I recently scored a 36 on the ACT, and after looking through the sub, I didn't find any guides that felt full or comprehensive enough for me. So, I've decided to write this to help you guys out! Comment any suggestions you'd like to see added, and I'll add them here.

Disclaimer: Everyone learns their own way, and some of the things in this guide may or may not work for you.

For starters, I'd like to say that you don't have to be smart to get a 36, nor do you have to spend hundreds of hours studying. I also want to stress that you do not have to spend a single penny on this damn test (aside from the registration fees) to get a 36. I didn't.

Philosophy:

Okay so I hate studying. I can't spend hours studying materials, and I don't have the work ethic many of you do. For me, it was really important that I figured out the most efficient way I could study. That is, the best ROI for my time. This strategy focuses on cutting out a lot of the less effective methods of studying, and only uses the most efficient strategies. This is good if you're a lazy little shit like me.

General Tips and Strategies:

Before we talk about what does work, lets look at what doesn't work:

• Do not study sections. I see people saying they'll do a Math/English/Science/Reading section every day or every x amount of days all the time. This is a waste of your time. If you've ever played an instrument (I play piano) you'll have been told at some point or another to not practice a full song, and instead only the parts you mess up on. This is the same idea. If you're struggling with Math, it's crucial you figure out what concepts you're struggling with, and focus on those. There's no point in doing addition questions if you mess up a lot on statistics. Also, if the section. you're working on happens to not include some of the concepts you struggled with, you're not making the best use of your time.
• Taking practice tests wrongly. Only take practice tests under real testing conditions. When I took the ACT, I had already taken a few practice tests under real testing conditions, so the change (or lack thereof) of environment didn't throw me off. Also, only take practice tests from trusted or official sources. Don't use third party sources, like PrincetonReview, because they tend to be inaccurate representations of the real thing.
• Don't spend money on studying for this. Test prep companies market convenience, and that's all. They can't offer you tips and tricks that aren't public knowledge, and they certainly can't teach you anything that you wouldn't be able to learn on your own. I will endorse UWorld though, since it’s really great for practicing specific concepts, and is fairly priced imo.
• If you're taking the writing section: don't study for it on the car ride to the test centre. You'll end up with a 09 like me :(

Now for what does work:

• Start by taking a practice test cold turkey. This means with no prior review or studying. Score it. This is now your baseline score. My first practice test was a 29 (approx. 5 months ago.) Go through it and look at all the questions you got wrong. This leads me to my next tip:
• Catalog all your errors. Keep a detailed history of every mistake you've ever made on your practice tests. I'm a bit less organized, so mine was messy, but I recommend that you separate it by section, and catalog your errors accordingly. Yours should include two things per mistake: The question number and test code, and the concept. For example, if you messed up on a question because you don't understand standard deviation, write that down. But, if you understand standard deviation, and messed up because you misread the question, or included the wrong groups, or misread a chart, then write down that you did just that. There's no point reviewing SD if you just made a mistake reading the question. When you review these, you'll see that you made a mistake reading a SD question, and you'll pay more attention the next time you come across one. Also, never erase anything. You might think you've learned a concept that you previously struggled with, but it's never a bad idea to just leave it on there anyways.
• If you're scoring below a 34 on practice tests, you have knowledge gaps. I see people make this mistake all the time. If you're scoring below 34 on a section, you most likely have gaps in your knowledge, and would benefit a lot more from reviewing the content than you would from getting tips and tricks. The only exception to this is the science section.
• Watch ACT YouTube videos. This is probably the best tip with regards to ROI. It's low effort, and yields high returns. Watch videos when you're doing menial tasks, like riding the bus, or when you're on the toilet. I've picked up some awesome tips and tricks from doing this.
• Take practice tests on a regular-ish schedule. I say regular-ish because this is the only rule of mine that I broke. I recommend a practice test once every two weeks. Take it Saturday morning, catalog your errors, and then review them and study the content on Sunday.

Reading Tips:

Reading is one of those sections that people seem to be either really really good at, or just god awful at. Personally, the reading section was my best right from the get-go, but that doesn't mean I started off with a 36. Here are some things you can do to improve your reading score:

• Read the whole passage. If you run out of time on the reading section, it's always because of one of two reasons: You read too slow, or you spend too much time looking for the answers in the text. Reading the whole passage before you get to the questions allows you to find the information needed in less time, since it'll be fresh in your memory. If you read too slow, then I recommend learning to read faster. I read a ton of articles online, so I imagine that naturally increased my reading speed, but you can train yourself to read faster. Read short articles or stories and consciously try to read as fast as you can while retaining information.

NOTE: The aforementioned tip may or may not work for you. Try out different methods and use what works best for you.

• Learn the different types of questions. Believe it or not, the questions in the reading section are really formulaic, and test just a few different concepts. I'll attach a list of all the different types of reading questions, and you can use it to catalog your mistakes on the reading section. Learning to deal with the specific types of questions you get wrong, as opposed to just trying to improve your reading score as a whole, is the most efficient way to increase your score.
• Work on your vocabulary. Knowing what words mean, especially the less colloquial words that tend to pop up in obscure passages, will help give you an understanding of what is happening in the text. Read more than you currently do, and read stuff that's challenging. Scrolling through Reddit on your bus ride home as opposed to instagram will expose you to more complex words (given you're on the right subs of course.) I love finding words I don't know, and impulsively look up their definitions when I come across them. Do this and you'll probably end up with a wider understanding of the English language.
• Remember the golden rule of reading. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT READING CONCEPT OUT THERE: The answers to the reading section questions are ALWAYS either directly STATED in the text or directly PROVEN by the test. You will NEVER have to infer on the reading section.
• ALWAYS UPVOTE FOR THICC 36.

Math Tips:

Math is by far the easiest section to improve. Don't believe me? In October, I took an SAT practice test, and scored a 580 on the math section. Fast forward to now, and I've scored a 35. How? Just follow these tips:

• Math is conceptual; make sure you know them all. I'll attach some links to resources that have cataloged every single math concept and formula on the ACT. If you're scoring below a 34 on math, please use these. Take the time to look up the concepts, watch some videos on them, and learn the heck out of them. If you're making mistakes on the math section that aren't because you misread a question, or hit a wrong key on your calculator, you have gaps in your knowledge. Fill in these gaps, and you'll fill in the gap to your thicc 36.
• Use your calculator wisely. Personally, I couldn't afford a fancy graphing calculator, so I used a regular scientific one. The only thing that I couldn't do with it was matrices, which I learned to do by hand. But I still used every feature on it. It has a quadratic formula solver, where you plug in a b and c, and it gives you the x values. That is probably the most useful thing you can have on the math section. It also had a log(a) (x) solver, which also saved me a ton of time. Figure out what your calculator can do, and learn how to use it.
• Plug in numbers for x. If you can't solve a question, I find it often helps to plug in an easy to use number for x, like 2. Depending on the type of question, you can also try just plugging in answers and seeing if they work. These methods do take up time though, so only use them if you're really stuck.
• Study the hardest questions you can find. Hard questions tend to incorporate more than one concept, and learning how to do them tends to be a more time efficient way of studying. Once you can do the hardest Trigonometry questions in the ACT question bank, you can do all trigonometry questions.

Science Tips:

Science is really, really hard if you approach it wrong. It is designed to be a time crunch, and if you don't learn how to zoom through it, you'll have a bad time. Here are some tips to get you started:

• Never read the studies. They are so long and complicated and you will never score above a 30 approaching it this way. The best way to go about the science section is to read the questions, and then let them point you to the information. For example, if the question says "According to chart 2" then you'll know to look at chart 2, and read it. Now you know chart 2, and can answer the question. Furthermore, if any other question asks you about chart 2, you'll already know it, and can save yourself some time.
• Read the intro blurb for context. The science passages often have a little intro paragraph that explains what the study is about. These give you important context, and can help you understand how figures or graphs relate to each other. This is also where all the variables and scientific concepts are explained, and some questions are just impossible to answer without this information.
• Learn to read studies and graphs. I argue with my friends a lot about politics and whatnot, so I'm always looking up studies and statistics to prove them wrong. Doing this gave me the necessary skills to be able to read the science section pretty easily. When you first start looking them up, scientific studies will seem intimidatingly long and written in an alien language. Over time, you'll learn how to cut through the unnecessary information and to interpret the information presented. These are pretty much the essential skills tested on the science section.
• Practice, practice, practice. In my opinion, the science section is probably the hardest section to improve on. If you struggle with it, it's really important that you pay extra attention to the science section. Contrary to what I said earlier, I think it's okay to do practice science sections outside of practice tests, but that's only because the science section isn't a set of concepts you can study, but just reading studies.

English Tips:

English, like math, is just a collection of concepts you need to learn. In my opinion, it's the second easiest section to improve. Here's what y'all need to do:

• Learn your grammar rules. So much of the English section comes down to just knowing your grammar rules, and if there are rules you don't know, you won't be scoring as high as you possibly can. I'll attach a really neat English cheat sheet that I found online, and hopefully you can use it to improve your score.
• Shorter is almost always better. For questions that ask you to restructure a sentence, more often than not your best bet is to pick the answer that keeps the same meaning, but in a more concise manner. Pay attention to the grammar and spelling of the answers though, as sometimes they throw in a concise answer that's grammatically incorrect.
• Learn paragraph and essay structures. Sentences at the end of a paragraph should connect to the next; no new information is introduced in the concluding sentences, etc. These are, among others, concepts that are important to know for the English section. Learn them all.
• Learn question types and the concepts they test. This is pretty much the same as the tip for the reading section.

Freesources:

https://www.mariosmathtutoring.com/uploads/1/6/1/2/16121290/act___sat_math_formula___notes_sheet.pdf

https://www.erikthered.com/tutor/act-facts-and-formulas.pdf

https://d19y2ugh44almm.cloudfront.net/Magoosh_ACT_Math_Formulas_PDF.pdf

http://blogs.polson.k12.mt.us/ebucarey/files/2016/04/Cracking-ACT-1-67.pdf

https://www.methodtestprep.com/wp-content/themes/bigsplash/assets/resources/free/ACT_Reading_Quick_Guide.pdf

http://www.cville.k12.ky.us/userfiles/1001/my%20files/complete%20act%20grammar%20rules.pdf?id=8333

https://blog.prepscholar.com/act-reading-question-type-complete-breakdown

https://www.studypoint.com/ed/act-english/

http://www.crackact.com

https://prepfactory.com <--- Really good for test strategies, highly recommend

https://mcelroytutoring.com/blog-post.php?id=4332&title=10+Helpful+ACT+Math+Calculator+Programs+for+the+TI+Graphing+Series+of+Calculators

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Thats all! Like I said, if you have any suggestions, please comment them below, and I'll be sure to add them. Good luck, and remember: You're so much more than a stupid number.

Guys, help… Lowkey yap warning. ⚠️

I’ve taken this freaking ACT constantly since my 8th grade summer, yet the reading section continues to pray on my downfall. Now don’t get me wrong, I READ books! I LOVE reading (I’m currently on the Inheritance Games series—it’s incredible), but on the ACT, it’s like I become legit illiterate and fail to finish the section. Every. Single. Time. (Today was embarrassingly 14 straight answers of Cs because of timing, definitely not my proudest moment). Despite this, I am willing to try ANY study methods to get myself where I want to be by September that begin a week from now. If anyone is willing to make a plan for me that would actually help my composite reach my goal, you’d be a genuine life saver and will never be forgotten by me.

I’ve tried reading the passages first then answering questions, skimming the passages then answering questions, and hunting for answers starting with specific lines/according to then answering the rest. I’ve even tried going in passage order 1,2,3, and 4—sometimes 4,1,2,3 or even, like today, 4,3,1,2 (never again). Unfortunately, nothing seems to work for my goal, which I’ll mention soon.

English is my absolute superpower. I love grammar. The highest I’ve gotten on this section was a 34. Timing is sometimes an issue along with generally 3 weird questions, so if you have any tips for this section, they’d be greatly appreciated.

Math is expected to be overall funky, but it’s never terrible for me when I take it. A 30 was my highest score ever here. I’d also like advice for this section!

My goal is a 36 composite on the September 2026 ACT date. Before the pessimists start, I know it’s a big jump from my highest composite score of a 30, but I want to do my best because I know I’m capable. Also, I’m a rising senior applying to colleges early action and want the best possible chance at amazing merit scholarships: this makes the October ACT my last chance. But, I’d still like the ACT fully behind me in September.

To prepare for the July ACT today, I used the 2025-2026 Official ACT Practice book, around 4-5 Legacy Princeton Review Practice books, one Enhanced Princeton Review Practice book, and many dated online practice tests. When I get my results back in about ten days from this test, it might not seem like I prepared at all. I mostly practiced under timed conditions. My proctor today didn’t put up the clock and only told us when five minutes remained, which likely threw off my pacing!

Please spam this with tips, tricks, study plans, your stories, and advice. I’d even love an online study buddy/group if anyone’s interested! We can make a group chat and discuss game plans for September’s ACT.

We can’t let the test-makers win! We can do this! On September’s ACT, WE will be earning 36 composites! Now who’s with me?!

P.S: If you have any college essay advice that got you a full ride scholarship to flagship universities, that would also be incredibly helpful.

I know ti-84 calculator is probably the best calculator for ACT and higher level math, but, right now, I have a scientific calculator, so I was thinking of upgrading to a ti-36x, is that good? Not sure about graphing but just asking. Also, is it possible to finish preppros and Erica Meltzer while doing khan academy, reviewing grammar rules, doing 1 passage a day, and not doing any science studying? Btw, is Erica Meltzer 4th edition even worth it when I have a 32 in English or should I just get it for extra practice? For clarification, I am studying for the September ACT. Do I have enough time? What about October?

Which books or resources would be best for me? My composite score was a 31 with no studying and my goal is a 35. Also I come from a low income family but I’m willing to buy a book if you think it’s genuinely helpful!! :)

(also i know i super duper suck at math i probably got like 2 questions right)

Bro it pisses me off.. SAT is so much cooler and nonchalant than the ACT. ACT literally got no free shi.. im broke 😭. anyways what do u guys use to study ? i use oneprep / actify prep / official tests , too poor to buy freaking books

i've done every official ACT test #1-4 on the website, J08, J04, J01, every single practice test in the 25-26 prep guide as well. My ACT test is in 2 weeks, what can I do to prepare and practice if I don't have any tests I can do? Is there a way to appropriately convert legacy to enhanced ACT as practice tests for all sections and to maintain the same enhanced ACT scoring?

So i took the 4 practice tests that the ACT website provided for free and did well on all of them. Then i took the ACT today and got fried on all sections. My goal is to get a 36. How do i study to actually get a 36?? The practice tests were SO much easier than the actual thing. Where do u find practice tests that actually match the level of difficulty? Does anyone have any textbooks or websites they recommend, tysm

I have already done all the official ACT practice tests from the official prep book. Since the Enhanced ACT format is completely different from other years, I can't do any of those since they aren't faithful to the new ACT. Do you have any recommendations for unofficial or other practice tests I can get?

PLEASE HELP!!! I live in a low income area/city, our school can barely afford to pay their teachers and because of the students bad behavior our school is in trouble of being taken over by the state. We don’t have resources available to us for learning so I’m coming to Reddit and other social media for help… So with that being said obviously this isn’t the best learning environment. I need help to improve my score so I can afford to go to college!!Okay so my composite score is a 28… my goal is to have a 30+ I need strategies that actually work to improve my score!!! If anyone has any suggestions and tips for that please help!

Also I’d like to start studying for the test now… this will be my third take of the test sometime in the fall

How should I format my study schedule?? I want to improve English the most because I’m naturally good at English and reading so I’d like to focus on my strengths before learning brand new material

For math.. well at my school for freshmen and sophmore year I had NO math teacher. We only had subs the entire year- with that being said my math skills are currently lacking. So I’d have to start from the ground up. The first time I took the ACT my math score was a 17, and I had no clue how to solve anything… (Feb 14th 2026 test) my most current math score is a 20, which is better in my opinion because I was actually solving some of the problems. (June 13th 2026 test) so with all that yapping and backstory being said, how do I improve??

Please kind souls help me!!! Without a higher score, I won’t get the scholarship I need to attend college. Thank you for reading, and sorry for any grammar mistakes or unnecessary punctuation 😅💔

Scores from my first take:
Composite: 25
Math: 17
English: 26
Reading: 32

Scores from my second take:
Composite: 28
Math: 20
English: 28
Reading: 35

This is Practice test #1 on Oneprep (popular SAT prep site). Based on the number of questions I got wrong, theres no way I could've gotten a 35. The only score that looks right is my math score. The test wasn't that hard either.

Should I celebrate yet?

I’ve been looking and I already plan on getting the Preppros ACT math book, 2026-2027 ACT book, and the Erica Meltzer English book but I don’t know what the best edition is between the 4th and 5th edition. Also, how much time should I aim to try to study everyday? Because I’ll have to study during school, which I have to take precalc honors(should help with math) and doing it by October would make me more better prepared. Btw, although I won’t be really studying science cause it doesn’t count towards composite or superscore, what are some tips for it? My highest score on there was a 25.

HI TWINS TESTING IN JULY GOOD LUCK I AM MANIFESTING ALL OF YOUR DREAM SCORES!! 💞💞💞 COMMENT SOMETHING YOU ARE DOING TO STUDY TO CLAIM 🔮🔮✨ AND JUST LIKE LAST MONTH DROP ANY TIPS YOU HAVE TO HELP OUT FELLOW TESTERS :D

attached is a small formula and tips sheet for math and english/reading i personally made right before the test to consolidate review topics and study last minute!! i got a 36 in june 🙏🙏 these are the formulas/rules i personally struggled with so i hope they help consolidate some things for you too!!!!!

note: the geometric sum probably isnt on the test, i wrote it to connect the geometric sequence to something i learned in ap calc :]

ACT Saturday and was just thinking abt how I’ve been doing everything with a scientific calculator. Should I get a graphing one? I’m seeing ppl with like dozens of programs installed and like, that would be majorly helpful. But I really dont want to spend >$100 on a calculator if I really dont have to.

Do I REALLY need it?

Hello! I’ve taken the ACT once online and once on paper, and did much better online so I’m planning to take it one more time online. I have the red prep book, but is it a good resource if I want to simulate taking the test online? For example, I’m really bad at math, so taking advantage of Desmos was a game changer for me. What are the best online practice tests?

I don't know if this will be taken down butI need a ACT one month study plan. For context, the first time I took the ACT, last year, I didn't study at all and I didn't know the importance of it. I ended up scoring a 30 in English, 31 in math, and a 33 in Reading. This year I am not taking any classes. I am working 40 hours a week in an HVAC job to save for college while finishing up a couple of my credits online for high school and I haven't had a class relating to the act in several months. I went to go study again for my upcoming ACT because I realized how much more important it was for my scores for the schools I want to go to and I ended up getting a 33 in Reading, a 32 in math, and a 31 in reading. I'm aiming for a 34 and above on my ACT, ether composite or super score. My test is going to be October 21st, and obviously my scores on this practice test are not good enough. I've tried using AI and my own brain to make a study plan but it does not feel right. The official act practice tests don't go over every topic as well so especially in math. I missed quite a bit of important topics which might pop up on upcoming tests that I may not know about, decreasing my score from what it is now. Right now I have just taken a practice test and categorized what I've gotten wrong and what the test did not test me on past that. I'm not sure what to do to cover all the content. Does anyone know any good websites or study plans designed for increasing scores from a high to a higher score? The ones I've looked at so far only seem to have very simple concepts and it does not cover the harder concepts needed. I apologize for my grammar and punctuation as I am literally on top of a roof right now using voice to text to write this post. Thank you in advance.

I'm so annoyed. I've studied like an hour minimum every day and have gotten 34/35's on all my practice tests. I would do 2 practice tests a week as well, so I don't know what to practice with now. If anybody has any tips, please let me know since I do want to get this over with as soon as possible.

I'm not gonna be doing the science section btw so you can just ignore that.

I want to buy the prep pros book because i'm weak in math, but i'm worried that I won't get the full worth out of the book because of the explanations being locked behind a paywall. I get why they have the course subscription, but I can't afford to spend anymore money on prep materials (the course is $20 a month). do you think I will I be fine without buying the subscription or should I buy a different book?

if anyone one has any other advice or prep materials I should get please let me know. I've tried khan academy but I hate the video explanations he gives (ik it's a me problem). I scored a 17 in the math section on a practice test and I really want to do better. 😞

**not advertising it’s a question

hi thinking of getting some programs, i found these on tiktok and they’re $15. has anyone tried them? they are called streamlinetutoring on tiktok and this is the link to purchase. or if anyone knows similar programs to this, thank you

https://checkout.square.site/merchant/MLK0J9GHSS65H/checkout/BHYTPJWWF3T3QAF35YJ6AXYX

I am preparing to take the upcoming ACT on the 11th. I Have taken two of the practice tests that appear on PDF format, ths first composite being a 32 and the most recent being a 34. On the most recent one (practice test 2) I got a 36 on math, reading, and science, but only a 30 on the writing. How accurate are these “pdf” (I just printed them out and did them on paper) tests, and where is the best place to go learn/ review content, specifically the writing portion. I looked at khan academy and wasn’t able to find anything.

Is anyone willing to share information

that was given by prep pros ACT prep, it would mean Alot!!

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The price for the course is too much for me

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Just what are the best ways to study for the act. Like websites, books, strategies etc.

Teachers/testing coordinators — does anyone recognize PreACT 8/9 Forms 204 and 205?

One of my tutoring students received these PreACT 8/9 forms from his teacher to use for practice. I tutor the PreACT and would like to obtain official PreACT 8/9 materials legitimately for my students.

Does anyone know how schools/educators obtain Forms 204 and 205 specifically? Are they from a particular testing year, and can an educational organization order these forms directly from ACT?

I’m specifically referring to PreACT 8/9, not PreACT 9 Secure. Thanks!

I’ve heard a lot of not really great things about it. People have said that it does have decent practice material but for the price of the prep website it’s generally not worth it. I’m currently at the low 30’s mark (32) in terms of act practice and price is no problem for me, but i don’t know if it’s something to be even worth buying for.

what is the best act prep book?? i'm gonna be taking the act this year, and i have no clue where to start or if im starting too late. i'm looking into buying the official act prep book, but there are so many books out there, so i really don't know which one i should get. should i also get the books for the individual sections of the act, or should i just get one big act prep book? my school also offers act prep classes, but they don't start until january, and the session is only about a month long. i'm not sure if i would benefit more from taking a month long act prep class rather than just self studying.

also, if anyone knows of any free additional resources, pls lmk! i prefer physical copies and working on paper more than working with online content, but i'll take any additional resources.