Historical ACT Percentiles for 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, and 2011

author image
 

body_percents-3.jpg

For those currently taking the ACT or who took it in 2011-2015, you might wonder: how does your percentile compare with students who got the same score in other years? In this guide, I'll explain what percentiles are, how they work for the ACT, and why they matter. I'll also give you ACT percentile charts for 2011-2015 so you can see how your scores stack up against historical ones.

 

What Is an ACT Percentile Score?

Before diving in, let's define what an ACT percentile is.

First off, a percentile is not the same as a percentage score you get on a test in school (i.e., when you receive 85% on your biology test, you answered 85% of questions correctly). Rather, an ACT percentile score lets you know how you did in comparison with other test takers. This in turn makes your score easier to understand since the ACT uses a pretty ambiguous scale of 1-36.

For instance, a 25th percentile score means you scored higher than 25% of ACT test takers, while a 98th percentile score means you scored higher than 98% of test takers. In short, the higher your percentile is, the better you did compared with others who took the ACT.

For instance, on an easy in-class test (on which most students scored 90% or above), you could get a high test score like 91% and get a relatively low percentile like 10%. However, if the test were very hard for your class (e.g., only a few students scored above 20%), you could get a low test score like 28% and a relatively high percentile score like 95%.

Percentile shifts tend not to be as extreme as this example since the ACT is equated, but I'll discuss this more in-depth later on.

Nonetheless, ACT percentiles are helpful for understanding your scaled scores, as percentiles allow you to determine where you fall in comparison with other test takers.

 

Do ACT Percentiles Change Over Time?

Generally, for a specific scaled ACT score, the percentile of that score stays the same from year to year. That said, there can be some very slight changes (typically 3% at most from year to year). If you're unsure how scaled ACT scores are determined, learn how to calculate your score.

The reason there are only minimal percentile changes for a specific scaled score from year to year is that the ACT is equated to ensure the same curve on every test date. As an example of the slight variation in percentile for a specific score, a score of 31 was the 96th percentile in 2014 but the 97th percentile in 2013.

What does it mean for percentiles for each scaled score to stay about the same from year to year? As I mentioned earlier, ACT, Inc., tries to keep the score distributions the same so that one scaled score indicates the same level of ability across different test dates. For example, a score of 32 means you scored better than around 97-98% of test takers in 2011 and 2015 (and any other year).

Ultimately, this means that no one test date (or test year) is advantaged over another. All test dates are equated to ensure similar (if not identical) score distribution.

body_why.png

Why Care About ACT Percentiles—Especially Percentiles From Other Years?

Your ACT percentile is important because it lets colleges compare your ACT score with those of other applicants (and, more generally, students across the country). Why is this important? If colleges looked at just your scaled score without any other information, they wouldn't have a clear sense of what makes a good ACT score and what makes a bad one.

For example, if you got a 33 composite score and colleges didn't know your percentile, admissions officers might judge the ACT as a school test and think you got 33 out of 36—about 92% or an A-, which is good but not great. However, with ACT percentiles, colleges can know that a 33 is actually a 99th percentile score, meaning you scored better than 99% of test takers!

Essentially, percentiles allow colleges to get a sense of how test takers perform on the ACT and allow them to compare you with students in the rest of the country.

You should care about ACT percentiles from other years because you are applying to college with students who might have taken the ACT in other years, too. For example, although you might have taken the ACT in 2016 as a high school junior, some of your classmates applying to the same colleges as you might have taken it later in 2017 as seniors.

Say you and your classmate both scored 33, but you took the ACT in 2015 and he took it in 2016. Your score places you in the 99th percentile but puts him in the 98th percentile. This makes your 33 just slightly more impressive than his.

Comparing ACT percentiles for specific scaled scores across years is useful to know how you stack up against students who took the ACT a different year but are applying to the same colleges and at the same time as you.

While percentile scores are important, the ACT score range for your target college is the more important consideration. The ACT score range for colleges is the range in which the middle 50% of admitted students' ACT scores fall. For instance, Yale's ACT score range is 32-35—meaning 25% of admitted students scored at or below 32, and 75% scored at or below 35.

Universities rely primarily on score ranges when making admissions decisions. For this reason, you'll want your score to be at or above the 75th percentile (for example, 35 for Yale) to give yourself the best chance of being admitted.

To find ACT score ranges for your schools, search "[School Name] ACT scores PrepScholar." For a more detailed explanation, with tips on how to calculate your target score, read our guide to what a good ACT score is.

The main reasons colleges care about their particular score ranges over national ACT percentiles are as follows:

  • A college's ACT score range is often a consideration in college ranking lists. As a result, colleges want to admit students with higher ACT scores so that they will be ranked higher.
  • Colleges publish their score ranges each year. Thus, the higher the score range, the more impressive it seems to the public.

While ACT score percentiles are an important part of the college admissions process, your final ACT composite score is the number that is most significant.

 

body_historical.jpg

OK, maybe not this historical.

 

Historical ACT Percentiles for 2011-2015

Below, I've listed the ACT score percentiles for each composite scaled score from 2011-2015. I used data provided by ACT, Inc., to assemble this and the charts below (for the percentiles for individual sections).

Remember, a percentile is the percentage of test takers who scored at or below a certain scaled ACT score.

ACT Score 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
36 99 99 99 99 99
35 99 99 99 99 99
34 99 99 99 99 99
33 99 99 99 99 99
32 97 98 98 98 98
31 96 96 97 97 97
30 94 95 95 95 95
29 92 92 93 93 93
28 89 90 91 90 91
27 86 87 87 87 87
26 82 83 84 83 83
25 78 79 79 79 79
24 73 74 75 74 74
23 68 68 69 68 68
22 62 62 63 62 62
21 56 56 56 55 55
20 50 50 50 48 48
19 43 43 43 41 41
18 37 36 36 34 34
17 30 30 30 28 28
16 24 24 24 21 22
15 18 18 18 16 16
14 12 12 12 11 11
13 7 7 8 6 7
12 3 4 4 3 3
11 1 1 1 1 1
10 1 1 1 1 1
9 1 1 1 1 1
8 1 1 1 1 1
7 1 1 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 1 1
5 1 1 1 1 1
4 1 1 1 1 1
3 1 1 1 1 1
2 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1

 

 

body_grammar-8.jpg

 

ACT English Historical Percentiles 2011-2015

Below, I've listed the ACT score percentiles for each English scaled score from 2011 to 2015.

ACT English Score 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
36 99 99 99 99 99
35 99 99 99 99 99
34 98 98 99 99 98
33 96 97 97 97 97
32 95 95 95 96 96
31 93 93 94 94 94
30 91 92 92 92 92
29 89 90 90 90 90
28 87 87 88 88 88
27 84 85 86 86 85
26 82 82 83 82 82
25 78 79 79 78 78
24 73 74 75 74 73
23 69 69 70 68 67
22 63 64 64 63 63
21 58 58 59 57 56
20 52 52 52 50 49
19 46 45 45 43 43
18 41 40 40 38 38
17 36 36 36 33 34
16 32 32 32 29 29
15 27 27 26 24 24
14 21 21 21 18 18
13 16 116 16 14 14
12 13 13 13 11 12
11 10 10 10 9 9
10 7 7 7 6 6
9 4 4 4 4 4
8 2 2 2 2 2
7 1 1 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 1 1
5 1 1 1 1 1
4 1 1 1 1 1
3 1 1 1 1 1
2 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1

 

body_calc-3.jpg

 

ACT Math Historical Percentiles 2011-2015

Below, I've listed the ACT score percentiles for each Math scaled score from 2011 to 2015.

ACT Math Score 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
36 99 99 99 99 99
35 99 99 99 99 99
34 99 99 99 99 99
33 98 98 98 98 98
32 97 97 97 97 97
31 96 96 96 96 96
30 95 95 95 95 94
29 93 93 94 93 93
28 91 91 92 91 91
27 88 88 88 88 88
26 83 84 84 84 84
25 78 78 79 78 79
24 73 73 73 73 73
23 68 67 67 66 67
22 62 61 61 60 60
21 58 57 56 54 55
20 54 53 52 51 51
19 49 49 48 46 46
18 43 44 42 40 41
17 37 37 36 34 434
16 27 28 27 25 26
15 16 15 15 14 14
14 7 6 6 5 5
13 3 2 2 2 2
12 1 1 1 1 1
11 1 1 1 1 1
10 1 1 1 1 1
9 1 1 1 1 1
8 1 1 1 1 1
7 1 1 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 1 1
5 1 1 1 1 1
4 1 1 1 1 1
3 1 1 1 1 1
2 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1

 

 

body_books-6.jpg

 

ACT Reading Historical Percentiles 2011-2015

Below, I've listed the ACT percentiles for each Reading scaled score from 2011 to 2015.

ACT Reading Score 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
36 99 99 99 99 99
35 99 99 99 99 99
34 98 98 99 98 99
33 97 97 97 97 97
32 94 95 95 95 95
31 92 92 93 93 93
30 89 89 90 90 90
29 86 86 87 87 87
28 83 84 84 85 85
27 80 81 82 82 82
26 77 78 79 78 79
25 74 74 76 75 75
24 71 71 72 71 71
23 66 66 66 66 66
22 60 61 62 60 61
21 54 56 56 55 55
20 48 48 49 48 48
19 42 42 43 42 42
18 36 35 37 36 36
17 30 31 31 29 30
16 25 25 26 24 25
15 20 20 21 20 20
14 15 16 16 15 15
13 11 11 12 10 10
12 7 7 8 7 7
11 3 4 4 3 3
10 2 2 2 2 2
9 1 1 1 1 1
8 1 1 1 1 1
7 1 1 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 1 1
5 1 1 1 1 1
4 1 1 1 1 1
3 1 1 1 1 1
2 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1

 

 

body_science-3.jpg

 

ACT Science Historical Percentiles 2011-2015

Below, I've listed the ACT score percentiles for each Science scaled score from 2011 to 2015.

ACT Science Score 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
36 99 99 99 99 99
35 99 99 99 99 99
34 99 99 99 99 99
33 98 98 99 99 99
32 97 97 98 98 98
31 95 96 97 97 97
30 94 95 96 96 96
29 93 93 94 95 95
28 92 92 92 93 93
27 89 90 90 91 90
26 87 86 87 87 87
25 82 83 84 83 83
24 76 77 77 77 77
23 69 70 70 69 70
22 62 63 64 62 62
21 55 55 57 55 56
20 48 48 48 47 47
19 40 41 40 38 38
18 33 32 33 31 31
17 27 27 26 24 24
16 22 21 22 19 20
15 16 16 17 15 15
14 12 13 13 12 11
13 9 9 10 8 8
12 6 6 7 6 6
11 3 4 4 4 4
10 2 2 2 2 2
9 1 1 1 1 1
8 1 1 1 1 1
7 1 1 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 1 1
5 1 1 1 1 1
4 1 1 1 1 1
3 1 1 1 1 1
2 1 1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1

 

 

What's Next?

Got more questions about ACT scores? Learn about what qualifies as a good ACT score for your college and how to calculate your target score.

Already got an ACT score goal? Then try our 15 top tips for taking the ACT or our 20-hour prep guide.

Finally, make sure you're studying the right way with our guide to reviewing your mistakes.

 

 



Have friends who also need help with test prep? Share this article!
About the Author
author image
Dora Seigel

As an SAT/ACT tutor, Dora has guided many students to test prep success. She loves watching students succeed and is committed to helping you get there. Dora received a full-tuition merit based scholarship to University of Southern California. She graduated magna cum laude and scored in the 99th percentile on the ACT. She is also passionate about acting, writing, and photography.



Ask a Question Below

Have any questions about this article or other topics? Ask below and we'll reply!