lived centuries before the invention of psychometric testing, he does not have a verified IQ score. However, historians and cognitive researchers retrospectively estimate his IQ to be extraordinarily high, typically falling between 180 and 220, placing him in the highest tier of historical polymaths.
Bill Gates has never publicly released a professionally administered IQ score, so no exact number is officially recognized. However, based on his academic achievements—such as a near-perfect 1590 out of 1600 on the SAT—psychologists and analysts generally estimate his IQ to be between 160 and 170.
Borderline intellectual functioning is when someone has an IQ score between 71 and 84. People with borderline intellectual functioning are at higher risk of mental health problems than those with average IQs. Individuals with this condition may need help accessing resources and learning daily life skills.
The highest officially recorded and certified IQ in the world belongs to YoungHoon Kim from South Korea, who scored an incredible 276.
Most people assume CEOs and company leaders must have sky-high IQs. In reality, research suggests their average IQ typically falls somewhere between 115 and 130 - above average, yes, but not genius level.
Marie Curie: IQ 180–200
Curie, whose IQ was reportedly between 180 and 200, shared the 1903 Nobel Prize for Physics with her husband, Pierre Curie, and another scientist for their “combined, though separate” work on radioactivity, and then was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1911.
Weighing all of this, the most defensible estimate places his IQ most likely in the 125 to 140 range (superior to gifted), with a roughly 90 percent confidence band of about 118 to 145. The popular 160 sits well above where the evidence reaches.
Yes, Stephen Hawking was widely considered a genius. He made groundbreaking theoretical contributions to astrophysics and cosmology, most notably discovering that black holes emit radiation (known as Hawking radiation).
Einstein's closest friend, Michele Besso. Michele Besso with his bride Anna, 1898. Einstein tried out his radical new ideas in arguments with his unassuming friend, an "extraordinarily fine mind."
Religious beliefs. Einstein himself stated "I'm not an atheist, and I don't think I can call myself a pantheist ... I believe in Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings".