Everything you need to know about Athlete Quotient, the AQ score, and how it works. Stop guessing. Start measuring.
The AQ (Athlete Quotient) is a single number from 0 to 100 that measures the complete athlete against Division I benchmarks. It evaluates five dimensions - Athletic, Academic, Leadership, Community, and Recruiting - using a weighted formula. Think of it as a credit score for athletics: one honest number that tells you exactly where you stand.
Your AQ compares your individual metrics - physical measurements, game statistics, speed and agility data, academic profile, and more - against our Division I benchmarks for your sport, position, gender, and age. Each metric is scored, then weighted by how much it actually matters for the position you play, and combined into your overall AQ. The same standard is applied to every athlete, and the benchmark version that produced your score is recorded with it, so a score from today and a score from next year stay comparable.
Because that rung was measured against real players instead of estimated. Where we have the full Division I player distribution for a metric - basketball shooting percentages are the first - the rungs show you exactly where you sit inside it: the D1 median, the bottom 25%, the top 10%. Where we have not measured the levels below Division I, we will not print a D2 or D3 label on a number nobody measured. A rung that reads "below the measured range" is us being straight with you: it keeps your score on a fair curve without making a claim we cannot back. Benchmarks that still read "D1 average" are our own, and we replace them with measured ones as we get the data.
Measuring real players changed something else worth knowing: position matters more than most people assume. A Division I centre makes about 64% of his free throws and a Division I guard makes about 77%. Grading both against one number tells the centre he is behind when he is not - so we stopped doing it.
Your AQ is the whole athlete in one number - all five dimensions, weighted. Your level fit is a separate read, and it comes from your Athletic dimension alone: 90 and up is D1 Elite, 75-89 is D1, 60-74 is D2, 45-59 maps to D3 and NAIA, 30-44 is JUCO range, and below 30 is high school varsity. Academics, leadership, community, and recruiting readiness all lift your AQ and they all matter to college coaches - but they do not make you faster, so they do not move your level fit. That split is deliberate: a strong student with modest athletic numbers should not be told they project D1. And if you enter no athletic measurements at all, you get no level fit, because there would be nothing behind it. Every band is measured against the same D1 benchmarks regardless of the level you're targeting, so you always know exactly where you stand against the top standard.
Yes - that's the point. Your AQ is a living measure that updates as you develop. Re-take the assessment as you improve, and your AQ history shows your trajectory - are you improving, plateauing, or declining? That trend data is what makes AQ uniquely valuable for long-term development planning.
We support football, baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, volleyball, and swimming - each with position-specific or event-specific benchmarks and evaluation criteria tailored to what college coaches actually look for.
Yes. Women's basketball, women's soccer, softball, women's volleyball, and women's swimming all run on their own D1 benchmark ladders, and no athlete is ever scored against the opposite gender's physical standards - vertical, broad jump, pro agility, and the 10-yard split all have separate women's values. One exception we would rather name than bury: three of women's soccer's production stats - goals, assists, and passing accuracy - currently sit on the same ladder as the men's, while the conditioning standards are already separate. We are sourcing distinct values for those three, and the benchmark version stamped on your score will show when it lands.
Athletes ages 8 and up can use Athlete Quotient. Our recommendations are age-aware across five groups (8-11, 12-13, 14-15, 16-17, 18+), so a 10-year-old receives developmentally appropriate guidance that's different from a 17-year-old. For athletes under 13, verifiable parental consent is required per COPPA.
Yes - your first score is free, and right now it's even better: sign up by August 28 and your first 3 months of The Playbook are on us. The Mirror (free) gives you a real AQ score with all five dimension breakdowns and your level-fit classification. After that, The Playbook - full gap analysis with training recommendations and timelines, your complete metrics table and radar chart, milestone badges, and quarterly reassessment with history tracking - is $9.99/month.
The Playbook ($9.99/month) is our full development tier - complete gap analysis with training recommendations and timelines, your full metrics table and radar chart, your measurements against D1 by position, an age-based growth plan, milestone badges, and quarterly reassessment with history tracking. Position and state/city percentiles and rankings placement are built into the Playbook plan and are not live yet; they turn on for Playbook subscribers as soon as there are enough scored athletes to make them mean something. The Edge ($29.99/month) is our recruiting tier and is coming soon: it will add the shareable coach report, cross-sport fit analysis, school and college matching, visibility into which coaches are viewing your profile, and direct connection with AQ Certified Coaches.
Family accounts are part of The Edge tier (coming soon). When Edge launches, you'll be able to add additional athletes (siblings) for $4.99/month each under one parent account, with every athlete's full profile managed from a single dashboard.
Yes, and annual billing saves you two months - The Playbook is $99.90/year instead of $119.88. It is not on the checkout page yet, so for now email derek@athletequotient.com and we'll set it up directly. Annual pricing for The Edge ($299.90/year) will be available when the Edge tier launches.
College recruiting tools are coming soon. When they launch as part of The Edge, coaching staffs will be able to search, filter, and connect with verified athletes through the AQ Recruit platform, and Edge athletes will see which programs are viewing their profiles and receive school-matching recommendations based on their AQ, academics, and preferences.
The AQ Coach Network - coming soon - will be a marketplace of certified coaches trained on the AQ methodology. Each coach earns a Coach AQ Score (0-100) based on how much their athletes actually improve, so when your gap analysis shows you need speed work, AQ connects you with a proven specialist near you. Edge subscribers will connect with coaches at no extra cost.
No. Athlete Quotient is an independent company. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the NCAA, NAIA, or any college, university, or athletic association. References to "D1," "D2," etc. refer to competition levels and are used for benchmarking purposes only.
Absolutely. We never sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties. We are fully compliant with COPPA (for athletes under 13), CCPA, and all applicable state privacy laws. All data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Read our full Privacy Policy for details.
Yes. We take children's privacy very seriously. For athletes under 13, we require verifiable parental consent before collecting any personal information. Children's profiles are never made publicly visible without parental approval. We do not use children's data for advertising of any kind. Parents can review, export, or delete their child's data at any time.
Athlete Quotient is live. Create a free account, complete the assessment, and get your AQ score - your first score is free. From there, unlock the full Playbook whenever you're ready to see your gaps and your personalized plan.
Get your free AQ score and see exactly where you stand. Still have questions? Reach us at info@athletequotient.com.
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