2026 ACT changes: new format, shorter test, and how to prepare

The questions will look familiar to anyone who has seen the old test. The format and the scoring changed enough to change how a student should prepare.

The big changes at a glance

There are five structural changes:

1. Science is now optional. This is the headline. The ACT now has three core sections, English, Math, and Reading, with Science and Writing as optional add-ons.
2. The Composite comes from three sections. It is now the average of English, Math, and Reading. If you take Science, you get a separate Science score and a STEM score (the average of Math and Science), and neither one affects your Composite.
3. The test is much shorter. The core test (no Science or Writing) takes about 2 hours and 5 minutes, down from roughly 3 hours on the legacy ACT. With Science it runs about 2 hours and 45 minutes.
4. There are fewer questions and more time for each. The total question count dropped from 215 to 131 on the core test (171 with Science). On average students get about 18% more time per question, roughly 9 extra seconds.
5. Math now has 4 answer choices instead of 5. That matches every other section and slightly improves your odds when you eliminate answers.

The new structure in detail

The “total” question counts in the table are higher than the scored counts because ACT embeds experimental (field test) questions in each section. They don’t count toward your score, and you won’t know which ones they are, so treat every question as if it counts.

What stayed the same

A lot of the old test survived the overhaul:

• The test is still scored on a 1 to 36 scale.
• It’s still a linear test, not adaptive. Every student gets the same questions.
• The content areas and question types are largely the same. English still tests grammar, rhetoric, and organization. Math still covers algebra through some precalculus. Reading still uses passage-based comprehension questions.
• There’s no penalty for guessing. Answer every question.
• Both paper and digital formats are available.
• Superscoring is still supported, and you can mix scores from legacy and Enhanced ACT administrations.

Whether to take Science

Every ACT student now has to decide this, and “skip it if you’re bad at science” is too simple an answer.

Work through it in this order:

• Check your target schools’ requirements. A few colleges still want a Science score for the current application cycle. Pomona requires it if you send the ACT, Georgetown recommends it, and Duke encourages it for 2026–27. If you’re applying to 10+ schools, check each one’s testing policy before you skip it.
• Think about your major. If you plan to major in science or engineering, taking Science gives you a STEM score that combines your Math and Science results, and that can strengthen the application.
• Put the Composite first. No single college’s Science requirement matters more than your Composite. If prepping for Science pulls time from English, Math, or Reading, set it aside until the core scores are where they need to be.

If you can take Science without hurting the core sections, take it. A score you turn out not to need costs you less than one you need and don’t have.

What the new scoring changes

Moving from a four-section Composite to a three-section one changes the arithmetic in a few ways that aren’t obvious.

Each section now carries more weight.

On the legacy ACT, each section was 25% of your Composite. Now each is 33%. A weak section drags the overall number down harder, and raising your weakest section moves it further than it used to.

Fewer questions means less room for error.

With fewer scored questions per section, each question counts for more in the raw-to-scaled conversion. Scores may be less stable, so yours could move more between test dates. The usual advice is to plan for 2 to 3 sittings to get a reliable baseline.

Rounding works differently now.

With three sections instead of four, the average that produces your Composite can only end in .00, .33, or .67, and only .67 rounds up. Students who used to benefit from rounding across four sections may see a slightly different Composite than they expect.

Legacy scores and superscoring.

If you’ve already taken the legacy ACT, your existing Composite scores won’t be recalculated. ACT’s Superscore Report, though, now uses only English, Math, and Reading for the Superscore Composite, even when some of those section scores came from legacy test dates. If Science was pulling your old Composite up, your Superscore may look different than you expect.

Content changes

The content moved in a few places:

• English now includes question stems for every item. Many English questions used to have no explicit question; you had to know what was being asked. Now every question has a prompt, which helps students see which skill is being tested (grammar, rhetoric, transitions, etc.).
• English has shifted toward more Production of Writing questions. Expect somewhat fewer pure grammar questions and more on argument structure, transitions, and rhetorical purpose.
• Science covers the same subjects. For students who take it, passages still come from biology, chemistry, Earth and space science, and physics.
• Some English and Reading passages are shorter. Unlike the SAT, every passage still has several questions attached; it isn’t a one-passage-per-question format.

How to adjust your prep

1. Prioritize your weakest core section.

With three sections each worth 33% of your Composite, the fastest way to a higher score is almost always your weakest area. If English is your floor, that’s where the hours go.

2. Trade speed for precision.

The old ACT was famously a speed test. The Enhanced ACT still asks for good pacing, but with 18% more time per question the bottleneck moves from speed to accuracy, and a careless error costs more because each question carries more weight.

3. Use updated practice materials.

ACT has released new practice tests and a new Official Prep Guide for the Enhanced format. Older materials are still fine for content review, but they won’t have the new section lengths, the English question stems, or four-choice Math.

4. Decide paper vs. digital and practice in that format.

Unlike the SAT, which is digital only, the ACT still offers paper and digital. The content is identical, so pick the format you’re more comfortable with and practice in it. If you test online, ACT now lets you bring your own laptop or use a test-center computer.

5. Plan for multiple test dates.

With fewer questions per section, scores may vary more from one sitting to the next. Build a testing calendar with room for 2 to 3 sittings so you can superscore your best sections.

ACT vs. SAT: how to choose in 2026

Both tests have been overhauled, so the choice looks different than it did a few years ago.

To decide, take a timed practice test of each and compare your scores. The test with the stronger baseline is usually the right one.

Rollout Timeline

The short version

The Enhanced ACT is the most significant update to the test in its history. It’s shorter and more flexible, and it gives students more control over how they test. It also makes each question and each section count for more, and it adds decisions, like whether to take Science, that didn’t exist before.

The content hasn’t changed much. The strategy has, and the prep should follow it.