How is the ACT scored?
Each ACT section is scored from 1 to 36. Your Composite score is the average of English, Math and Reading, rounded to the nearest whole number: below one-half rounds down, one-half or more rounds up. Science is optional and no longer counts toward the Composite. Your score is based only on correct answers, and there is no penalty for wrong ones.
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In more detail
Scoring works in two steps. First, ACT counts your correct answers in each section, your raw score. Then it converts each raw score to a scale score from 1 to 36. The conversion differs slightly between test forms, so a 25 means the same thing on any test date. Not every question counts: English has 40 scored questions plus 10 field-test items, Math 41 plus 4, Reading 27 plus 9 and Science 34 plus 6.
Science used to be part of the Composite. ACT dropped it for national online tests in April 2025 and for all tests in September 2025. If you take Science, you still get a Science score and a STEM score, the average of Math and Science. If you take the optional Writing test, it is scored separately from 2 to 12 and does not change your Composite.
Your Superscore is the average of your best English, Math and Reading scores across all your test dates, so a retest can only help your best mix. Science is left out of the Superscore too. For context, the national average Composite was 19.4 in 2024.
ACT scores at a glance
| Score | Range | How it is built | In the Composite? |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | 1-36 | 40 scored questions | Yes |
| Math | 1-36 | 41 scored questions | Yes |
| Reading | 1-36 | 27 scored questions | Yes |
| Science (optional) | 1-36 | 34 scored questions | No |
| Composite | 1-36 | Average of English, Math, Reading | - |
| STEM | 1-36 | Average of Math and Science | No |
| Writing (optional) | 2-12 | Essay, scored separately | No |
Step by step
- 1
Write down your English, Math and Reading scale scores.
- 2
Add them up. Example: 25 + 23 + 23 = 71.
- 3
Divide by 3. Here 71 / 3 = 23.67.
- 4
Round to the nearest whole number. A fraction of one-half or more rounds up, so 23.67 becomes a Composite of 24. With 70, you get 23.33, which rounds down to 23.
- 5
If you took Science, average Math and Science for your STEM score.
- 6
For your Superscore, take your best English, Math and Reading from any test dates and average them the same way.
How StudyPDF helps
StudyPDF does not calculate your official ACT score. It helps you raise it. Upload pages from your ACT prep book, your class notes or a practice test you already took, and StudyPDF builds flashcards, a quiz or a timed practice exam from them. It tracks which topics you keep missing, so your next quiz targets them. A free account needs no credit card.
Sources
See also
- AnswerSAT vs ACT: which test should you take?
- AnswerHow hard is the NCLEX?
- AnswerHow many questions are on the NCLEX?
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- Practice testACT Practice Questions
- AnswerHow many questions are on the ACT?
- TermNorm-referenced test
- AnswerWhat is a perfect ACT score?
- AnswerWhen do ACT scores come out?
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More questions
Is the ACT curved?
Not against other students. Your raw score is converted to a scale score with a table made for your test form. A harder form can need fewer correct answers for the same scale score, so the scores mean the same on every test date.
Does a wrong answer lower your ACT score?
No. Only correct answers count and there is no penalty for wrong ones. Always answer every question, even if you have to guess.
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