if you weren’t sure whether to take the sat or act…your state may already have decided for you! that’s right— as many states use college admissions tests to meet national standards required of public high schools, many of them make taking the act/sat mandatory during a school day administration.
an important reminder that state and local policies change rapidly. this information is correct at the time of publication (december 2024), but you should check with your guidance counselor to confirm state requirements and subsidies!
states that require the act or sat
| state | required test |
|---|---|
| alabama | act |
| arizona | act (w/ writing) |
| arkansas | act |
| colorado | sat (optional essay) |
| connecticut | sat |
| delaware | sat (w/ essay) |
| district of columbia | sat |
| hawaii | act |
| idaho | sat or act |
| illinois | sat |
| indiana | sat |
| kansas | act |
| kentucky | act |
| louisiana | act |
| michigan | sat (w/ essay) |
| mississippi | act |
| montana | act (w/ writing) |
| nebraska | act (w/ writing) |
| nevada | act |
| new hampshire | sat (w/ essay) |
| new mexico | sat |
| north carolina | act |
| ohio | sat or act (school/district choice) |
| oklahoma | sat or act (school/district choice) |
| rhode island | sat |
| tennessee | sat or act |
| utah | act |
| west virginia | sat (w/ essay) |
| wisconsin | act (w/ writing) |
| wyoming | act |
many other states give students the option to take the sat or act during the school day (typically in the spring), even if it’s not required. check with your counselor to see if your school participates in free sat school day or act district testing.
do i have to pay to take a required sat or act?
in most cases: no, you don’t. in fact, some states that require the act will even let you take the sat for free (and some states that require the sat will let you take the act for free). in other states, if you are a low-income student and qualify for a fee waiver for the test, you will be able to take the required test for free, but if you don’t qualify, you may have to pay for it.
a final word on states that require the sat or act
at the end of the day, are there benefits to state-mandated college admissions testing? definitely, though it may not feel like it when you learn the news.
in the first place, if you’re planning on going to college, this gives you a concrete deadline so you can start preparing for the exam. it may show you that you’ll do better on one test than the other. it also gives you a (usually) free opportunity to polish your test-taking skills and get your first test out of the way (most students do better on their second exam).
if you weren’t planning on going to college, this trend takes away one of the barriers that might have been preventing you from doing so (either because of the cost or the time involved) and will hopefully show you that you do have what it takes to succeed in college, if that’s what you choose to pursue!
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