Regrettable! Indonesia Ranks Among the 12 Countries with the Lowest IQ
A 2026 report titled Average IQ by Country, released by the International IQ Test, reveals that South Korea has the highest average IQ in the world. So, where does Indonesia rank?
According to the latest ranking updated as of 1 January 2026, South Korea holds the first position with an average score of 106.97 from 26,996 participants throughout 2025. The second and third positions are occupied by China (106.48) and Japan (106.3).
Meanwhile, Indonesia is ranked 126th out of 137 countries with an average score of 89.96 from 299,304 participants. This figure represents a drop of 3.22 points compared to the previous year, which was 93.18.
The report processes data from 1,212,714 individuals who took the online IQ test throughout 2025 on the International IQ Test website. Scores are standardised with a global average of 100 and a standard deviation of 15.
Countries with fewer than 100 participants are excluded from the main ranking to maintain data stability. The global IQ remains at an average of 100 because the scoring system is calibrated annually.
Nevertheless, differences in scores between countries are considered to be influenced by various factors, such as internet access, access to and quality of education, health and disease burden, nutritional patterns, cognitively stimulating environments, and genetic factors within populations. The test used is based on Raven’s Progressive Matrices model, which assesses nonverbal reasoning abilities and pattern recognition, not the full spectrum of intelligence. Here is the complete list:
10 Countries with the Highest IQ in 2026:
South Korea - 106.97
China - 106.48
Japan - 106.3
Iran - 104.8
Australia - 104.45
Russia - 103.78
Singapore - 103.56
Mongolia - 102.61
New Zealand - 102.35
Vietnam - 102.26
List of 12 Countries with the Lowest IQ in 2026:
Indonesia - 89.96
Botswana - 89.72
Tanzania - 89.57
Afghanistan - 89.31
Congo - 88.6
Uganda - 88.49
Gabon - 88.35
Angola - 87.89
Nicaragua - 87.75
Rwanda - 86.9
East Timor - 86.7
Somalia - 83.84