SAT vs ACT: which test should your child take?

Colleges do not prefer one over the other

This is the first thing to settle. ACT says its scores are accepted by all four year US colleges and universities, including the most selective. The College Board says colleges have no preference and that every college that accepts an admission test accepts the SAT. So your child is choosing the test that suits them, not the test a college wants.

That holds for Canadian families applying south of the border too. A student in Toronto or Calgary aiming for US colleges can send either score.

How the two tests look now

The SAT went fully digital and adaptive. The ACT introduced what it calls the enhanced ACT from April 2025: shorter, with fewer questions, and with Science made optional. Here they are side by side.

Two details matter more than they look. On the ACT, Science no longer counts towards the composite. A student who takes it gets a separate Science score and a STEM score that combines Science and Math. And ACT Math questions now have four answer choices instead of five.

What the difference feels like in the exam room

Both tests ask for grammar, reading and maths. For most students the real difference is pace and how the test behaves.

• The SAT gives about 40% more time per question. That tends to suit a careful thinker who likes to check their work.
• The ACT asks for a question roughly every minute, from start to finish. That tends to suit a quick, steady worker who does not panic when the clock is tight.
• The SAT is adaptive by section. The first module has a mix of easy, medium and hard questions, and how a student does on it decides whether the second module is harder or easier. A rushed first module can cap the score.
• The SAT has a graphing calculator built into the test. For the ACT, your child brings their own, and only approved models are allowed.

How to choose: one practice test of each

Guessing from descriptions is how families waste months. Both exam boards publish official full length practice tests online, the SAT ones in the College Board's Bluebook app and the ACT ones on act.org. Here is what I suggest.

1. In Grade 10 or early Grade 11, have your child sit one full SAT practice test and one full ACT practice test, timed, a week or so apart.
2. Compare the results using the official concordance tables, not instinct. They are an approximate guide, not a perfect conversion.
3. Ask your child which one felt better. Comfort under time pressure is part of the result.
4. If one is clearly stronger, commit to it. If they are close, pick the one your child preferred and stop comparing.

Then prepare for one test only. Splitting preparation between two tests usually means two average scores instead of one strong one.

Superscoring, test optional and what to check

Many colleges superscore. That means they take your child's best score in each section, even if the best Math and the best Reading came on different dates. Not every college superscores, so check each admissions page.

Policies also differ on whether scores are needed at all. Some colleges are test optional. Others now require a score again. MIT, for example, requires the SAT or the ACT, looks at the highest score in each section, and does not require ACT Science or Writing. Policies change, so check every college on your child's list for their entry year.

What it costs

Late registration costs extra for both: $38 for the SAT and $42 for the ACT outside the US. The SAT includes four free score reports if you choose colleges within nine days of the test. The ACT includes reports to up to four colleges if you add the codes when you register. For families outside the US, the SAT is clearly the cheaper test to sit more than once.

Timing and test centres

Both tests run several times a year. The SAT has six weekend dates in 2026 to 2027, from October to June, and the same dates apply in the US and abroad. The ACT runs seven international dates in the same year, from September to July.

For most students, a first sitting in the spring of Grade 11 and one retake before early application deadlines is enough. Our guide to SAT prep by grade sets out that pacing in detail, and it works the same way for the ACT.

If you are outside the US, check centres before you choose. The SAT is offered at approved centres in Nigeria, including in Abuja. For the ACT, search the registration system for a centre near you before committing to the test, and register early for either.

Common mistakes

• Preparing for both tests at once.
• Choosing the ACT for Science. It no longer counts towards the composite.
• Paying for Writing or Science without checking whether any college on the list asks for them.
• Booking a first sitting in the autumn of Grade 12, leaving no time to retake.
• Sitting the test five or six times. Colleges that ask for all scores will see every one.
• Assuming a strong WAEC or school maths grade means the US maths is covered. The topics and question style differ, so test before you assume.

How Masani helps

We prepare students for both the SAT and the ACT, one to one with carefully vetted Nigerian teachers, in your own time zone. Every lesson is recorded and followed by a written report, and you can follow progress skill by skill in the parent portal, so you know the preparation is going into the right test.

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