What is a good ACT score?

A 24 is a strong ACT score nationally: it has an 80th-percentile Composite rank in ACT's 2026–27 table. Whether it is enough for your plans depends on the colleges and scholarships you are considering. Start with the national comparison, then choose a target that serves a particular purpose on your list.

How does your ACT score compare nationally?

A percentile tells you the share of the comparison group who scored at or below your result. It is not your percentage of correct answers or your chance of admission. ACT's current ranks use ACT-tested graduates from 2024–26 and apply to tests taken September 2026 through August 2027.

Source: ACT national ranks, Composite column. Checked November 5, 2026.

The mean Composite in that pooled reference group is 19.1. That gives you a national reference point. It cannot tell you what a particular admissions office needs from your application.

What does a college's ACT range tell you?

Look for the college's latest class profile or Common Data Set, and read the population label beside the numbers. A profile of admitted applicants and a profile of enrolled students describe different groups.

In the Common Data Set's C9 instructions, ACT percentiles describe enrolled first-year students who submitted ACT scores. The middle 50% runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile. It does not describe students who enrolled without submitting an ACT.

For a hypothetical college with a reported range of 24–28, a 26 falls inside that band. You can use that comparison to plan, but it does not establish that you will be admitted. Nor does a 23 establish that you cannot be admitted. A descriptive range becomes a requirement only if the college separately states one. For example, MIT says it has no ACT or SAT cutoff or recommended score; it evaluates scores in an applicant's context.

Read the number or share of ACT submitters alongside the range. If relatively few enrolled students submitted ACT scores, those results give you a narrower picture of the class. Don't assume that the missing students had a particular score, and don't substitute the college's SAT range for an ACT range it has not published.

If you are comparing your own results across exams, our SAT–ACT score conversion resource serves that different purpose. It does not supply a college's missing ACT data.

Turn your college list into a score target

Make one row for each college, program or scholarship that could affect your testing plan. Save the source link and the date you checked it. Your notes should answer these questions:

• Does this admissions cycle require scores, consider them if submitted, or exclude them from review?
• What is the published ACT range, which entering class does it describe, and how many students submitted ACT scores?
• Does a program or scholarship state a minimum score or a particular score format, such as a single sitting or an accepted superscore?
• What is the last acceptable test date or score-receipt deadline?

Check those policies on the institution's own pages. An earlier class's score range is context for your plan; the policy for your application cycle controls what you must submit. For example, Duke is test-optional for the 2026–27 admissions cycle. That is a policy with a stated cycle, not a permanent assumption to make about every future applicant.

The example below shows how to use your notes. Every college, score range and award condition in it is fictional. Suppose you have a 25 and are deciding what another test would accomplish.

Source: original illustrative example, not institutional data or an admission forecast. Checked November 5, 2026.

If the scholarship office confirms that a 26 from an accepted score format satisfies its test condition, 26 becomes a useful first target. It is one point above your current 25. You would still need to satisfy the award's other conditions; reaching 26 alone would not establish that you receive it.

For College B, suppose you have eight weeks available and want to work toward its reported range. You might choose 28 as an interim preparation goal from your starting 25, then reassess after four weeks using an unused official practice test under comparable conditions. A 28 would still be below the fictional 30–33 range, but it would narrow the gap and give you a checkpoint before committing the remaining time.

At that checkpoint, review your result and remaining errors before deciding whether to keep working toward 30. If the plan no longer fits your available time, revise it with your counselor while reviewing your college list. Neither 28 nor 30 is a predicted result or an admission threshold; they are provisional goals chosen for this example. Your starting point and available time may lead to different ones.

If you do not yet have a college list, take an official free ACT practice test and record your starting results. Use them to begin preparation while you research colleges. You can revise a provisional target when you have something specific to compare it with.

Should you retake the ACT?

Before registering again, finish this sentence: “A higher score would help me meet ___, and my next study sessions will address ___.” The first blank should name a goal from your notes. The second should name a problem you found in your work, such as setting up ratios or finding evidence in a reading passage.

Then check the deadline and the time you can give to preparation. A retake has a clearer purpose when there is a useful target, a specific assignment and time to work on it. If you have reached the goals you set, or cannot prepare before the last accepted test, spending that time on other application work may be the better choice. Neither decision needs a universal “good enough” score.

If you have tested more than once, check the college's superscoring policy before assuming another sitting is necessary. ACT's current Superscore Composite combines your highest English, Math and Reading scores across test dates. Colleges decide whether and how to use it. Your individual section results can therefore help you choose what to work on, even when two students have the same Composite.

Once you have a score target and a next assignment, explore ACT preparation with Sharp.