SAT Curve: Is It Real?

Many high school tests are curved, but what about the SAT? Is the SAT curved? Can when or whom you take the exam with affect your final SAT score?

In this article, we'll answer all of your questions about the SAT curve. First, we'll closely examine whether there actually is an SAT curve and discuss how the SAT is scored. We'll then look at potential SAT curve trends and give you tips on how you can use typical SAT scores to your advantage.

Is the SAT Curved?

Contrary to what you may believe, there is no SAT curve. This means your SAT score will never be affected by how other test takers perform on the test. So even if everyone you took the SAT with were to perform poorly on it, the College Board would not raise everyone's SAT scores to account for the surplus of low test scores.

In other words, you will never receive an SAT score higher than what you actually earned on the test, regardless of whom you took the test with.

But if the SAT isn't curved relative to other test takers, how does its scoring system work? Is an 800 in Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) on one SAT from the same as a perfect EBRW score on another? Or is it more difficult to score highly on certain test dates?

First of all, it’s important to understand that every year there are multiple forms of the SAT exam. Which form you receive when you take the test is random. To account for slight differences in difficulty among SAT forms, the College Board uses a system known as equating. This process ensures that SAT scores are consistent across tests and will always indicate the same level of ability no matter when you take the SAT. So a 650 Math score on one SAT will always correspond to a 650 Math score on another SAT—even if one test contains easier Math questions.

In the College Board's words:

"This [equating] process ensures that no student receives an advantage or disadvantage from taking a particular form of the test on a particular day ;* a score of 400 on one test form is equivalent to a score of 400 on another test form."

*Emphasis mine.

Through this equating process, or the "SAT curves," the College Board can account for slight variations in difficulty among SATs to give test takers on different test dates the same opportunity to achieve their goal scores.

As a result, there is no single best time to take the SAT. Regardless of how easy or difficult a test may be, all SATs are equated so that getting a certain scaled score will always require the same amount of effort and level of ability.

So how is the SAT scored? And how is it equated? Read on to find out.

How Do SAT Curves Work?

Before we get into the SAT equating process, let's do a quick recap of the scoring system. Both the EBRW and Math scores use scales of 200-800 and combine to give you a composite score range of 400-1600. But you likely know there aren't 1,600 total questions on the SAT. So then how are these scaled scores calculated?

On the SAT, you earn one point for every question you answer correctly. (You do not lose any points for incorrect or blank answers.)

All of your correct answers combine to give you a raw score for each section. If you were to correctly answer 45 out of 58 Math questions, your raw Math score would equal 45. This raw score is subsequently converted into a Math section score (i.e., your final scaled score).

But the process is a little more complicated for the Reading and Writing sections. Like the Math section, your Reading and Writing performances are assigned raw scores based on the number of questions you answered correctly. These raw scores are then converted into test scores on a scale of 10-40. Finally, the test scores are added together and multiplied by 10 to give you an EBRW score (on a scale of 200-800—the same as it is for Math).

But here's the caveat: raw scores on one SAT form will not necessarily convert into the same scaled scores on another. Why is there this discrepancy?

Each SAT varies slightly in content and difficulty, and so to account for these variations, the College Board translates raw scores into scaled scores using individual equating formulas for each test. This essentially means you'll never be able to know before you take the SAT how a raw score will convert into a scaled score.

That said, by looking at a score conversion table from an official SAT practice test, we can get a rough idea as to how the equating process works for each SAT. These conversion tables—which differ slightly with each test due to differences in equating formulas—show us how raw scores convert into scaled scores for different sections of the test.

The two tables below are based on the score conversion tables for Practice Test #6 and Practice Test #7 (both of which are copies of real SATs!).

SAT Practice Test #6 Raw Score Conversion Chart

Source: Scoring Your SAT Practice Test #6

SAT Practice Test #7 Raw Score Conversion Chart

Source: Scoring Your SAT Practice Test #7

Just by glancing at these charts, you can probably tell there are several minor differences in how the raw scores for Math, Reading, and Writing convert into scaled or test scores.

For Math, a raw score of 40 would net you 620 on Test #6 but only 600 on Test #7! This hints that the Math section on Test #7 is a little easier than that on Test #6. How can we tell? On Test #7, you must answer more questions correctly (and obtain a higher raw score of 42) to get a scaled score of 620.

The trends are similar for Reading. You could get a perfect 40 on Reading on Test #6, even if you were to miss a question (and earn a raw score of 51). On Test #7, however, missing just one question reduces your Reading test score to 39. Once again, we can see a minute difference in difficulty: the Reading section on Test #6 is slightly more difficult than that on Test #7, and has thus been equated so that even if you were to miss a question you will still get a perfect score.

You'll find similar differences among the Writing scores, too. A raw score of 42 will nab you a near-perfect test score of 39 on Test #6 but a noticeably lower 37 on Test #7.

Ultimately, through these tables, we can confirm that raw SAT scores do not consistently convert into the same scaled scores for each test. So while you can't know for sure how many questions you'll need to answer correctly on the SAT in order to get the scaled scores you want, you can use the tables above to give yourself an idea as to how your raw scores may translate into scaled scores on test day.

How Has the SAT Curve Changed Over Time?

Because the current SAT hasn't been around for that many years, and the data the College Board puts out is limited, we can't determine yet how much the SAT curves have changed with each testing year. That being said, we can look at some of the official score range tables for previous testing years (for the old, pre-2016 SAT) to get a feel for how the current SAT might experience similar trends.

Score range tables show us how raw scores convert into scaled scores for entire testing years. For this analysis, we'll be looking at a 10-year difference using the 2005-06 and 2015-16 raw score to scaled score range tables for the old SAT.

2005-2006 SAT Score Range Table

Source: SAT Raw Score to Scaled Score Ranges 2005-06

2015-16 SAT Score Range Table

Source: SAT Raw Score to Scaled Score Range 2015-16

Let's start with the SAT Math curve. According to the data above, a raw Math score of 50 gave test takers as high as 750 in the 2005-06 testing year but only as high as 730 in the 2015-16 testing year. Similarly, if you look at the highest possible scaled score for each Math range, you'll find that the 2005-06 maximums are consistently (albeit only marginally) higher than those on the 2015-16 table. What this pattern tells us is that, on average, the Math sections on the 2005-06 SATs were slightly harder than those on the 2015-16 SATs. This is evidenced by the fact you typically needed to score more raw points in 2015-16 to get the same scaled Math scores in 2005-06.

But what about the other sections? On Writing, you used to be able to earn up to 49 raw points. In 2005-06, you could score as high as 770 with a raw score of 45 but only as high as 720 with the same raw score in 2015-16. And with the SAT Critical Reading curve, the 2005-06 and 2015-16 ranges are mostly the same, give or take 10 points.

Based on all of this information, then, what can we conclude about the SAT curve? The tables indicate that the number of questions you must answer correctly to get certain scaled scores has stayed roughly the same over the years. Generally speaking, the variations among scaled scores on each section are minimal—usually only 10- or 20-point differences at most. Therefore, these patterns—along with the fact that SAT percentiles hardly change each year—imply that the difficulty of the SAT has stayed relatively consistent over time.

Using the SAT Curve to Your Advantage: 5 Do's and Don'ts

By now you may be wondering how the SAT curve can help you, personally. Below, we give you the do's and don'ts of what to do with this knowledge about the SAT equating system, so that you can give yourself a better shot at getting the SAT scores you need for college.

Do:

• Use raw score conversion tables to estimate how many correct answers you'll need to get the scaled scores you want. Our recommendation is to first figure out your SAT goal scores. Once you have these scores, use any raw score conversion table from an SAT practice test (or multiple tests) to get a feel for the raw scores you'll need on each section in order to hit your (scaled) goal scores on test day. (Tests #5, #6, and #7 are all former SATs, so these are great tests to use!)

• Take the SAT curve with a grain of salt. Although the equating process can be helpful, at the end of the day nobody (except the College Board!) knows the exact equating formula for the SAT you're going to take. So don't worry too much about raw scores and how they convert into scaled scores—just know that while you can use equating tables to help you estimate the number of correct answers you'll need, this data will never be 100-percent applicable to your particular test.

Don't:

• Confuse the SAT equating process with a regular curve. As we mentioned before, there is no SAT curve—at least not in the traditional sense. On the SAT, how other test takers score has zero bearing on your score (though it does affect your SAT percentile). The only factor that influences your scaled score is the equating process, which varies with each SAT to ensure scaled scores represent the same levels of ability across tests.

• Assume when you take the test will affect your score. Again, this is a common misconception. Many people believe certain tests are easier to score higher on than others due to variations in difficulty or different abilities of test takers. But this isn't true! The equating process used means you don't gain or lose any likelihood of attaining a certain score, no matter when or with whom you take the SAT. In other words, if you want a 1400, you can get a 1400 just as easily on one test form as another.

• Try to game the system. Because you can't know for certain how your raw SAT scores will convert into scaled scores, it's impossible to use what we know about the equating process to cheat the system and guarantee yourself a higher score. Anyone who claims this is possible is flat-out wrong!

Now, sit back and grab your popcorn—it's time for the recap!

Recap: What Is the SAT Curve? How Does It Work?

So is the SAT curved? In short, no, the SAT isn't curved. However, the College Board does use an equating system, which ensures scaled SAT scores always correlate to the same levels of ability, no matter when you take the test.

Although there's no way of knowing for sure just how your raw scores will convert into scaled scores, you can use raw score to scaled score range tables from official SAT practice tests to help you approximate the number of questions you'll need to answer correctly on test day, so you can get the scaled scores you want. Unfortunately, these tables aren't a hundred percent reliable, as each test uses a different equating formula (that only the College Board knows).

Lastly, don't try to use the SAT curve to cheat the SAT. As long as you study hard and use high-quality resources, you'll be on your way to a high SAT score (and hopefully the college of your dreams) in no time!

What's Next?

You understand how the SAT curve works—but what about the scoring system? Read our in-depth guide to how the SAT is scored to learn more about the equating process and how subscores and cross-test scores come into play.

Want to learn more about SAT scores? Find your goal score with our step-by-step guide and learn about the current averages. Once you're finished with those, check out my article on SAT scores for colleges to see what kinds of scores you'll need for popular schools!

If you enjoyed this article, you'll love my analysis of the ACT curve!