How to Build an SAT Study Plan: 4 Sample Schedules

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To do well on the SAT, you’ll need to have an SAT study plan. This plan tells you what, when, and how to prep for the SAT. It also helps you manage your time so that you’re not focusing too much (or too little) on certain topics and skills.

In this guide, we give you four SAT study plans to choose from, based on your SAT score goals. Before we dive into those, though, let’s go over the benefits of having an SAT study schedule and the preliminary steps you'll need to take to get your SAT plan off the ground.

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What Are the Benefits of a Study Plan for SAT Prep?

Everyone who takes the SAT should have a study plan. But what exactly can an SAT plan do for you?

For one, an SAT study plan lets you balance your schedule so that you’re spending enough time prepping for the SAT but not overworking yourself. For example, if you’ve got two months until your test date, an SAT plan tells you how many hours per week you must study so that you’re prepping regularly but not squeezing in too many study hours each day.

An SAT study schedule also tells you when and how to study the topics you must master to get a high score. If you're not sure where to start with algebra, for instance, a good plan will show you when and how to study all major algebraic concepts you need to know for the test. Likewise, an SAT plan should give you time to review and strengthen any content weaknesses you have.

Finally, a solid SAT study schedule indicates whether you’re improving. By studying consistently for several weeks or months, you’ll be able to determine whether your SAT score is in fact getting higher, as well as whether you’re getting more questions correct in your weaker areas. The easiest way to check your progress is to use official SAT practice tests (we'll tell you how to use these later).

As you can see, an SAT studying schedule can greatly benefit you. With a plan, you’ll not only be able to manage your prep time better but will also be able to use your time more effectively to hone the skills and study the content areas you struggle with the most. What’s more, you can use your plan to help you track your progress and see whether you’re improving your likelihood of getting the SAT score you want.

Getting Started on Your SAT Study Plan: 5 Preliminary Steps

Don't jump into an SAT study schedule without a plan! These five preliminary steps will help you gather the info and materials you need to choose the right SAT plan for you.

Step 1: Set a Target Score

First and foremost, you'll need to set an SAT goal score. A goal score is the score most likely to get you into all of the schools you’re applying to.

To get your goal score, you must find the 25th and 75th percentile SAT scores for each of your schools (excluding any safety schools). But what does these numbers mean? And where can you find them?

The 25th and 75th percentile scores represent the middle 50 percent of scores for admitted applicants, or the average range of scores. A 75th percentile score means you’re scoring higher than 75 percent of admitted applicants to a school, while a 25th percentile score means you're scoring higher than only 25 percent. The best way to keep track of your schools' SAT info is to make a chart (or download our pre-made chart).

Once you've got a chart, get on Google and search for “[School Name] PrepScholar." Then, click the link to your school’s “Admission Requirements” page. On this page, you'll see a table listing your school's 25th and 75th percentile SAT scores.

Repeat this process for each of your schools until you’ve got all 25th and 75th percentile scores in your chart. Then, choose the highest 75th percentile score in your chart; this will be your SAT goal score since it’s the one most likely to get you into all of your schools.

Let’s say I am applying to the University of Hawaii at Manoa, UC Davis, the University of Oregon, and the University of Washington. Of these schools, the highest 75th percentile score is 1420 (for the University of Washington). This means my SAT goal score would be 1420.

Step 2: Find Your Baseline Score

The next step is to get your baseline score. This score is essentially your starting point; it’s the score you’d get on the SAT at this very moment, without any prep.

To find your baseline score, take an official SAT practice test. Official tests are the best resources for getting a baseline since they’re the most similar to the SAT. As you take your practice test, try to recreate real testing conditions as closely as possible: take it in a quiet room, use an SAT-approved device, and follow the instructions in the Bluebook carefully.

Once you finish, use your test’s scoring guide to calculate your scores for each section as well as overall (out of 1600). Your total score—that is, your Math and Reading & Writing scores combined—will be your baseline score. So if I earned a 630 on Math and a 600 on R&W, my baseline score would be 1230.

Your baseline score is your starting point in SAT prep.

Step 3: Calculate How Many Hours You’ll Need to Study

Next, use the info you got in steps 1 and 2 to calculate the approximate number of hours you’ll need to study to raise your current score to your target score. To do this, subtract your baseline score from your goal score. Then, match the difference you get to the numbers below to see how many total hours you'll need to prep for the SAT:

0-30 point improvement: 10 hours
30-70 point improvement: 20 hours
70-130 point improvement: 40 hours
130-200 point improvement: 80 hours
200-330 point improvement: 150 hours+

As you can see, the bigger the point increase you want, the more hours you’ll need to study.

In my example from steps 1 and 2, my goal score was 1420 and my baseline score was 1230. The difference between these two scores is 190 points. Using the conversions above, I find that 190 points translates to about 80 study hours.

Step 4: Choose a Test Date

When taking the SAT, always choose a test date that:

Gives you ample time to prepare for the exam
Fits well with your schedule
Ensures your scores will get to your schools in time

Let's look at time first. The amount of time you’ll need for SAT prep will vary depending on your baseline and goal scores. Simply put, the more hours you need to study, the more time you should give yourself before your test date.

Generally, anywhere from three to six months of study time should be enough. However, you might find you have less (e.g., a month) or more (e.g., a year) time than this. In any case, try to find a time frame that lets you easily fit in the total number of hours you need to study.

Secondly, pick a date that works well with any obligations or commitments you have (personal, school, or otherwise). For example, if you’re starring in a school play in April, a spring SAT probably wouldn’t work as well for you as a summer or fall SAT would.

Lastly, if you’re taking the SAT as a senior, choose a date that's guaranteed to get your scores to your schools before your college application deadlines. If your scores arrive after the deadlines, your application could get disqualified. In general, seniors (who aren’t applying early action or early decision) should be safe with all fall test dates and likely the December test date—but not anything later!

Step 5: Gather Study Materials

It's important to gather all of your study materials before you begin prepping for the SAT. This way you won’t waste any study time trying to find resources you can use.

Official SAT resources are by far the best ones to use. Luckily, the College Board has released many free prep materials online. Here's what we recommend using in your prep:

Official SAT practice tests: These full-length tests are exactly like the real SAT in terms of structure and overall content. They're the closest you can get to taking the SAT without actually taking it!

Official practice questions: You can access tons of practice questions for all SAT sections through the College Board website. Each question comes with a question difficulty and detailed answer explanation to help you understand how to find the right answer.

Khan Academy: A free partner website with the College Board, Khan Academy offers thousands of official practice questions, answer explanations, and video lessons for the SAT.

Furthermore, there are many high-quality, unofficial SAT resources you can buy. Our guide to the best SAT prep books offers a look at which prep books are worth investing in. As a reminder, always be a little pickier with unofficial resources since many are low quality and don’t contain realistic SAT practice questions.

We give each of our four SAT study plans four stars.

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4 SAT Study Plan Options for You to Choose From

Now that you’ve finished all preliminary steps for your SAT plan, it’s time to find the plan that’s right for you. Below, we give you four SAT study plans to choose from. These plans differ in both length of time (e.g., one month, three months, etc.) and intensity (that is, the total number of hours you’ll need to study per week).

Each SAT study plan gives you an overview of what to study for the week and comes with suggested time frames. These guidelines tell you (approximately) how much time you should spend on each activity. That said, you are welcome to tweak them if you feel you need more or less time with a certain topic.

Remember, a good SAT prep plan will adapt to fit your needs. If you're stronger at math and want more study time for Reading and Writing, it's OK to replace some of your Math prep time with Reading and Writing prep. Just know that by changing content focuses or time frames, you'll likely need to shift other days' topics or make up for missed time on other days. Ultimately, what's most important is that you're getting in the total number of study hours you need.

Now, let's take a look at our study plans. We offer the following four programs:

A three-month program of medium intensity (80 hours)
A three-month program of low intensity (40 hours)
A six-month program of medium intensity (150 hours)
A one-month program of high intensity (40 hours)

SAT Study Plan 1: Three-Month Program, Medium Intensity

This moderate, three-month SAT plan aims to get you as many as 200 points on test day. To reach this goal, you'll need to study a total of 80 hours, or six and a half hours per week. Since you'll be spending several hours a week prepping, this SAT plan is best if you're studying over the summer and taking the SAT in the fall.

As with any plan, you may spread out your hours however you like each week. Those studying in the summer should try to prep fairly regularly—two or three days a week is ideal. On the other hand, if you’re currently in school, it may be easier to study mostly on weekends. In the end, just do what works best for you!

To be successful, always start with the foundation.

Month 1: The Basics

This month is all about familiarizing yourself with the SAT's structure and content.

Week 1: Get to Know the SAT

1. Take a practice test to get your baseline score. If you haven’t taken an official SAT practice test yet, use this time to take one and get your baseline score. Try to take the test in a quiet room without distractions so that you’re getting an accurate representation of your current SAT abilities.

Suggested Time: 3hrs

2. Score your test and analyze your results. Calculate your baseline score and take some time to see what kinds of questions and content areas you struggled with on the test.

Suggested Time: 1 hr

3. Learn the format of the exam. To do well on the SAT, you’ll need to understand the format of the test, including what kinds of concepts it tests and how these concepts are given as questions.

Suggested Time: 1.5 hrs

Weeks 2 and 3 Focus on Reading & Writing

1. Read about the changes to this section of the SAT. Now that these two subjects have been combined, you want to familiarize yourself with the types of questions you'll be asked.

Suggested Time: 1 hr

2. Figure out the best passage-reading strategy for you. Even though the passages on the Digital SAT are shorter and contain only one question, you still need to be strategic when it comes to pulling out the most important information. You also need to be aware of how long it is taking you to complete a passage and work on extracting the main idea in less time.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

3. Try out Reading practice questions with the strategy you’ve chosen. Put your strategy to the test and aim to get better at it the more you use it.

Suggested Time: 1.5 hrs

4. Familiarize yourself with the types of questions you'll see in this section. Understand how language questions apply to reading, what content domains are covered, and what sorts of grammar and stylistic rules you’ll need to know.

Suggested Time: 2 hrs

5. Review core English grammar topics and punctuation rules. Go over standard English conventions and familiarize yourself with the kinds of errors you’ll see on the SAT.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

6. Practice answering Reading & Writing questions on Bluebook. This strategy might differ from the one you use for the Reading section. To figure out which one you like most, take some Writing practice tests, using a different strategy each time. Stick with the one that gives you the highest score.

Suggested Time: 2 hrs

Week 4: Move Toward Math

1. Learn the Math test format. Understand the differences between the No Calculator and Calculator subsections as well as the differences between multiple-choice questions and student-produced responses.

Suggested Time: 2 hrs

2. Review basic math concepts. Start by reading our guide to integers and our advanced guide to integers. Then, check out our fundamental guide to fractions, ratios, and proportions.

Suggested Time: 2 hrs

3. Go over major algebraic concepts, including:

Algebra plays a key part on SAT Math, so you’ll need to know what it is and how it looks on the SAT.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

You can't do well on the SAT without strategy.

Month 2: Strategies

For this month, you'll study additional concepts you need to know and learn basic test-taking strategies that'll help you attack questions effectively on test day.

Week 5: Learn More Math

1. Get to know other SAT Math concepts, specifically those in the realms of advanced math and problem solving and data analysis. Topics include:

Statistics
Reading data tables, bar graphs, histograms, and scatterplots
Quadratic and nonlinear functions and equations
Exponential functions and equations
Polynomials
Coordinate geometry (points, lines and slopes, etc.)
Plane and solid geometry (lines and angles, polygons, solid geometry, etc.)
Trigonometry

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

2. Memorize important formulas. Get down the main formulas for SAT Math.

Suggested Time: 1 hr

3. Practice SAT Math questions and drill difficult topics. As you practice, check your answers and analyze your mistakes so that you can see which concepts you need to study more.

Suggested Time: 3 hrs

Week 6: Start Strategizing

1. Learn key SAT Math strategies, including plugging in answers and plugging in numbers. In addition, learn how to pace yourself and practice guessing strategically on Math.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

2. Learn key SAT Reading strategies and Writing tips. Understand what to look for in different question types and how to rule out incorrect answer choices. Also, study possible vocabulary words.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

3. Practice Math, Reading, and Writing questions. Put your strategies to the test with realistic practice questions for each section of the exam.

Suggested Time: 1.5 hrs

Week 7: Check Your Progress

1. Take an official practice test. You'll use this score to see how much you’ve improved since your baseline test. As always, try to recreate a real SAT-testing environment as you take the test.

Suggested Time: 4 hrs

2. Score your practice test and determine your weaknesses. Look at your results to get a clearer idea of what you’ve improved and what you’re still struggling with. Over the next month, you'll primarily study the weaknesses you find in this test.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

3. Week 8: Take a Breather

You've earned it!

Test day is coming up, which means it's time to start reviewing.

Month 3: Review & Practice

Almost done! In this last month, you’ll focus mainly on reviewing and practicing what you've already studied. This means there will be no new content to learn.

Week 9: Strengthen Your Weaknesses

1. Use high-quality practice questions to drill any major weaknesses you still have. For example, if you’re struggling to get trig questions right, review the basic concepts you need to know and test yourself with more trig questions.

Suggested Time: 6.5 hrs

Week 10: Check Your Progress

1. Take your third and final practice test. This will give you a last-minute look at what kinds of weaknesses you still have at this point.

Suggested Time: 4 hrs

2. Score your test and closely analyze your results. Are there any areas you really need to improve these next two weeks? What confuses you or eats up your time? Learn what's holding you back and then attack it head-on.

Suggested Time: 2.5 hrs

Week 11: Practice Still-Difficult Concepts

1. Spend all of your time reviewing and practicing difficult concepts. Use practice questions to try out what you've learned and to ensure you’re making progress on the concepts you struggle with the most.

Suggested Time: 6.5 hrs

Week 12: Review as Needed

1. Keep reviewing concepts or strategies you still need to work on—but don’t overdo it. This week should feel more relaxed than other weeks. As you study, focus on staying calm and confident. Don’t study the day before the test or the day of your test; you’ll need this time to give your brain a break and calm your nerves.

Suggested Time: 6.5 hrs (with 0 hrs on test day and the day before the test)

SAT Study Plan 2: Three-Month Program, Low Intensity

Compared to the plan above, this SAT schedule is slightly more relaxed and instead targets those looking to make smaller gains—anywhere from 70 to 130 points. With this plan, you’ll study a total of 40 hours, or only about three and a half hours per week.

This plan is ideal for those studying for the SAT during the school year, though you can also use it during the summer. If you're any having trouble finding time to prep during the week, try opting for Saturdays and Sundays.

You need to go back to the basics if you want to do well on the SAT.