SAT and ACT · no account, no e-mail
ACT scores: what yours means, school by school
The national ACT average for the class of 2025 was 19.4; at a selective university the score that counts is the one at or above its 75th percentile.
SAT takers of the class of 2026 scoring below that score (estimate)
74%
| SAT equivalent (concordance) | 1,210 |
| Universities where you are above the 75th percentile | 0 of 96 |
| Inside the middle 50% | 18 of 96 |
| Below the 25th percentile | 78 of 96 |
| ACT national average, class of 2025 | 19.4 |
Share below: interpolated between the quartiles and score bands the College Board published for the class of 2026. University ranges: newest cycle each school published. How this is calculated.
Built by Radif Partners · Method and data · Editorial policy
The ACT composite runs from 1 to 36. ACT reports that almost 1.4 million students of the class of 2025, about 36% of American high school graduates, took the test at least once, with a national average composite of 19.4, and that 30% met at least three of its four college readiness benchmarks. Since September 2025 the composite averages English, math and reading only, science becoming optional, and ACT says the new composite is comparable to the old one. On the official concordance a 24 matches an SAT of 1,180, a 30 matches 1,370 and a 34 matches 1,500. Among the 96 universities on this site with a published ACT range, a 30 is at or above the 75th percentile at 14 and inside the middle 50% at 35.
Composite, sections and superscore
The composite is the rounded average of the section scores. For students testing from September 2025, those sections are English, math and reading; the science section is optional and reported separately, along with a STEM score for students who take it. Universities that superscore keep the best section scores across sittings and recompute the composite, and ACT reports that students in the class of 2025 who tested more than once raised their superscore by about two points on average. The ranges in university Common Data Sets usually describe the composite as sent by enrolled students, superscored or not depending on the school.
ACT to SAT in one step
SAT equivalent
1,280
| SAT range for that ACT | 1,260 to 1,290 |
2018 ACT/SAT Concordance Tables.
Where a composite places you
The tool above counts the universities where your composite is above the 75th percentile, inside the middle 50% or below the 25th, using each school's newest published range. A 28 is above the national average by a wide margin and inside the range at many flagship public universities; at Vanderbilt or the University of Chicago the middle half of enrolled students sits well above it. Remember that at test-optional schools the ACT range comes only from students who chose to send a score, and that the share of enrolled students who submitted the ACT is often small next to the SAT share.
ACT or SAT?
Every university on this site that reads scores accepts both tests and treats them equally. The choice is about which format suits you: the ACT moves faster through more questions, while the digital SAT is shorter and adapts to your answers. Many students take a practice test of each and keep the one where their concorded score is higher. The conversion table gives the official equivalence in both directions.
Regional habits
The ACT has long been more common in the Midwest and South, and some states give it free to every junior during the school day, which is why state averages vary widely and say little about any one student. For admission, compare yourself with the range of the school, not with your state.
What a score does not do
A composite above a university's 75th percentile clears the academic threshold; it does not offset an application without depth elsewhere, especially where the admit rate is below 15%. Below the 25th percentile, a test-optional school may still admit you on grades and courses. Check the testing policy on each university page before deciding whether to send the score.
Choosing which score to send
If you hold both an ACT and an SAT, convert one into the other with the official table and compare each to the range the university publishes for that test. Send the score that sits higher within its own range. Most universities let you choose which results to send, and many superscore across dates, so a single strong sitting is enough; a composite near the 75th percentile is worth more than three middling attempts.