ACT score calculator
Built for the enhanced ACT, where the composite is English, Math and Reading only. A lot of calculators still average in science, which gives the wrong answer.
Raw scores
Correct answers per section, from your scoring key.
The gap between the two numbers is unscored field-test questions, placed differently on every form.
Example scores are filled in. Type over them with your own.
ACT composite score Example
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Composite is (English + Math + Reading) / 3, round half up. Science does not count toward it. Percentiles are the 2025-2026 ACT national ranks.
What changed with the enhanced ACT
The composite used to be the average of four sections including science. It is now the average of three: English, Mathematics and Reading. Science and writing are optional add-ons, and ACT states plainly that they do not affect the Composite score.
The test is shorter too. Current section structure, verified against act.org:
| Section | Questions | Time | Scored max | In composite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | 50 | 35 min | 40 | Yes |
| Mathematics | 45 | 50 min | 41 | Yes |
| Reading | 36 | 40 min | 27 | Yes |
| Science | 40 | 40 min | 34 | No |
Notice the last two columns. You answer 50 English questions but only 40 count, because every form carries unscored field-test items whose positions move between forms. You cannot tell which of yours were which. The full rundown of what changed is here.
Rounding matters at the boundary
The composite is rounded half up. An average of 26.5 becomes 27, and 26.49 becomes 26. A single extra correct answer in one section can move a composite across that line, which is why the calculator shows you the unrounded average alongside the result.
ACT tables are form-specific
Unlike the SAT, where College Board publishes a table per practice test, ACT conversion tables belong to individual test forms. The table here is from official practice form 25MC1. If you have the scoring key from your own form, that key is the right source for your test.
Percentiles carry a date
The national ranks used here are for the 2025-2026 reporting year, based on ACT-tested graduates of 2023, 2024 and 2025. The composite mean is 19.2 with a standard deviation of 6.1.
That table states its own validity window as September 2025 through August 2026. When ACT publishes the successor, these figures change. Any site showing ACT percentiles without a date attached is showing you a number that expires.
Comparing with an SAT score
The ACT to SAT converter uses the official 2018 concordance, which is still the only one that exists. It comes with published standard errors and a real caveat about what it was built from, both of which are shown on the result rather than hidden in a footnote. If you are still choosing between the tests, the comparison guide is here.
Read next
- The enhanced ACT, everything that changed Shorter sections, optional science, and a three-section composite: the 2025 ACT changes in detail.
- SAT or ACT, how to choose in 2026 Digital adaptive SAT versus enhanced ACT: timing, content, scoring and superscore differences that actually decide it.
- SAT percentiles explained Three different percentile systems, and why the one on your report has no lookup table.
Common questions
- Does science count toward the ACT composite?
- No, not since the enhanced ACT rolled out. ACT states that science and writing are optional add-ons and do not affect your Composite score. The composite is the average of English, Math and Reading, rounded half up.
- How many questions are on the enhanced ACT?
- English 50 in 35 minutes, Mathematics 45 in 50 minutes, Reading 36 in 40 minutes, and optional Science 40 in 40 minutes.
- Why is the highest raw score lower than the number of questions?
- Every ACT form embeds unscored field-test questions, and their positions change from form to form. The scored maxima are English 40, Mathematics 41, Reading 27 and Science 34.
- Is there one ACT conversion table?
- No. ACT conversion tables are form-specific. The table used here is from official practice form 25MC1. Another form can convert the same raw score to a scale score two or three points different.
- How current are the ACT percentiles?
- They come from the ACT Score National Ranks for the 2025-2026 reporting year, based on graduates of 2023, 2024 and 2025. That table reaches the end of its own stated validity window in August 2026, and ACT had not published the successor when this page was last updated.
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