If you’re beginning to study for the ACT, you’re probably wondering how the ACT is scored. Understanding the ACT scoring system can give you a huge leg up as you set goals and make a study plan.
Read on to learn how the ACT is scored, section by section, with official ACT scoring charts. We also include our five top strategies related to ACT scoring so you can use this information to your advantage.
Overview of ACT Scoring
So how is the ACT scored? The ACT has four multiple choice sections, sometimes called subject areas: English, Math, Reading, and optional Science. Each subject area is given a scaled score between 1 and 36. The optional Writing section is scored with a completely different process, resulting in a score out of 12.
Your composite score, which also ranges between 1 and 36, is the average of your scores from English, Math, and Reading.
So where do those scaled scores come from? The scaled scores from 1 to 36 are converted from your raw scores on each of the subject areas. Your raw score is the number of scored questions you answer correctly in each section. Experimental questions are not counted and there is no point deduction for wrong answers on the ACT.
How Are Raw ACT Scores Turned Into Scaled Scores?
The first thing to understand about ACT scores is that the score you get for each subject area, between 1 and 36, is a scaled score. That scaled score is converted from your raw score. The reason the ACT (as well as other standardized tests) uses scaled scores is to make sure their scores are consistent across multiple test dates. In other words, they have to make sure a 28 on an April ACT represents the same level of skill as a 28 on a June ACT.
Scaling is not curving your score relative to the scores of other students who take the test the same day as you. What scaling does is analyze average scores for each version of the ACT to ensure no test date is easier or harder than another.
You can see more details about the ACT raw score to scaled score conversion in our complete guide.
However, the process of scaling means that on different editions of the ACT, raw scores can translate to scaled scores differently. In other words, these numbers aren’t set in stone, but they can give you an idea of what raw score to shoot for on each section.
How Is My Composite ACT Score Computed?
To recap, we know that you get a score of between 1 and 36 for each subject area, which is converted from your raw score. But how do those your area scores combine to your final composite score?
Your composite score is simply the average of your three score area scores, rounded to the nearest whole number (half a point or more is rounded up, less than half a point is rounded down).
For example, say you got a 24 on the Math section, 27 on Reading, and 25 on English. Your composite score would be:
(24 + 27 + 25) / 4 = 25.33
This would be rounded down to 25.
What Are the ACT Subscores?
In addition to your main composite score and your subject area scores, your score report will give you additional information about your strengths and weaknesses in each subject.
There are no longer formal ACT subscores (excpet on Writing) and instead you will see a breakdown of how you did on each type of question in a section:
Should you worry about these? No. Colleges care most about your composite score on the ACT, and they may also look at four subject area scores. However, you can use the ACT subscores to help you prepare for the test since they break the subject areas down into manageable categories.
To help with that process, we are going to break down each section of the ACT.
ACT Section Breakdown
In this section, you will learn how many raw points are possible on each section of the ACT and how scores are calculated.
English
The English section of the ACT has 50 multiple-choice questions, and the highest raw score you can earn is 40. Remember that your raw score is the total number of scored questions you answer correctly. Questions you leave blank or answer incorrectly, as well as experimental questions, are simply not added on to your raw score.
To give a scoring example, say you answer 35 questions correctly on the English section, get 10 wrong, and leave 5 blank. Assuming you got all 10 of the experimental questions correct, your raw score will be 25, the total amount of scored questions you got right. That raw score of 25 would convert to an estimated scaled score of 20.
Mathematics
The Math section of the ACT has 45 questions total, and the highest possible raw score is 41. Say you got 40 questions right, including all 4 experimental questions. Your raw score would be 36, would scale to roughly a 33.
Reading
The Reading section has 36 questions total, and the max raw score is 27. If you got 30 questions right, including all 8 experimental questions, your raw score would be 22, which converts to a scaled score of 28.
Science
The science section has 40 questions total, and the highest raw score here is 34. Science scores are calculated with the same method as the other three multiple choice sections, but they do not count towards your composite score.
What If I Take the ACT Plus Writing?
In addition to the four multiple choice subjects, it's also possible to take an additional writing section, which consists of just one essay. As we mentioned above, the Writing (like the Science) does not contribute to your Composite score.
But how is the essay scored? Your essay will be evaluated by two graders, who score your essay from 1-6 on each of four domains, leading to scores out of 12 for each domain. Your Writing score is calculated by averaging your four domain scores, leading to a total ACT Writing score from 2-12.
How To Use This Information
So now that you know how the ACT is scored, how can you use that info to get the biggest advantage on the test? Read on for our top five suggestions.
#1: Hide a Weak Subject
Since the ACT is averaged, not totaled, and there are four sections, you can "hide" a weak section more easily than on the SAT, which has three sections and totals your score. For example, say you struggle with math and got the following subject area scores on the ACT:
Reading: 30
English: 29
Math: 22
While you might think your math score is going to drag down your composite, since it is only one-third of your score, its effect isn’t huge:
(30 + 29 + 22) / 4 = 27
So even though your math score was a lot lower than the other three sections, you still come out with a 27 (which is an 88th percentile score).
While we are not recommending you don’t study for a certain section because it’s only one-third of your total ACT score, it is helpful to know that each subject area’s score will not make or break your composite.
#2: Maximize Your Composite Score
Since the composite is averaged, you should work to maximize your subject area scores that you are strong in as well as working to minimize weaknesses. Just focusing on trying to fix your weak spots could actually cause you to miss out on points.
For example, say you have always excelled in English and history classes but struggle with math. You might think you should spend all of your ACT studying time drilling math problems. However, working to maximize your strengths – in this case reading and writing – could improve your score the most.
Let’s take two scenarios. In the first, you spend all of your time studying for the math section and get the following scores:
English: 28
Reading: 27
Math: 25
Composite: 27
Not bad! You got your math score up to a 25, which is the 84th percentile, and got a composite of 27.
But what would have happened if you had spent some time on English and Reading and less time on math? If those are personal strengths, picking up a few points should be easy with some smart studying. So let’s say you spend some time extra study time on English and Reading and less time on math:
English: 31
Reading: 30
Math: 22
Composite: 28
So even if you got a lower score on math, the time spent studying on English and Reading could net you two higher section scores as opposed to just one, resulting in a higher composite.
#3: Guess on Every Single Question
Since there is no guessing penalty on the ACT, the best way to maximize your score is to eliminate wrong answer choices and guess. We aren't saying to rush through each section in order to attempt every single question — unless you're shooting for a top score you don't need to worry about getting every question right. Instead, for hard questions, try to eliminate some answer choices to give yourself the best shot at guessing the right answer.
Furthermore, when you have one minute remaining, go ahead and answer every question you have left. Even if you don't have to time to actually look at the question, you aren't losing anything by guessing. You might pick up a raw point or two on each section this way, which can have a surprising effect on your scaled score, as we have seen.
Try not to leave any blanks!
#5: Understand How Writing and Science Affect Your Score
If you take either optional ACT section, you'll receive a composite plus those scores. However, this doesn’t mean the Writing and Science should become the biggest priorities on your study plan. Your core subject area scores and composite score are the most important aspects of the ACT, so you should prioritize studying for English, Math, and Reading.
For most colleges, your essay score especially is the least important part of your ACT score. This means that a low essay score may not have much of a negative impact on your applications if your composite ACT score is high. Don't blow the essay off if you're taking it, but you should prioritize studying for the other sections of the ACT.
What's Next?
Now that you know how the ACT is scored, get started with actually improving your ACT score.
What's a good ACT score for college? Check out our step-by-step guide to figure out your target score.
Deciding between the ACT and SAT? Read our detailed guide on which is easier.
