Lexile Score Calculator
Matching a Grade Level to Its Typical Lexile Band
The Lexile Framework is the reading-difficulty scale most US school reading programs standardized on, appearing on report cards and library catalog listings as a number followed by an "L" — a 750L book, for instance. Actually measuring a specific text's Lexile score requires MetaMetrics' proprietary text-analysis engine, but the Common Core State Standards publish the expected Lexile range for each grade band, which is enough to check whether a student's current reading level is on track without running that proprietary analysis.
| Grade level | Typical Lexile range | Midpoint |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 0L – 300L | 150L |
| Grade 1 | 190L – 530L | 360L |
| Grade 2 | 420L – 650L | 535L |
| Grade 3 | 520L – 820L | 670L |
| Grade 4 | 740L – 940L | 840L |
| Grade 5 | 830L – 1010L | 920L |
| Grade 6 | 925L – 1070L | 998L |
| Grade 7 | 970L – 1120L | 1045L |
| Grade 8 | 1010L – 1185L | 1098L |
| Grade 9–10 | 1050L – 1335L | 1193L |
| Grade 11–12 | 1185L – 1385L | 1285L |
These are the "stretch" ranges published to align with college-and-career readiness by graduation, and are somewhat higher than the older pre-2012 Lexile grade bands.
Where This Matters
- Choosing appropriately challenging books — a book Lexile-rated near the top of a student's grade band offers stretch without being frustratingly difficult.
- Interpreting a reading assessment score — when a standardized test reports a student's individual Lexile measure, comparing it against the grade-band range shows whether they're reading above, at, or below grade level.
- Selecting classroom texts — teachers building a reading list can check whether an assigned book's published Lexile rating fits the target grade band before assigning it.
How to Use This Calculator
- Select a grade level, from Kindergarten through Grade 12.
- Select Calculate to see the typical published Lexile range and midpoint for that grade.
Related Calculations
To estimate the reading difficulty of a specific passage directly, see the Reading Level Calculator.