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LSAT Test Day · Lesson 6 of 6

Cancel, keep, or retake

After this lesson, you can run a 4-step framework to decide whether to keep, cancel, or retake an LSAT score instead of deciding on gut feeling alone.

7 min video, plus notes and 1 practice question below

In this lesson

• Score preview lets you see your actual score before deciding whether to cancel it, so you decide on data instead of a gut feeling that's almost always wrong right after a hard test.
• Once scores are released, you have a limited window to decide keep or cancel, and every cancellation still counts as an attempt toward your lifetime LSAT testing limit.
• Compare your score to your target schools' 25th percentile and to your own practice test average before deciding anything.
• Law schools only look at your highest LSAT score on record, so a lower kept score just gets ignored, it doesn't hurt you.
• Reserve cancelling for specific situations: a result far below your target range, something that genuinely went wrong on test day, or real confidence you'll significantly improve on a retake.

Use score preview so you're not deciding blind

If you opted into score preview, you have everything you need to make an informed choice instead of guessing. Score preview lets you see your actual score before deciding whether to cancel it. That removes the guesswork of relying on your gut feeling right after a hard test, which is almost always wrong. If your score meets or exceeds your goals, you keep it. If it's far below what you were aiming for, you cancel it. Either way, you walk into test day knowing you'll have that flexibility if you need it. It's available on every attempt, your first LSAT or your fifth, so add it whenever you register.

The peace of mind matters as much as the decision itself. Knowing you're not locked into a score the moment you finish the last section can lower your stress walking in, since a rough section doesn't have to feel like a verdict on the whole test anymore.

Know the mechanics before you need them

Once scores are released, LSAC currently gives you 6 days to decide whether to keep or cancel. If you don't take any action in that window, your score is automatically reported to your law schools. Once you cancel a score, that decision is final, there are no take-backs. Keep in mind that every cancellation still counts as an attempt toward your lifetime LSAT testing limit, currently 7 attempts, so you don't want to waste one unnecessarily. Treat that limit as real when you're deciding, since a cancellation you didn't need still spends one of a finite number of chances.

The 4-step decision framework

Work through 4 questions before you decide. First, compare your score to your target schools' LSAT ranges. At or above the 25th percentile, you're probably in good shape to keep it. Below that, cancelling is worth considering. Second, look at your practice test results. A score consistent with or better than your practice average is usually worth keeping. A score way below that average, when you're confident you can do better, is where cancelling starts to make sense.

Third, think about your long-term strategy. Law schools only look at your highest LSAT score on record, so a lower kept score doesn't hurt you, it just gets ignored. Cancelling, on the other hand, removes your chance to establish a baseline. Fourth, check your actual retake plan. If you know you're retaking soon and you're confident you'll improve, cancelling might be the right call. If you're unsure about retaking, or you're up against tight deadlines, keeping the score is usually safer.

When cancelling actually makes sense, and what it means for your application

Reserve cancelling for specific situations: your score preview shows a result way below your target range, something genuinely went wrong on test day like a tech issue, illness, a bad proctor, or not finishing a section, or you're truly confident you can retake and significantly improve. Outside of those, keeping an imperfect score is usually the smarter long-term move.

A single cancellation doesn't require any special explanation in your application. Admissions officers see cancelled scores all the time, and drawing extra attention to one with an addendum can do more harm than good. The only time an addendum is worth considering is if you've cancelled multiple scores and need to explain real extenuating circumstances, like an illness or a family emergency. Even then, keep it short. Don't over-apologize or pile on excuses admissions officers didn't ask for. They care far more about your highest score and the rest of your application than about one cancellation on your record.

Cancelling is a tool, not a default. For most people, keeping an imperfect score and putting that same energy into a strong retake plan beats erasing the attempt altogether, since your highest score is the only one that ends up mattering.

The short version

• Add score preview to every future LSAT registration, don't decide blind again.
• Before your next score release, write down your target schools' 25th percentile LSAT number and your current practice test average, so you're not calculating those in the moment.
• If you do cancel, write the date down today. You get 7 attempts in a lifetime, and a cancellation you didn't need still spends one of them.
• Don't draft an addendum for a single cancellation, save that step for a real pattern with a genuine explanation behind it.

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