Studying for the ACT doesn’t have to include sitting in a library and flipping through piles of prep books. You can find lots of ACT study resources online! From official practice tests to short, targeted quizzes that make it easy to hone specific skills, you can study for the ACT whenever you have an internet connection.
However, if you find an ACT practice test online, it isn't guaranteed that it's a great resource. Some online ACT practice tests very different than the actual ACT, and using them won’t help you raise your score. Fortunately, in this guide, we’ve found all the best official and unofficial online ACT practice resources for you to use. We also end with tips to help you get the most out of these resources.
What to Look for in the Best ACT Online Practice Tests
There are many online ACT practice tests out there, and, if you choose good resources and use them wisely, they can be a great study resource.
What are the main benefits of ACT practice online?
- Convenient to use: You can study for the ACT any time you have your laptop or phone nearby!
- Lots of resources available: The internet is endless, and it has nearly every type of ACT prep tool you can think of.
- Easy access to lots of official resources: Multiple official practice ACTs are available for free online (we discuss this more below).
However, online ACT practice tests aren’t always a perfect study tool. Here are some of their most important drawbacks:
- Quality can vary widely: Not every ACT prep site is an amazing study resource for the ACT. Use this guide to help you find the best ones.
- Don't provide a completely realistic test-taking experience: You’ll be taking the real ACT with paper and pencil, not on the computer, so there may be differences in how quickly you go through the questions.
So, how can you be sure you’re using the best online ACT practice tests that will actually help you raise your score? We’ve compiled a list of the best online ACT resources in this guide, and at the end we explain how to get the most out of them. For now, here’s a list of the key factors the best online ACT practice tests have.
- High-quality practice questions: It's important to have questions similar in content and wording to the real ACT so you know what to prepare for.
- In-depth answer explanations: If you don't understand why you got a question wrong, it can be difficult to learn from your mistakes.
- Similar format to the real ACT: This helps you be better prepared for the ACT come test day because you'll know exactly what topics you'll be tested on, how long the test will last, and how the questions will be worded.
Official Online ACT Practice Tests and Questions
Official practice ACTs are the absolute best resource to use when studying for the exam since you can rest assured they’ll have each of the qualities we discussed above. There is currently one full-length official ACT available for free online, in two different formats.
One format is a printable practice ACT that you can download, print, and take with pencil and paper. Since you'll be taking the actual ACT with pencil and paper, we recommend taking this version of the practice exam to get the most realistic testing experience.
There is also a computer-based version of the same ACT practice test that you can access through your MyACT account. Once you receive your scores for a question set, you'll move on to the next batch of questions. Unfortunately, these features make it impossible to take this ACT test under realistic timing conditions, but at least you can get some helpful practice with it.
This official practice test should be your #1 resource to use when you need to take a full-length practice test. See the final section of this guide for tips on how to best use the test.
The ACT also publishes official practice questions (separate from the official practice tests) on its website. These questions are great for working on strategy and content prep when you’re trying to boost your skills.
- 75 ACT English questions
- 60 ACT Math questions
- 48 ACT Reading questions
- 40 ACT Science questions
- 1 ACT Writing prompt
In addition to the above, Kaplan, a test prep company that has partnered with the ACT to provide free official prep materials including a half-length practice test, a short pop quiz, and an ACT question of the day.
The Best Unofficial ACT Online Practice Tests and Questions
In general, you need to be much warier when using unofficial practice materials since they can vary widely in quality. Some are a great additional resource to official ACT practice tests online while others bear very little resemblance to the ACT and could cause you to study the wrong topics and types of questions.
Fortunately, we’ve compiled the best unofficial online ACT practice tests for you below. You should still use official materials as your main ACT study resources, but these unofficial sites can be helpful if you run out of official practice questions or want to have a shorter practice session.
Ivy Global
Ivy Global has both a complete practice ACT and additional sample questions. The sample questions are organized by category, and both they and the complete practice test include answer explanations. There are also guides to help prepare you for the Science and Reading sections of the ACT. This is a good unofficial source to use since its questions are high-quality and similar to real ACT questions.
Sophia.org
Sophia.org offers two to three practice tests each for ACT Math, Science, English, Reading, and Writing. Each practice test has about 60 questions and comes with an answer key and scoring guide. You’ll need to set up a free account in order to access the tests, and you need to opt in to making your profile private.
The quality of these practice questions is not quite as good as Ivy Global in terms of how similar they are to actual ACT questions, but it can still be a helpful resource. The website also includes tips on how to get the most out of their practice tests, like taking the tests timed and how to set up a study plan (we go over this info as well in the next section).
Kaplan
If you register with Kaplan, you can sign up for a free ACT practice test. They have them scheduled in advance, so this will only work if one of their ACT test times fits within your schedule. Taking the test timed will help you get used to taking a complete ACT all at once though. Kaplan’s practice tests are known for being somewhat easier than the actual ACT, but this is still a solid practice test, especially if you’re just starting your studying.
Princeton Review
Like Kaplan, Princeton Review also offers a free practice ACT if you register with them. These tests are also offered only at set times. Again like Kaplan, Princeton Review practice tests are known for often being easier than the real ACT.
PrepScholar
Our blog also has a ton of great resources to help you with your ACT studying. Our guides cover everything you need to know about preparing for the ACT, from creating a study plan, setting a score goal, tackling different topics you’ll be tested on, choosing the best ACT test date, and more. Use these early on in your studying to make sure you’re studying the right topics and creating a solid ACT study plan.
Some of our most popular guides include:
Tips for Using Online ACT Practice Materials
In order to get the most out of your ACT practice tests online, follow these three guidelines.
Take Full-Length Practice Tests Under Realistic Conditions
Whenever you take a full-length practice online ACT (especially official ones), you should try to take it in one sitting with accurate timing and realistic testing conditions. This means you’ll need to block out about four hours of time, so you’ll probably need to plan ahead for that.
As mentioned above, some of the unofficial online practice ACTs, like those from Kaplan and Princeton Review, must be taken at a certain time and all at once. Taking practice ACTs under realistic testing conditions means your practice scores will be more accurate. This means you’ll have a better idea of how well you’re scoring on the ACT, how much you’ve improved, and which areas you still need to work on.
Review Your Mistakes
After every practice test or quiz for the ACT you take, you should go through each of the answers you got wrong or guessed on and review them until you understand how to get the correct answer. This can be time consuming, but taking practice ACTs will only help you raise your score if you learn from your mistakes, so be sure to do this! If you’re feeling burned out, take a break between finishing a practice ACT and reviewing your answers, but make sure to complete both steps.
Use Different Online ACT Practice Tests
There are many resources listed in this guide, from official practice ACTs to short quizzes with just a few questions on a specific topic. Be sure to alternate among the different ACT materials and use the resource that works best for each individual study session.
For example, if you’re short on time or not on your A-game for studying that day, take a quiz or shorter practice test. You should reserve full-length practice ACTs (especially the official ones) for when you can set aside a few hours at a time and really concentrate. Switching between different resources can also keep your studying from becoming routine and monotonous and help you stay motivated.
Conclusion
Online ACT resources can be convenient and helpful ways to study for the test, but finding a high-quality ACT practice test online can also be challenging because there are many sub-par resources out there.
Your #1 ACT online practice test source should always be official, full-length ACTs. These have the highest-quality practice questions of any online resource, so you should be sure to use them. There are also good unofficial ACT online practice tests, but you should be careful about which ones you use to make sure you’re using your study time wisely.
When you’re doing your ACT practice online, follow these three tips to get the most out of the materials:
- Take full-length tests under realistic testing conditions
- Review your mistakes
- Use different online study resources
What's Next?
What score should you be aiming for on the ACT? Learn what a good ACT score is and how to set a goal score.
Want to know more about the ACT Syllabus? Our guide explains exactly which subjects the ACT covers so you can be completely prepared for the test!
Khan Academy can also be a great study resource for the ACT, but only if you know how to use it correctly. Read our guide to learn exactly how you can use Khan Academy to ace the ACT.
Have friends who also need help with test prep? Share this article!
Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.
Holly R.