ACT Test Score Percentiles and National Ranks

Interpreting National Ranks

Your national ranks tell you how your scores compare to those earned by recent high school graduates who took the ACT. The numbers indicate the percentage of students who scored at or below a given score.

What's an ACT Score Percentile Ranking?

An ACT score percentile ranking compares your score to those of other test-takers, helping to measure your performance. Colleges use this ranking to assess and compare applicants.

National Ranks for English, Math, Reading, Science, Composite, and STEM Scores

Based on ACT-tested high school graduates of 2024, 2025, and 2026
Used for ��logo�� tests taken from September 2026 through August 2027

How to use the table: Using the leftmost column, find the row for one of your content area test scores or your Composite score. Next, find the national rank in the column corresponding to that test. For example, the national rank for a Composite score of 22 is 72. This means that 72 percent of recent high school graduates who took the ACT achieved a Composite score of 22 or lower. Similarly, the national rank for a STEM score of 26 is 88. Thus, 88 percent of recent high school graduates who took the ACT achieved a STEM score of 26 or lower.

ACT Score National Ranks

Score	English	Math	Reading	Science	Composite	STEM	Score
36	100	100	100	100	100	100	36
35	99	99	98	99	99	99	35
34	97	99	97	99	99	99	34
33	96	98	95	98	98	98	33
32	95	97	93	97	97	97	32
31	94	96	91	96	96	96	31
30	93	95	89	95	94	95	30
29	92	94	87	93	93	94	29
28	90	93	85	92	91	92	28
27	88	91	83	91	89	90	27
26	87	88	81	89	86	88	26
25	84	84	78	86	83	85	25
24	81	81	75	82	80	81	24
23	77	77	71	77	77	77	23
22	74	74	66	70	72	73	22
21	70	71	61	65	68	69	21
20	64	68	56	60	63	64	20
19	58	64	51	54	58	58	19
18	54	60	47	48	52	52	18
17	50	53	42	41	47	45	17
16	46	45	37	34	41	36	16
15	41	33	33	27	34	27	15
14	34	21	28	19	28	17	14
13	28	11	22	14	20	10	13
12	23	6	16	10	13	5	12
11	18	3	10	6	6	2	11
10	11	2	5	3	2	1	10
9	6	1	2	2	1	1	9
8	3	1	1	1	1	1	8
7	2	1	1	1	1	1	7
6	1	1	1	1	1	1	6
5	1	1	1	1	1	1	5
4	1	1	1	1	1	1	4
3	1	1	1	1	1	1	3
2	1	1	1	1	1	1	2
1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Mean	18.4	19.0	20.0	19.5	19.1	19.5
SD	7.0	5.7	7.1	5.8	6.1	5.5

ACT Score National Ranks (PDF)

National Ranks for ELA and Writing Test Scores

Based on the subset of ACT-tested high school graduates of 2024, 2025, and 2026 who took the ACT Writing test
Used for ��logo�� tests taken from September 2026 through August 2027

Note: These ranks are reported as “US Rank” on ACT score reports during the 2026-2027 reporting year (September 2026 through August 2027). The ranks are based on ACT-tested high school graduates of 2024, 2025, and 2026 who took the ACT Writing test.

How to use the table: Using the leftmost column, find the row for your ELA or writing score. Next, find the national rank in the column corresponding to that test. For example, the national rank for a writing score of 9 is 97. This means that 97 percent of recent high school graduates who took the ACT writing test achieved a writing score of 9 or lower.

ACT Score National Ranks for ELA and Writing Test Scores

Score	ELA	Writing
36	100
35	99
34	99
33	99
32	99
31	99
30	98
29	97
28	96
27	94
26	92
25	90
24	88
23	84
22	80
21	76
20	71
19	65
18	59
17	53
16	47
15	40
14	34
13	27
12	21	100
11	16	99
10	11	99
9	7	97
8	4	93
7	2	72
6	1	60
5	1	33
4	1	21
3	1	9
2	1	4
1	1
Mean	17.5	6.1
SD	5.8	1.9

ACT Score ELA and Writing National Ranks (PDF)

What Is the ACT Subscore Percentile?

An ACT subscore percentile reflects the percentage of test-takers who scored at or below your score in a particular section of the ACT. Percentiles are an essential measure for understanding your performance on the test.

Using the ACT Score Percentiles and Rankings in your College Search

Find the ACT score range for each college.

When researching colleges, check the 25th and 75th percentile ACT scores for admitted students to understand the middle 50% score range.

Compare your ACT score to the college's range.

If your ACT score is within the middle 50% of a college's admitted students, you are considered a competitive applicant.

Identify "reach," "match," and "safety" schools:

Reach schools: Colleges where your ACT score is near the top of their range typically indicate a more competitive admissions process..
Match schools: Colleges where your ACT score falls firmly within their middle 50% range typically indicate a good fit for your application.
Safety schools: Colleges where your ACT score is well above their middle 50% range suggest a higher likelihood of acceptance.

View Your Scores

Create or sign in to your ACT web account for access to your scores anytime, anywhere. Scores are processed and added each week, so start checking two weeks after your test date.

����logo���