How ACT scoring and superscoring work

Your current ACT Composite is the rounded average of your English, Math and Reading scores. Your superscore uses your highest result in each of those sections across eligible test dates. Both use the ACT's 1–36 scale. Science and Writing are reported separately; taking either one does not add it to the current Composite formula.

Once you understand the calculation, use our guide to what makes a good ACT score to compare your result with the goals that matter to you.

From correct answers to a section score

Each multiple-choice section starts with a raw score: the number of scored questions you answered correctly. ACT does not deduct points for incorrect answers, so answer every question within the time allowed, even if you have to guess.

Some questions are unscored. When you mark an official practice test, follow its answer key and leave those items out of the raw total. Then use that test's conversion table to find your section score. ACT's Practice Test 2 scoring instructions, on printed page 62, explain why the conversion varies between forms. A chart from a different test can give you the wrong result.

You cannot calculate a section score by multiplying your percentage correct by 36. The conversion table accounts for differences between test forms. Keep the test booklet and its scoring key together when you save practice materials.

Calculate your Composite after scaling each section

Add your English, Math and Reading section scores, divide by three, and round the result to the nearest whole number. ACT's rounding rule rounds fractions below one-half down and fractions of one-half or more up.

If you left English, Math or Reading completely blank during practice, ACT's instructions on printed page 67 say not to calculate a Composite. Keep the results for the sections you attempted; do not assign a section score to the blank section.

For a hypothetical student with English 27, Math 24 and Reading 26, the sum is 77. Dividing by three gives about 25.67, so the Composite is 26. Each section has equal weight in this calculation, regardless of how many questions it contains.

If you take Science, you receive a separate Science result and a STEM score based on Math and Science. Writing has its own 2–12 score. ACT explains these additional scores; neither optional section changes the three scores used for your current Composite.

Calculate a superscore from your best sections

ACT calculates a superscore automatically for students who have tested more than once since September 2016. For the current calculation, select your highest English, highest Math and highest Reading, even if they came from different dates. Average those three scores and round.

The following example uses two hypothetical sittings under the current scoring rules.

Illustrative scores, not student data. Method: ACT superscore guidance. Checked November 5, 2026.

The first sitting totals 77 section points; the second totals 78. Both round to 26. The highest sections total 81, giving a superscore of 27. Averaging the two Composite scores would miss the improvement in Math.

Rounding also explains why an additional section point may leave the Composite unchanged. In this example, increasing the best Math result from 28 to 29 would produce 82 ÷ 3, about 27.33, which still rounds to 27. A Math result of 30 would produce 83 ÷ 3, about 27.67, which rounds to 28. These are section-score points, not numbers of correct answers, and the calculation does not predict how quickly you can earn them.

Using scores from the older ACT

The older Composite included Science and averaged four sections. ACT introduced the three-section calculation with the enhanced test in April 2025; it applies to all students taking an ACT in or after September 2025. Keep that distinction in mind when comparing an older report with a current one.

Your best English, Math or Reading can still come from an older test. ACT permits sections from either version in the current superscore. Science no longer enters that Composite calculation, even if it was your strongest older section.

If all your results predate the change, check the superscore displayed in MyACT and the recipient's instructions. Keep the original test dates and reported Composites; do not replace an official result with a number you calculated using a different formula.

What colleges receive and how they use it

Sending an ACT superscore report also sends your highest section results, including Science and Writing if taken, and supporting full reports from the test events that supplied your highest sections and highest Composite. A lower result from one of those dates can therefore be visible alongside your best results.

Each institution decides how to use multiple scores. At MIT, the admissions instructions say to self-report full sittings from all exams taken. MIT primarily considers the highest section scores, but expects full effort at every sitting and may consider a major discrepancy. It also tells applicants not to enter a self-calculated superscore as though it came from one test date.

Before sending results, read both the admissions instructions and any separate scholarship rules for each recipient. Record whether it uses superscoring, which sittings it requests and whether self-reporting is enough at application time. MIT, for example, allows self-reporting for the application and verifies results upon enrollment. Follow the institution's process rather than assuming every application needs an immediate paid report.

When an official report is required, MyACT lets you send a superscore or an individual test event. Check which report you selected and where it is going.

Use the calculation to choose your next study task

In the worked example, another Math improvement could increase the superscore while the earlier English and Reading results remain its best components. That arithmetic is useful only if your intended recipient uses superscoring. It also tells you nothing about which Math skills need attention; review missed practice questions before choosing the next topic to study.

You still need to prepare for a full sitting. ACT does not offer section-only retesting. Give each required section your full effort, and use ACT's official superscore calculator to check your arithmetic against your test dates before making a reporting decision.

Once you have a score target and a study priority, explore ACT preparation with Sharp.