LSAT Lab is a rising star in the LSAT prep world and boasted an average score increase of 12 points for its students in 2021. With numbers like this, we felt obligated to take this prep course for a spin and share our thoughts in this LSAT Lab review.
See who else made our list of the best LSAT prep courses for 2024.
Affordable subscription-based LSAT prep that features unlimited live online LSAT classes and an average score increase of 12 points!
- Unlimited live online classes
- 24/7 student support chat from instructors
- Great production value on video lessons
- Industry-leading 12-point average score increase
- Fewer live online class cohorts may mean waiting to start your classes
About LSAT Lab
LSAT Lab is a new(ish) LSAT prep company that offers high-value, extremely flexible subscription-based study. Founded by two former Manhattan Prep instructors/writers and a team that also boasts a collective 50 years of experience at other LSAT heavy-hitters including Powerscore and Testmasters, LSAT Lab has a solid blend of experience from across the industry.
When it comes to deciding whether the LSAT course is effective, you could say that the proof is in the pudding. Alumni of LSAT Lab had an average 12-point score increase in 2021*, but that’s just the half of it. Students deemed “low starters” (a score of 142 or less) saw a whopping 21-point score increase!
*Blueprint LSAT holds an 11-point score increase
So, to understand how this all works, keep reading this LSAT Lab review:
My Thoughts on LSAT Lab
In this LSAT Lab review, I am using the Classroom Course Plan, which is $99 per month and includes unlimited live online classes. I’ll describe more about what this course includes in the Course Options section of this post.
Getting Started with LSAT Lab
Getting started with LSAT Lab is different from most other LSAT companies. Rather than simply leading students through a diagnostic exam and auto-generating an LSAT study plan based on the results, LSAT Lab first has you schedule a 30-minute consultation with one of its founders, either Matt or Patrick. This onboarding call is a chance for LSAT Lab to gather information necessary to craft your personalized study plan by hand.
Every LSAT company offers personalized LSAT study programs, but these are all usually auto-populated using whatever AI-generated system they’ve invested in. AI has come a long way in building efficient study plans that save time and can boost scores faster, but, call me old school in my thinking that having a real person with 20+ years of LSAT prep experience would be able to build a study plan that’s more realistic and in-tune with student needs.
After your call with one of the founders, if you want, they’ll put together your study plan that can be accessed via your student dashboard, which is very user-friendly, clean, and modern (more on that in a bit).
Study Plan
When you login to your dashboard, you’ll have the flexibility of choosing how you want your LSAT study plan to be built. There are 3 methods for building your study plan as you get started:
Personalized Study Plan
As mentioned previously, you can opt to have a personalized study plan built by hand by LSAT Lab. You’ll need to take an LSAT test so that they can use your results to build your study program.
This study plan is best for students already scoring above 160. This is key for finding any over-looked patterns in missed questions to get that competitive edge necessary as a top scorer.
Standard Plan
Opposite of the personalized study plan, the Standard Plan option is going to schedule you with all the LSAT Prep material and lessons between now and your ultimate LSAT test date. As you’d guess, this is going to be less efficient than the personalized study plan.
This LSAT study plan is best for someone who is new to studying for the LSAT, needs a well-rounded LSAT study plan, and who may not be pushing for the top 1% of scorers.
Synced with Classes
There is usually a new cohort of live online classes starting each month, so students also have the option of syncing their study schedule with the live online class topics. This has a large appeal for students who may have been drawn to LSAT Lab for the live online classes, who thrive in the “classroom feel” and who would like to attend as many of the live online class sessions as possible.
For those who opt for this option, it’s worth noting that this is not a perfect system. You may need to wait for the next class cohort to start (it could be a one, two, or three-week wait) or you can jump into an already existing cohort (at risk of being a bit behind).
These classes generally meet 2-3 times per week for a total of 38 classes and roughly 57 hours of total class time.
The style of these classes is a “flipped classroom” – in which it is divided into 5 different levels. Before class starts, you must pass “Level 1” and “Level 2.” Each of these levels consists of a content video and a short 5-question quiz (in which you need to score at least 4 out of 5). Once you complete these two levels, then you can join the class. After class, you will then complete Levels 3-5 using the same methodology.
Doing this helps to save time in the classroom, where you can dive right into questions or trouble you may have experienced while completing Level 1 and 2 and help to reinforce what you’ve learned so far.
For students who may choose to wait for the next live online class cohort, then, in the meantime, you can go ahead and jump into some of the on-demand lesson topics as well as go into your library and watch the past class recordings.
This LSAT study plan is best for someone who is currently scoring less than a 160. It’s still more targeted than the standard plan, however, and students will have the most reward for their time studying.
Unlimited Live Online Classes
Students who pay for the $99/month Classroom or $299/month Tutor subscriptions all have unlimited live online classes. There are new classes running almost daily and taught by the founders themselves. Each live online class session is on a specific topic, so you can join for whichever topic you may be struggling with (or all of them, if you so choose) and the students who join have the chance to ask questions and have them answered by the instructor in class.
This is a really great value for students who plan to take advantage of these live online classes. Most live online LSAT prep courses from commercial LSAT prep range between $1100-$1800, so you can really see the market value of time with instructors.
Of course, if you are unable to attend a live online class, all of the recordings are uploaded in the Video Library.
Blueprint offers a somewhat similar “Office Hours” concept with their LSAT courses, in which you can schedule 2-hour class sessions with an instructor 6 days a week. The classes can range from an LSAT subtopic or a proctored LSAT exam taken together.
You can learn more about how these Office Hours work in our Blueprint LSAT Review.
Class Content & Videos
I was really happy with how clean and well-produced these lesson content videos are. Not to knock on 7Sage, as they pretty much pioneered the logic games video explainers, but I found this more produced version of, let’s say, a logic game diving into Tree Ordering, a bit of a better experience than a hand drawn game board. Of course, that could also just be a personal preference.
LSAT Practice Tests and Questions Explanations
After you watch your video lesson, you have the chance to work through your leveled practice quizzes. Each practice quiz is 5 questions and you need to “test out” of the level by getting at least 4 out of 5 of the questions correct.
After you finish the quiz, there are super detailed question explanations. You’ll not only get a video that goes through the solution to the questions, but you will get explanations for why certain answers are not correct.
Each question is from Official PrepTests and the PrepTest number and name of the question is listed for each. As we’ve mentioned in countless posts, practicing with official LSAT PrepTests is the best way to do well on test day.
User Experience
The student dashboard is highly intuitive and has the same look and feel that you’d expect from a commercial test prep course from the likes of Princeton Review or Kaplan. It’s hard to know how much they spent on developing this app-based web platform, but my guess would be a lot.
From the Dashboard, there’s a simple navigation bar that will take you through to everything you’ll need, from the live online classes to the practice tests, video library, analytics, and more.
The practice test interface has been designed to imitate the LSAC platform as much as possible and allows you to take it under realistic timed conditions. There is little lag time as you work through the quiz and checking out explanations for each question right afterwards is straightforward.
Live Chat Support
If you come across a particular question while working through a practice set or navigating your study plan, you can take advantage of LSAT Lab’s handy live chat support. This live chat is 24/7 and takes you straight to the founders, Matt and Patrick.
From my experience, the turnaround time for this live chat is exponentially better than what you’d get from commercial test prep providers, who often can take 24-48 hours to reply via email.
Trials, Waivers, and Refunds
LSAT Fee Waiver
LSAT Lab offers the most generous fee waiver program that I’ve seen among LSAT prep companies. For students who receive a fee waiver from the LSAC, LSAT Lab will upgrade students to their Classroom Plan for free for the duration of their fee waiver.
Free Trial Plan
Among their course subscriptions, LSAT Lab also offers a free Starter Plan that allows students to access a lot of the same resources as paid subscriptions, including a study plan, video library, and score analytics.
Their free course also comes with a taste of one live online class, which can help you decide if this might be something you’d like to pay for in the future. The LSAT Lab free Starter Plan also includes 3 free official LSAT practice tests and 300 additional practice questions.
This is obviously a good place to start for students who are unsure about jumping into this course head-first, and you always can upgrade your subscription at any time.
LSAT Lab High Score Guarantee
LSAT Lab offers a 5-point higher score guarantee. Simply take an LSAT practice test within the first 14 days of your subscription and study with LSAT Lab for at least 2 months to qualify.
Unlike other prep companies that require you to complete all of the coursework in order to qualify for the score guarantee, LSAT Lab seems pretty confident that if you utilize their program, your score is bound to improve.
LSAT Lab Course Options
Starter
Price: Free
Summary: Access to full LSAT video library, study plan, 3 official LSAT practice tests, 300 questions, analytics, and 1 live online session.
Premium
Price: $49/month
Summary: Access to full LSAT video library, study plan, 75 official LSAT practice tests, 7500 questions, analytics, and 1 live online video session.
Classroom
Price: $99/month
Summary: Includes the same features of the Premium subscription, but with unlimited live online video sessions and a higher score guarantee.
Tutor
Price: $299/month
Summary: Includes the same features of the Classroom subscription, but with the addition of weekly 30-minute private tutoring (2 hours per month).
LSAT Lab Reviews from REAL Students
When you’re doing your due diligence searching for an LSAT prep course that fits your needs, it’s important to look at various student reviews, both good and bad, to have a more well-rounded perspective.
I think it’s good to go beyond the student reviews published on the LSAT company’s website, as there is going to be a bit of bias for what they show to potential students. I recommend looking for student reviews on forums, review platforms such as TrustPilot, and Reddit to get a better feel for the company.
Let’s have a look at this quite positive and detailed review of LSAT Lab from a student who recently made the switch over from 7Sage who uses a pretty appropriate analogy:
“7Sage is like black & white TV; LSAT Lab is like color TV.”
Here’s another satisfied student who had success with Matt’s instruction on logic games. It goes without saying that having a teacher that is able to break down tough concepts, such as diagramming a complex logic game, is a truly great investment.
Finally, here’s a recent poll among students in r/LSAT that still shows LSAT Lab ranking below 7Sage and LSAT Demon. You can see here that there is still a much larger portion of students who are utilizing 7Sage, but I expect things to change a bit in the coming years.
Who Needs the LSAT Lab Course
Here’s the part of the review where I finally tell you who should use LSAT Lab and who should find alternatives.
This course is best for the students who want live online classes, student support by instructors, and a truly personalized LSAT study plan. No other LSAT courses that I have reviewed include truly handpicked classes from LSAT experts or essentially 24/7 chat support from instructors.
For those who may be on the fence between 7Sage and LSAT Lab, I suggest you consider whether you want the live online classes and tutoring option (which is offered by LSAT Lab) or if you can do without.
LSAT Lab Course Alternatives
7Sage
An LSAT prep company that is known for its detailed walkthrough videos for nearly all LSAT questions available.
- Extremely detailed videos of working through every LSAT question
- Active LSAT forum for questions and discussion
- Especially detailed logic games explanations and strategy
- No fully live online course options
Read our in-depth 7Sage Review
Mentioned a few times throughout this review, 7Sage remains a very competitive LSAT prep course for students due to its extremely popular and cult-like following among alumni.
Both of these courses are very founder-focused. At 7Sage, you’ll be guided through videos for all of the official LSAT practice questions by the founder, JY. Similarly, at LSAT Lab, you’ll have the opportunity to watch video explainers from the founders, Patrick and Matt, who also are known for breaking down tough concepts in an easy-to-understand way.
The difference, however, is that at 7Sage, you’re not going to get the same “face-time” with instructors. There are no live online classes nor do the subscriptions include a consultation with JY or other instructors.
So, you may be wondering what the benefit of this course is over LSAT Lab. The key benefit is in the community that 7Sage has built for its students.
The 7Sage LSAT Forum is nonstop popping off with specific LSAT problem questions, law school advice, tips, and student study group meet-ups. Not only do students chime in with replies and comments, but the founders and their instructors are very active as well.
Overall, you can’t go wrong if you decided to study for the LSAT with 7Sage unless you think you may need some accountability with live online classes or tutoring.
Blueprint LSAT
LSAT prep course with a customizable Study Planner tool and super granular analytics for targeting weak areas.
- Can pick instructors before enrolling in live online course
- Average score increase of 11 points
- Easy to use customizable study planner
- Pricey
Blueprint is definitely more commercial than 7Sage and LSAT Lab, so you have a jazzier study platform, high-powered AI that populates your study plan for you, and more options than LSAT Lab in terms of finding a live online class session that may work for your schedule.
Overall, Blueprint is more similar to what you’ll get with LSAT Lab if you choose the self study or live online class options, but it definitely comes at a higher price tag, depending on how long you intend on studying.
At $1,199 for their live online class option, you’d have to be subscribed for LSAT Lab’s Classroom Course for over a year to spend that same amount.
When I’d recommend Blueprint LSAT over LSAT Lab is simply for students who need more flexibility and availability for live online LSAT classroom sessions. Blueprint LSAT offers some classes that meet once or twice a week, and new cohorts are starting weekly. This may be worth the higher price tag if it means getting your prep in immediately at a time that suits your schedule.
Kaplan LSAT On Demand
For those who are interested in live online or who thrive in small class sizes, this may be the perfect LSAT course for you.
- Small live class option (only 5-15 students)
- Includes every official LSAT question every released
- A set of LSAT prep books
- Expensive
Kaplan is likely the most recognized among these alternatives as an industry-leader for test prep. They offer the most selection of LSAT prep options, including on demand, live online, small live online classroom, bootcamp, and tutoring.
They offer a free trial class, but not a full-on subscription option like LSAT Lab.
Students will not get the same sort of support or immediate replies to questions like you would get with LSAT Lab or 7Sage. On the other hand, for those who may be interested in the small live online classroom or bootcamp options, these could be a solid choice, as Kaplan has invested in a solid curriculum as well as easy-to-use platform.
PowerScore LSAT
Some of the best in person courses offered, students who are looking for that real classroom feel would be lucky to be in the select cities offering PowerScore LSAT courses.
- High amount of live instruction hours
- Classes led by 170+ scorers
- All LSAC licensed practice tests
- Proctored exams imitate test day experience
- In person courses only in larger metropolitan areas
Probably more well-known for their LSAT Bible series, PowerScore does offer some live online classes that have a high amount of class time. Clocking in at about 70 hours of live online instruction, this is among the highest for live online LSAT course options.
Their live online course, however, is going to set you back nearly $1,400, so it’s definitely an investment if you’re hoping to log in those classroom hours for a higher score.
LSAT Lab Review FAQ
Is LSAT Lab prep course worth it?
Yes! LSAT Lab is a great value and boasts an average score increase of 12 points.
How long are the LSAT Lab classes?
The live online LSAT Lab classes are 1.5 hours. Over the courses schedule of 38 classes, students will log in about 57 total hours of classroom time.
Does LSAT Lab offer a high score guarantee?
Yes. If you do not improve your score by at least 5 points (some fine print included), then you will receive a 100% refund of your LSAT subscription.
Bottomline on LSAT Lab
If you’re looking for an affordable live online LSAT prep course that features personalization and interaction with instructors, then this is a great choice!
Here are the key points you should ideally take away from this LSAT Lab review:
- Unlimited live online classes
- 24/7 student support chat from LSAT Lab instructors
- Great production value on video lessons
- Industry-leading 12-point average score increase
- A high score guarantee that doesn’t hide any fine print
Affordable subscription-based LSAT prep that features unlimited live online LSAT classes and an average score increase of 12 points!
- Unlimited live online classes
- 24/7 student support chat from instructors
- Great production value on video lessons
- Industry-leading 12-point average score increase
- Fewer live online class cohorts may mean waiting to start your classes