magoosh has helped millions of students study since 2010. our affordable self-study plans includes exclusive practice questions, full-length practice tests, and a score improvement guarantee.

act scores: everything you need to know

rachel kapelke-dale

september 30, 2024

act

good act scores are the key to getting into the college of your dreams! but what is a good score? for most students, scoring above average, 21 or higher, is a good score. for those applying to elite colleges, scores in the 93rd percentile (30+) or even the 98th percentile (33+) are good scores. but that’s the short answer… there is more to it than that of course.

click the links below to go straight to that section, or keep reading to get everything you need to know act scores!

how are act scores calculated?

the act test score range is between 1 and 36. there are two types of scores that fall in this range: your section scores and your composite score.

section scores

the act exam comprises four sections:

english (with an optional essay)
math
reading
science

the score on each section is calculated by converting the raw score—the number of questions you answered correctly in a given section—to a scaled score in that 1-36 range. (there are no penalties for questions with an incorrect answer).

if you’re thinking “aw man, do i need to know a formula to figure out my practice act results??” — never fear! we actually have this handy dandy score calculator where you can plug in your raw scores to figure out your section scores. you can also check out our act raw score conversation chart for a sense of how many questions you need to answer correctly to get a certain scaled score.

composite scores

to make your composite, or overall, score, the test maker then averages your four scores on all sections. this is also scored using the 1-36 act scale.

so what is a good act composite score? many factors will help you determine what a good act composite score is for you. but before we get into that, know that the composite score is not the only score that matters! the act score report will provide you even more information about your test-taking experience in the form of subscores.

subscores

the reading, writing, and math sections also have categories with their own score ranges, as noted in the table below:

section	overall score range	sub-score breakdown
english	1-36	usage/mechanics (1-18) rhetorical skills (1-18) essay (2-12)
math	1-36	pre-algebra/elementary algebra (1-18) algebra/coordinate geometry (1-18) plane geometry/trigonometry (1-18)
reading	1-36	social sciences/sciences (1-18) arts/literature (1-18)
science	1-36	no sub-scores on the science test!

percentiles

finally, last but definitely not least, you’ll see your percentile. or, rather, percentiles.

your act percentiles compare your scores to the scores of other test-takers. in your score report, you’ll be able to see where you stand both in terms of your composite score and your section scores.

if you scored in the 90th percentile, for example, you scored better than 90% (or 90 out of every 100) test-takers. if you scored in the 50th percentile, you scored better than half of your peers.

what is the highest act score?

seeing as the act score range is between 1 and 36, naturally, the highest score that one can receive on the act is a 36. here are some facts to know about the max act score:

in 2020, only 5,579 students (out of 1.67 million test takers) scored a perfect 36 on the act (source: act.org).
you can miss up to five questions on the act and still earn a 36 (depending on what sections you miss them in!)
the 99^th percentile of test takers includes those who earn a 35 or 34 on the act.

getting the highest act score, while an amazing feat, is nothing worth breaking your back over. sure, a perfect score does make your application all the more appealing—colleges love to brag about the percentage of perfect-scoring applicants they’ve admitted each year. and a 36 will definitely get your application moved to the top of the pile at less competitive institutions.

still, a 36 was worth a lot more ten or fifteen years ago. not only have many colleges and scholarships adopted more well-rounded admissions approaches to giving out letters of acceptance and/or monetary awards, but the number of students getting a perfect score on the act is also growing every year—truly an indication of just how competitive the college admissions process is becoming.

my advice? if you end up scoring in the 34 or above range on the act, it might be best if you’re trying to wow admissions committees through other aspects of your application. this advice is particularly relevant to admissions at ivy leagues and other competitive schools; some of these schools have a whopping quarter of their entering class scoring perfectly on the act or sat.

but if you feel like getting the highest act score can help you shine at less competitive colleges, make sure to check out our post on perfect act score stories to know how it’s done!

what is a good act score?

the act, like its cousin the sat, is a standardized test meant to measure both knowledge gained in high school and potential to succeed in a college setting. the higher the score, the more likely you will get into the colleges of your choice.

that being said, there’s no straight answer on what is a good or bad score; it depends entirely on you, your goals, your grades, your extracurriculars, the schools you want to apply to, and a variety of other factors. a passing score on the act for someone else might not be a passing score for you and vice versa.

furthermore, while most schools care about the composite score, some will look specifically for your subject area scores. so even a number isn’t just a single number.

objectively speaking, a score of 32 or higher would put you in a competitive position for any school that you choose apply to. if that’s your goal, check out this video by magoosh expert kristin on how to get the highest act score:

but unless you want to go to super-elite schools, you might find it more useful to focus on your gpa and extracurriculars than aiming for the max score. that’s where it becomes useful to look at school rank when deciding what’s a good score on the act.

good scores by grade level and school rank

	only ivy league for me!	i’m going for schools ranked between 25-50	i’m going for schools ranked 50-75	i’m going for schools ranked 75-100	i’m going for schools ranked below 100
sophomore	24+	21+	17+	16+	13+
junior	28+	25+	21+	20+	17+
senior	32+	29+	25+	24+	21+

we’ve crunched some numbers and come up with what could be considered good scores, based on your ultimate school goals as well as your grade level. after all, a good score for a sophomore (who’s maybe taking the preact instead) won’t be the same as a good score for a senior.

please note that the numbers on the act scoring chart are loose projections— a lot of factors affect how high of a score you need to achieve. act students with lower scores may still get into their dream schools and students with top scores may not (you can skip to the section on act scores for the top 100 u.s. universities to see the competitive score ranges for a given school). still, this is a good place to start as you plan your act test prep. you can choose between a live cohorted class with an instructor (which includes all our lessons and practice questions) or access to the self-study option by itself.

good scores by section

so those are good composite scores. but what does a good sectional score look like on the act? as we describe in our post on good act english scores, most people would consider any score above the average (around 20 per section, though this varies slightly by year) to be “good.”

however, if you’re applying to very competitive schools, aim for the 90th percentile or higher. this translates to the following scores:

english: 20.1
math: 20.4
reading: 21.2
science: 20.6

meanwhile, act writing is scored slightly differently. so what makes a good act writing score? here, a 9+ puts you in the range for the most competitive colleges.

the general guidelines for a “good score” by section also apply to preact scoring (though you won’t find an essay on that exam!). however, this is not the case for act aspire, which uses entirely different scoring scales.

average scores

so by now, you know the basic facts and may already have an idea on how you’d score on the act, either because you have taken real or practice act tests or you can convert your sat to act score.

but where do you stand compared to the average test-taker?

the average exam score was 19.9 (composite) in the 2023-2024 school year (source: act.org). basically, if you scored above 21 overall, you’re ahead of the curve.

to see how far ahead of the curve you are, or the points you’d need to score to reach 21, looking at act percentiles is a good place to start.

if you’re feeling super competitive, you can also check out how your score compares locally in average act scores by state.

act scores for the top 100 u.s. universities

though not the only piece in the college applications puzzle, your act score is the first thing most admissions counselors see. if you don’t score in the same range as most of the current students, it is going to be very hard to convince them that you would be the perfect fit. that’s why we provided for you, in the table below, the 25th-75th percentile scores (also known as the “middle 50%” scores) for the top 100 u.s. universities.

what do all those numbers mean? in short, the middle-scoring 50% of incoming students scored within this range. 25% of incoming students scored below the lower number, while 25% of incoming students scored above the higher number. everybody else (the middle 50%) scored between the two.

here’s an approximation of what the distribution of score percentiles could look like:

with all that said, take a look at the score ranges in 2019 below. you can search by school–if your schools of interest rank in the top 100, you’ll find it on this table. if the school’s middle 50% aren’t reported, take a look at the scores at similarly-ranked schools.

act score range for the top 100 u.s. universities

college ranking	college name	25th percentile scores	75th percentile scores
1	princeton university	34	35
2	massachusetts institute of technology (mit)	34	36
3	harvard university	34	36
4	stanford university	34	35
5	yale university	33	35
6 (tie)	california institute of technology (caltech)	35	36
6 (tie)	duke university	34	35
6 (tie)	johns hopkins university	34	35
6 (tie)	northwestern university	33	35
10	university of pennsylvania	33	35
11 (tie)	cornell university	33	35
11 (tie)	university of chicago	34	35
13 (tie)	brown university	34	35
13 (tie)	columbia university	34	35
15 (tie)	dartmouth college	33	35
15 (tie)	university of california, los angeles (ucla)	29	34
17	university of california–berkeley	27	35
18 (tie)	rice university	34	36
18 (tie)	university of notre dame	33	35
18 (tie)	vanderbilt university	34	35
21 (tie)	carnegie mellon university	34	35
21 (tie)	university of michigan at ann arbor	31	34
21 (tie)	washington university in st. louis	33	35
24 (tie)	emory university	32	34
24 (tie)	georgetown	32	34
24 (tie)	university of virginia	32	34
27 (tie)	university of north carolina, chapel hill (unc chapel hill)	30	34
27 (tie)	university of southern california (usc)	32	35
29	university of california–san diego	26	33
30 (tie)	new york university (nyu)	33	35
30 (tie)	university of florida	28	33
30 (tie)	university of texas, austin (ut austin)	29	34
33 (tie)	georgia institute of technology (georgia tech)	28	35
33 (tie)	university of california, davis (uc davis)	25	31
33 (tie)	university of california, irvine (uci)	na	na
33 (tie)	university of illinois, urbana-champaign	30	34
37 (tie)	boston college	33	34
37 (tie)	tufts university	33	35
39 (tie)	university of california, santa barbara (ucsb)	26	33
39 (tie)	university of wisconsin madison	28	32
41 (tie)	boston university	32	34
41 (tie)	ohio state university	29	32
41 (tie)	rutgers university	28	33
44 (tie)	university of maryland–college park	32	35
44 (tie)	university of rochester	31	34
46 (tie)	lehigh university	31	33
46 (tie)	purdue univesity-west lafayette	27	34
46 (tie)	university of georgia	27	32
46 (tie)	university of washington	30	34
46 (tie)	wake forest university	32	34
51 (tie)	case western reserve university	32	35
51 (tie)	texas a&m university–college station	25	31
51 (tie)	virginia institute of technology (virginia tech)	27	32
54 (tie)	florida state university	27	31
54 (tie)	northeastern university	33	35
54 (tie)	university of minnesota–twin cities	27	31
54 (tie)	college of william and mary	32	34
58 (tie)	north carolina state university–raleigh	28	32
58 (tie)	stony brook university (suny)	28	33
58 (tie)	university of california–merced	17	22
58 (tie)	university of massachussetts-amherst (umass amherst)	29	33
58 (tie)	villanova university	32	34
63 (tie)	brandeis university	31	34
63 (tie)	george washington university	31	34
63 (tie)	michigan state university	26	31
63 (tie)	pennsylvania state–university park	27	32
63 (tie)	santa clara university	30	33
63 (tie)	tulane university	31	33
63 (tie)	university of miami	30	33
70 (tie)	rennselaer polytechnic institute	31	34
70 (tie)	university of connecticut	29	33
70 (tie)	university of pittsburgh–pittsburgh campus	29	33
73 (tie)	binghamton university	29	34
73 (tie)	indiana university–bloomington	27	32
73 (tie)	syracuse university	28	32
76 (tie)	colorado school of mines	29	33
76 (tie)	stevens institute of technology	31	34
76 (tie)	university at buffalo	27	32
76 (tie)	university of california–riverside	22	29
80 (tie)	clemson	28	32
80 (tie)	pepperdine university	26	32
80 (tie)	rutgers university–newark	/	/
80 (tie)	university of illinois–chicago	24	31
84 (tie)	new jersey institute of technology	25	32
84 (tie)	university of california, santa cruz	23	30
86 (tie)	drexel university	27	33
86 (tie)	howard university	22	28
86 (tie)	marquette university	26	31
86 (tie)	university of delaware	27	31
86 (tie)	worcester polytechnic institute	/	test-blind
91 (tie)	american university	29	32
91 (tie)	baylor university	27	32
91 (tie)	fordham university	30	33
91 (tie)	loyola marymount	29	32
91 (tie)	rochester institute of technology	29	33
91 (tie)	southern methodist university	30	34
91 (tie)	university of south florida	24	29
98 (tie)	florida international university	20	26
98 (tie)	gonzaga university	26	31
98 (tie)	rutgers university–camden	18	26
98 (tie)	temple university	23	30
98 (tie)	university of colorado boulder	27	32
98 (tie)	university of iowa	22	28
98 (tie)	yeshiva university	28	33

data from the u.s. news & world report: national universities ranking.

what are the score ranges for the ivy league?

ah, the $200,000 (and rising) question! no faffing about. although the ivy league score ranges were featured in the above chart, here they are again for your convenience:

college ranking	college name	25th percentile	75th percentile
1	princeton university	34	35
3	harvard university	34	36
5	yale university	33	35
10	university of pennsylvania	34	35
11 (tie)	cornell university	33	35
13	brown university	34	35
15	dartmouth college	33	35
18	columbia university	34	35

if you’re wondering about the relative “value” of the sat vs. act in ivy league admissions, our act expert, kristin, does a great job of explaining that in this video:

final word? remember that when applying to the ivies, it’s important for your whole application to, well, sparkle.

if you’re scoring slightly below the middle 50% for your dream ivy (or any of your dream schools, really), it’s worth putting in the time to pull it up. maximize those chances!

how act scores can help you win scholarships

yup, a strong score can put you in the running for merit-based scholarships. but just what is that strong score for scholarships? as in the case of college admissions, there’s no one magic number.

if you’re scoring in the 30s (top tenth percentile), that’s a great place to start. on the other hand, you can still get a scholarship even if you’re scoring in the mid-20s. learn more in our post on good act score for scholarships.

should i cancel my act score if i get a bad score?

if you get your scores and find that you’ve scored significantly below your target score, you might be tempted to cancel your scores, worrying that colleges would penalize you for having low scores on your record. but there are a few reasons why you should definitely not cancel your scores.

first and foremost, if you take the act more than once, most colleges only care about the highest act score you earn. and that’s true even if you do a little worse on the second try, so it’s just best to keep all the options on the table by not canceling scores.
other colleges superscore act results, meaning that if your highest subscores for each section are spread out across different test dates, colleges will only focus on those highest scores. it’s like making a standardized test version of frankenstein, but using only the best parts!
- for example, maybe you score really well on math and science but not so great on reading and writing. if you cancel your scores, you’d risk those great math and science scores that could potentially be superscored with better future results in reading and writing.
another reason not to cancel your scores is that you’d be giving up a clear-cut set of results that explains your strengths and weaknesses when your scores come out. even “bad” results are an invaluable tool for getting great scores next time.

a final word

whew! that’s everything you need to know about act test scores (and probably more)! if you’re curious about how to boost your score to hit your ideal range, check out how to improve your act score by 10 points.

as a reward for sticking this post out and filling your head with all kinds of useful act information, check out how your scores compare to those of famous people. now you’ll know!

author

rachel kapelke-dale

rachel is a magoosh content creator. she writes and updates content on our high school and gre blogs to ensure students are equipped with the best information during their test prep journey. as a test-prep instructor for more than five years in there different countries, rachel has helped students around the world prepare for various standardized tests, including the sat, act, toefl, gre, and gmat, and she is one of the authors of our magoosh act prep book. rachel has a bachelor of arts in comparative literature from brown university, an ma in cinematography from the université de paris vii, and a ph.d. in film studies from university college london. for over a decade, rachel has honed her craft as a fiction and memoir writer and public speaker. her novel, the ballerinas, is forthcoming in december 2021 from st. martin’s press, while her memoir, graduates in wonderland, co-written with jessica pan, was published in 2014 by penguin random house. her work has appeared in over a dozen online and print publications, including vanity fair hollywood. when she isn’t strategically stringing words together at magoosh, you can find rachel riding horses or with her nose in a book. join her on twitter, instagram, or facebook!

view all posts

share67

please leave any questions or suggestions in the comments, we try our best to respond within a few days!
your email address will not be published.

20 responses to “act scores: everything you need to know”

christine casaburro

april 21, 2017

my son is in 7th grade and took the act in april
he scored 14 reading, 18 math, 15 science,
18 english
would you consider that is good for his grade.
from my understanding the reading score was
a little low.

reply
1. david recine
  
  april 22, 2017
  
  because your son is still two years away from high school, these are reasonably good scores for early act practice. still, you are right that it may be a good idea for your son to work on his act reading skills as he gets older and heads into high school.
  
  it’s also worth noticing that his act science score was just one point higher than reading. science is also heavy on reading comprehension, with an emphasis on “visual literacy,” the reading of charts and tables. so your son may want to practice that kind of reading as well. (right here on the blog, we have a tutorial for reading these kinds of act science graphs and tables.)
  
  reply
daymi oare

april 23, 2017

hi, i’m a junior in high school. i just recently took the act and i am wondering if my score was good or not considering my grade and future college applications. i got a 23 composite. 21 on math. 22 on science. 30 in english. 20 in reading. and 8 in writing. i would appreciate your insight.

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  april 24, 2017
  
  hi daymi,
  
  it is hard to determine whether a score is good or not because it depends on all kinds of factors, including your goals, desired schools, field of study, etc. you should look into some universities’ entry requirements and see how you stack up to places you might want to go. this will give you the best idea of how you’re doing! of course, it is always helpful to strive for higher, because this could help you get scholarships, early admission, etc. if you have it in you to study for a retake, it won’t hurt. 🙂
  
  reply
bob

may 3, 2017

hi, i just finished my junior year and i got a 34 composite with 32 englis 33 reading 35 math and 36 science. my dream school is mit. is it better to retake the test it leave it as is and focus on other things?

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  may 8, 2017
  
  hi bob,
  
  that’s a hard question! if you could get your composite score higher (by inching your english/reading scores to 34+) you definitely add emphasis to your test abilities, but only you can really determine whether the rest of your applicant profile outweighs this or not. i would personally aim to both improve my act score and work on other aspects of my application. mit is highly competitive, and any small adjustment you can make to your candidacy will play into the holistic impression they get of you as a hopeful! good luck. 🙂
  
  reply
peyton

june 9, 2017

as a freshman, i took the act and scored a 27 composite. 25s in english and math, 27 in science and a 32 in reading. are these scores good enough to pique the interest of a
top 25 or ivy league school? and should i consider taking the writing portion of the act as i haven’t before?

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  june 10, 2017
  
  hi peyton,
  
  if you are aiming for a top 25/ivy school, you will need to have a higher score than that as well as an impressive array of other factors (extracurriculars, leadership, etc.) to guarantee they consider you seriously. whether you should take the writing portion depends on whether it is asked for and whether you think you can do well on it. i would research your top schools’ admissions pages and see what specific guidance they have. 🙂
  
  reply
jonathen becker

may 19, 2018

hi i’m in 7th grade just wondering what a good act score would be for me

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  may 25, 2018
  
  hi jonathan,
  
  interesting question! the answer really depends on why you are taking the act. many 7th graders take the act in order to participate in talent searches and enroll in programs for academically gifted students. if that is the case for you, then a “good” act scores is the one that qualifies you for these programs! our website mainly focuses on taking the act for college, but this website has some good information about average act scores for these sorts of academic programs.
  
  if you want to take the act just to get a feel for the test and understand your personal strengths and weaknesses, then this act report might be helpful for you! it’s got some pretty complex statistics, but the most important thing to note here is that students who scored a 12 in 7th grade got the average act score (21) in their senior year. the students who scored 20 or higher in 7th grade earned a 30 or higher as seniors, and those who scored 28 or higher in 7th grade scored a 35 or higher as seniors. so, if you have an idea of what score you want as a senior, you can estimate your target score as a 7th grader! keep in mind that nothing is set in stone, however; with practice and study, you can improve your act score beyond what this study says!
  
  you should keep your expectations realistic as a 7th grader; you probably haven’t learned everything that is on the act yet, so it’s unlikely that you will get a top score. however, if you take the time to learn about the test and learn from your mistakes, this can be a valuable learning opportunity for you!
  
  reply
sahil kottal

july 9, 2018

hi,
hi, i just finished my junior year and i got a 33 composite with
33 englis 36 reading 25 math and 30 science.
but my weighted gpa is 3.6 . i am planning to major cs . how does my low gpa affect my admissions .

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  july 13, 2018
  
  hi sahil,
  
  first, congrats on an excellent act score! the answer to this question really depends on the schools that you choose to apply to! we have a lot of information on our blog about the average test scores and gpa needed to get into top schools. as you decide where to apply, try to choose schools that fit your interests and study goals, and check out their rankings. keep in mind that there is no perfect formula to get in to these schools. these numbers are averages, and there are plenty of people above and below them! colleges take into account your tests scores, gpa, essays, letters of recommendation and other factors when determining whether or not to accept you. you should take your time to craft a strong application. here are some tips on how to overcome potential weaknesses in your application: //www.catharsisit.com/act/guest-post/2017/overcome-weaknesses-college-application/
  
  reply
smita nayak

august 16, 2018

hello!

i was just wondering if it’s possible to pair an act composite from one test date (ie, july) with an act writing score from a different test date (ie, december). i got a 33 composite on the july act (7/14) and a 12 on writing from the december act. i wanted to pair these together for college applications. is this possible? thanks in advance for the help!

reply
1. david recine
  
  august 16, 2018
  
  hi smita,
  
  some universities do accept act scores in the way you’re describing. this option, when it’s available, is called “superscoring.” if you want more info n this option, you can read rachel’s article on act superscoring.
  
  reply
joan

november 7, 2019

i was trying to choose my score recipients before my test date of the act,
but i was allowed to choose only 6 score recipients.
i am applying to more than 6 universities, so how will i be able to
send my scores to the other universities before their regular decision
deadline?

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  february 7, 2020
  
  hi joan,
  
  the act allows you to send additional score reports to additional schools. you can request score reports to be sent via online account or paper form. here is the website with that information. it currently costs $13 for each score report you would like to send. i hope that helps! 🙂
  
  reply
arwen8aragorn

november 12, 2019

my daughter took the act this spring and got 25. she took it again this fall and got a 26 but every store increased by 3 points except her highest score (reading) which only increased one point from 32 to 33. how does that make sense?

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  february 7, 2020
  
  hi there,
  
  the overall score should be the average of all four sections. may i ask, what were her scores in each section on both test dates?
  
  also, keep in mind that many schools and schools will accept a “superscore” taken from your daughter’s best score in each of the four sections. for more on superscoring, please see this article. i hope that helps!
  
  reply
michelle vaughter

march 9, 2022

i am 60 and want my old score from 1977 or 1976

reply
1. magoosh test prep expert
  
  march 15, 2022
  
  hi michelle,
  
  you might have to contact the act to see how long they store records!
  
  best of luck to you!
  
  reply