How the ACT is scored
Each ACT section is scored on a 1 to 36 scale. Your raw score is the number of questions you answered correctly (no penalty for wrong answers), and ACT converts it to the scale score with a conversion table that is equated separately for every test form, so the same raw score can be worth a point more or less on different dates. The composite is the average of your section scale scores, rounded to the nearest whole number with .5 rounding up.
scale score = table(raw) per section, 1 to 36 composite = round(mean of scale scores) .5 rounds up enhanced ACT without Science: mean of English, Math, Reading
Enhanced ACT vs classic ACT
The enhanced ACT launched online in April 2025 and on paper in September 2025. It is shorter (about two hours instead of three), the passages are shorter, and Science is optional, like Writing. Students who take Science still get a Science score and a STEM score, but only English, Math, and Reading go into the composite when Science is skipped. Both formats report scores on the same 1 to 36 scale.
| Section | Enhanced ACT (2025 on) | Classic ACT | In composite |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | 50 questions | 75 questions | Always |
| Math | 45 questions | 60 questions | Always |
| Reading | 36 questions | 40 questions | Always |
| Science | 40 questions, optional | 40 questions | Only if taken (enhanced); always (classic) |
ACT has not released a stand-alone conversion table for the enhanced format, so for enhanced raw scores this calculator scales your count onto the classic table in proportion (50 of 50 in English maps to 75 of 75, and so on) before looking up the scale score. That is an estimate; the real enhanced tables are equated per form like the classic ones.
Worked example: the form defaults
Enhanced ACT with 40 of 50 in English, 30 of 45 in Math, 27 of 36 in Reading, and 30 of 40 in Science. English 40 / 50 x 75 = 60 on the classic scale, which converts to 25. Math scales to 40 and converts to 26; Reading to 30 and 27; Science is looked up directly at 30 for 26. The average is (25 + 26 + 27 + 26) / 4 = 26, so the composite is 26. Skipping Science, the average of the other three is 26 and the composite is 26.
Composite rounding
Because the composite is rounded, section points are worth different amounts depending on where the average lands. An average of 27.25 rounds to 27 and 27.5 rounds up to 28, so a single extra scale point in one section (0.25 on the average) can move the composite by a full point or by nothing. When you are one scale point short of the next composite, the cheapest section to improve is the one where your raw score sits at the top of its scale-score band in the table below.
ACT raw score to scale score conversion (classic form)
Representative released table; each ACT form is equated separately. A dash means no raw score converts to that scale score on this form. Enhanced-format raw scores are scaled in proportion before lookup.
| Scale score | English (of 75) | Math (of 60) | Reading (of 40) | Science (of 40) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36 | 75 | 59 to 60 | 40 | 40 |
| 35 | 73 to 74 | 57 to 58 | 39 | 39 |
| 34 | 71 to 72 | 55 to 56 | 38 | 38 |
| 33 | 70 | 54 | 37 | 37 |
| 32 | 69 | 53 | 35 to 36 | - |
| 31 | 68 | 51 to 52 | 34 | 36 |
| 30 | 67 | 49 to 50 | 33 | 35 |
| 29 | 66 | 47 to 48 | 32 | 34 |
| 28 | 65 | 45 to 46 | 31 | 33 |
| 27 | 63 to 64 | 42 to 44 | 30 | 32 |
| 26 | 61 to 62 | 39 to 41 | 29 | 30 to 31 |
| 25 | 59 to 60 | 37 to 38 | 28 | 29 |
| 24 | 56 to 58 | 35 to 36 | 27 | 27 to 28 |
| 23 | 54 to 55 | 33 to 34 | 25 to 26 | 25 to 26 |
| 22 | 51 to 53 | 31 to 32 | 24 | 24 |
| 21 | 48 to 50 | 30 | 22 to 23 | 22 to 23 |
| 20 | 45 to 47 | 28 to 29 | 21 | 20 to 21 |
| 19 | 43 to 44 | 26 to 27 | 19 to 20 | 18 to 19 |
| 18 | 41 to 42 | 24 to 25 | 18 | 16 to 17 |
| 17 | 39 to 40 | 21 to 23 | 16 to 17 | 15 |
| 16 | 36 to 38 | 17 to 20 | 15 | 13 to 14 |
| 15 | 32 to 35 | 14 to 16 | 14 | 12 |
| 14 | 29 to 31 | 11 to 13 | 12 to 13 | 11 |
| 13 | 27 to 28 | 9 to 10 | 11 | 10 |
| 12 | 25 to 26 | 7 to 8 | 9 to 10 | 9 |
| 11 | 23 to 24 | 6 | 8 | 8 |
| 10 | 20 to 22 | 5 | 7 | 7 |
| 9 | 18 to 19 | 4 | 6 | 6 |
| 8 | 15 to 17 | 3 | 5 | 5 |
| 7 | 13 to 14 | - | - | 4 |
| 6 | 11 to 12 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
| 5 | 8 to 10 | - | 3 | - |
| 4 | 6 to 7 | 1 | - | 2 |
| 3 | 5 | - | 2 | - |
| 2 | 3 to 4 | - | - | 1 |
| 1 | 0 to 2 | 0 | 0 to 1 | 0 |
Superscoring and section scores
ACT reports a superscore automatically when you have tested more than once: the best English, Math, Reading, and Science scale scores across dates averaged into a new composite. Many colleges accept it. Enter your best section results here to see what a superscore would be. The STEM score (Math and Science average) and ELA score (English, Reading, and Writing) are reported separately and do not affect the composite.
Estimates only. ACT equates every form with its own conversion table, and the enhanced ACT conversion is approximated here by scaling. Also see the SAT score calculator and the AP score calculator.