Question: What are the average scores for students taking the ACT?

Response:

The ACT (formerly the American College Testing Program) assessment program measures educational development and readiness to pursue college-level coursework in English, mathematics, natural science, and social studies. Student performance on the tests does not reflect innate ability and is influenced by a student’s educational preparedness.

In 1995, some 38 percent of all high school graduates took the ACT.1 In 2023, some 37 percent of high school graduates were projected to take the ACT. The minimum score on the ACT is 1 and maximum score is 36.


Number and percentage of graduates taking the ACT test and average scores, by sex and race/ethnicity: Selected years, 1995 through 2023


Score type and test-taker characteristic
1995
2000
2005
2010
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023


Total test takers


Number (in thousands)
945
1,065
1,186
1,569
1,799
1,846
1,924
2,090
2,030
1,915
1,783
1,670
1,295
1,350
1,386


Percent of all graduates1
38
38
38
46
52
532
542
582
562
512
48
452
352
362
372


Average test score3


Composite score, total
20.8
21.0
20.9
21.0
20.9
21.0
21.0
20.8
21.0
20.8
20.7
20.6
20.3
19.8
19.5


Sex


Male
21.0
21.2
21.1
21.2
20.9
21.1
21.1
20.9
21.0
20.8
—
20.5
20.3
19.7
19.4


Female
20.7
20.9
20.9
20.9
20.9
20.9
21.0
20.9
21.1
20.9
—
20.8
20.6
20.0
19.7


Race/ethnicity


American Indian/Alaska Native
—
19.0
18.7
19.0
18.0
18.0
17.9
17.7
17.5
17.3
17.0
16.7
16.9
16.4
16.0


Asian/Pacific Islander
—
21.7
22.1
23.4
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—


Asian
—
—
—
—
23.5
23.5
23.9
24.0
24.3
24.5
24.6
24.9
24.9
24.7
24.2


Pacific Islander
—
—
—
—
19.5
18.6
18.8
18.6
18.4
18.2
17.9
17.5
17.2
17.1
16.3


Black
—
17.0
17.0
16.9
16.9
17.0
17.1
17.0
17.1
16.9
16.8
16.7
16.3
16.1
16.0


Hispanic
—
—
18.6
18.6
18.8
18.8
18.9
18.7
18.9
18.8
18.7
18.5
18.3
17.7
17.4
White
—
21.8
21.9
22.3
22.2
22.3
22.4
22.2
22.4
22.2
22.1
22.0
21.7
21.3
21.0


Two or more races
—
—
—
—
21.1
21.2
21.2
21.0
21.2
21.1
21.0
20.9
20.6
20.1
19.8

—Not available. 1 Members of the graduating class who had taken the ACT test as a percentage of all students who graduated in that school year. The total percentage for the United States was calculated by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) based on NCES projections of the total number of U.S. high school graduates. 2 Number of high school graduates is projected. 3 Minimum score is 1 and maximum score is 36.

NOTE: Data in this table represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Data are for high school graduates who took the ACT test during their sophomore, junior, or senior year. If a student took the ACT test more than once, the composite and subject-area scores from the most recent test were used. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity.

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2024). Table 226.50. Number and percentage of graduates taking the ACT test; average scores and standard deviations, by sex and race/ethnicity; and percentage of test takers with selected composite scores and planned fields of postsecondary study: Selected years, 1995 through 2023 [Data table]. In Digest of education statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved May 23, 2024, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d23/tables/dt23_226.50.asp.

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