Method

How to improve your ACT score

The Composite is an average. That single fact decides where your next hour should go.

By PrepScore · Updated 31 August 2026 · How we research and update content

In short

The ACT Composite is the average of English, Math and Reading, rounded to the nearest whole number. So a point gained in your weakest section is worth exactly as much as a point gained in your best one — and it is far easier to get. Find the lowest section, work it directly, and treat pace as a skill of its own: there is no penalty for a wrong answer, so every question should be answered whether or not you had time to do it properly.

The Composite is an average, and averages have a shape

Three scored sections — English, Math and Reading — averaged and rounded. Fractions below one-half round down, one-half or more round up. Two consequences follow, and most study plans ignore both.

Your weakest section is the cheapest place to gain. Moving a 24 to a 27 is easier than moving a 33 to a 34, and both move the Composite by the same amount.
Rounding means a single point can be worth two. If your sections average to x.5 you round up. Knowing which section is one raw question from a higher score is worth more than another full practice test.

Where "just do more practice tests" goes wrong

A full test is three sections' worth of time to measure one thing you could have measured in one. Use tests to locate the weak section and to rehearse pace; use section work to fix it.

Pace is a separate skill, and the ACT tests it hardest

No section gives you as much as 70 seconds a question, and English is by far the tightest at about 42 — 50 questions in 35 minutes, against roughly 67 seconds each for Math and Reading. Students who "know the material" and still score below expectation are usually losing to the clock, not to the content, and English is where that happens first.

The three scored sections, and what each gives you per question.
Section	Questions	Time	Per question
English	50	35 min	42 sec
Math	45	50 min	67 sec
Reading	36	40 min	67 sec

Practise sections under the real clock, early. Untimed practice measures knowledge and hides the constraint that costs the points.
Decide in advance what you skip. A question you have decided to leave and come back to costs seconds; one you argue with costs minutes.
Fill in every answer. There is no penalty for a wrong answer on the ACT, so a blank is strictly worse than a guess — with a minute left, answer everything unanswered before doing anything else.

Science is optional, so sitting it is a decision

Science does not affect the Composite. It is reported as its own 1-36 score, and it is one half of the STEM score, the other being Math. So the question is not "how do I raise it" but "does anyone I am applying to want it".

Check whether your colleges ask for itSome programmes — engineering and the sciences especially — look at the Science or STEM score. Most do not. This is the only input that matters.
If nobody asks, spend the time on the three that countAn hour on Science buys nothing for a Composite it cannot enter.
If someone does, treat it as a reading sectionIt is 40 questions in 40 minutes of interpreting graphs, tables and research summaries. The content is less the point than the speed of reading a figure.

What it involves is set out on the ACT Science section, and what changes in 2027 on ACT Science optional in 2027.

The loop

Take one full timed test to find the weak sectionOnce. Its job is to rank your three sections, not to produce a score to feel something about.
Work that section only, for a blockTimed sections, not mixed sets. The other two will not decay in a fortnight.
Sort the misses into "did not know" and "ran out of time"They need different work. Content gaps need study; pace losses need drilling under the clock, which is a different activity.
Re-work everything you got wrongA question missed and never revisited is a gap you have paid for and kept.
Re-test, and expect the weak section to have movedIt usually has. The next block goes to the new lowest section, not the old one.

Things that are true of the SAT and not of this

The ACT is linear. Everyone sees the same questions; nothing you do changes what comes next. Module-level adaptivity is the Digital SAT.
All four answer choices, all the way through. There is no adaptive routing to protect.
No wrong-answer penalty. Guessing is free, and leaving a blank is simply worse.

If you are still choosing between the two tests, ACT vs SAT sets out the difference; how the ACT is scored covers the Composite in full.

Practise one section at a time, under the clock

Section practice with a full explanation on every question, and a mistake bank that brings back what you missed.

Start free practice →

Frequently asked questions

How can I improve my ACT score fastest?

Work on your weakest of the three scored sections. The Composite is their average, so a point there is worth exactly as much as a point in your best section and is much easier to get.

How is the ACT Composite calculated?

It is the average of the English, Math and Reading scores, rounded to the nearest whole number — fractions below one-half round down, one-half or more round up. Science and Writing are optional and do not affect it.

Should I take the optional ACT Science section?

Only if a college or programme you are applying to wants it. It does not affect the Composite, though it is one half of the STEM score along with Math.

Is there a penalty for wrong answers on the ACT?

No. Your score is based on the number of correct answers, so a blank is strictly worse than a guess. Answer every question.

Is the ACT adaptive like the digital SAT?

No. The ACT is linear — every test taker sees the same questions, and nothing you do changes what comes next.

How many practice tests should I take?

Fewer than most people take. A full test costs three sections' worth of time to measure one thing. Use tests to find the weak section and rehearse pace, and section work to fix it.