28–36
Highly competitive
Top 12% nationally. Strong candidacy at selective and highly selective universities, including many top-20 schools. Competitive for merit scholarships.
ACT · ACT, Inc. · Composite 1–36
ACT Score Calculator (2025–2026)
Enter your ACT composite or section scores to instantly see your national percentile ranking. Updated for the 2025–2026 admissions cycle with the latest ACT national norms data.
avg 2121
57thpercentile
Average
Better than 57% of test takers
21
Your score
21
National avg
57th
Percentile
ACT score percentile chart 2026
Official ACT composite percentile data from ACT, Inc. This chart shows the percentage of test takers who scored at or below each composite score in 2026.
| ACT score | Percentile |
|---|---|
| 36 | 99th |
| 35 | 99th |
| 34 | 98th |
| 33 | 97th |
| 32 | 96th |
| 31 | 95th |
| 30 | 93th |
| 28 | 88th |
| 27 | 85th |
| 25 | 78th |
| 24 | 74th |
| 22 | 63th |
| 21your score | 57th |
| 20 | 51th |
| 18 | 38th |
| 16 | 25th |
| 14 | 13th |
| 12 | 6th |
Source: ACT National Norms 2023. Percentiles based on graduating class data. Updated for 2026.
What does your ACT score mean for college admissions?
22–27
Above average
Top 37–15% nationally. Above the national average. Competitive at hundreds of quality four-year universities across the US.
Below 22
Average or below
At or below the national average of 21. Sufficient for many colleges. Most students who retest improve by 2–4 points with targeted preparation.
ACT to SAT score conversion
An ACT score of 21 is roughly equivalent to an SAT score of 1060. An ACT 28 ≈ SAT 1310. An ACT 33 ≈ SAT 1460. Both tests are accepted equally at all major US colleges and universities. Use our SAT percentile calculator to compare.
ACT score calculator — frequently asked questions
Common questions about ACT scoring, percentiles, and what your score means.
A good ACT score depends on your target colleges. The national average ACT composite score is 21. A score of 24 (74th percentile) is above average and competitive at many four-year universities. Scores of 28+ (88th percentile) are strong for selective schools, and 33+ (97th percentile) puts you in the top 3% nationally — competitive at the most selective universities.
A score of 24 on the ACT is approximately the 74th percentile, meaning you scored higher than about 74% of all ACT test takers nationally. This is a solid above-average score.
A score of 28 on the ACT is approximately the 88th percentile, placing you in the top 12% of all ACT test takers nationally. This is a strong score competitive at selective universities.
A score of 30 on the ACT is approximately the 93rd percentile — you scored higher than 93% of all test takers. This puts you in the top 7% nationally and is competitive at highly selective universities.
A score of 33 on the ACT is approximately the 97th percentile, placing you in the top 3% of all ACT test takers. This is an exceptional score highly competitive at the most selective universities.
A score of 20 on the ACT is approximately the 51st percentile — just above the national average of 21. This is a mid-range score that is sufficient for admission to many four-year universities.
The ACT is scored on a composite scale of 1 to 36. It has four sections: English (1–36), Mathematics (1–36), Reading (1–36), and Science (1–36). Your composite score is the average of these four section scores, rounded to the nearest whole number.
The national average ACT composite score is approximately 21 (roughly the 50th percentile). Average section scores are approximately 20 for English, 20 for Math, 21 for Reading, and 20 for Science.