ACT Superscore Calculator

Superscoring takes the highest score you earned on each of the four ACT sections (English, Math, Reading, Science) across multiple test dates and averages those four bests into a single composite. A student who took the ACT three times might submit a superscore of 32 even if no single sitting produced higher than a 30, because the best English came from test 1, the best Math from test 2, and the best Reading and Science from test 3. The composite math is identical to a single-sitting ACT: average the four sections, round to the nearest whole number, with .5 rounding up.

Most US colleges that consider standardized scores accept ACT superscores. That includes most Ivies (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Penn, Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth), MIT, Stanford, Duke, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, the University of Chicago, and the large majority of top liberal-arts colleges. The notable exceptions are the University of California system (uses your highest single sitting only), the five US service academies, and a handful of public flagships. Policies change every cycle, so always confirm on each school's admissions site before relying on a superscore.

The composite is the average of your four scaled section scores rounded to the nearest whole number. Add English, Math, Reading, and Science, divide by 4, then round. A raw average of 28.5 rounds to 29, and 28.49 rounds to 28. The composite uses the same 1 to 36 scale as each section. The ACT does not weight any section more than another.

For most students, yes. ACT research shows that students who retake the test gain an average of 1 to 2 composite points, and superscoring colleges only see the best of each section, so a worse retake never hurts your reported composite. The retake helps most when one section is clearly behind the others, since lifting that single weak section by 2 to 3 points usually moves the rounded composite by 1 point. Diminishing returns kick in once your superscore is at or above your target tier's median.

Through ACT Score Choice, you control which test dates get sent to each college. You can send only your best sittings and hide the rest. Most colleges that superscore will then build the composite from whichever dates you submit, so sending all of them maximizes your superscore. A handful of schools (most service academies, some honors programs) require all scores; check each school's policy before deciding which dates to send.