The enhanced ACT 2025 format is the biggest update to the test in years, and if you are studying now, you deserve a clear picture of what is different. The short version: the test is shorter, Science is optional, and Math has four answer choices instead of five. This guide walks through every change section by section, explains how scoring still works, and shows you what to do about it starting today.
ACT rolled out an enhanced version of the test in 2025 with one main goal: make it shorter and less exhausting while keeping the same 1 to 36 scale that colleges already know. The old ACT was a long morning of testing. The enhanced ACT trims the number of questions in every section and gives you more time per question in some of them, so the pacing feels less rushed.
Nothing about how colleges read your score changed. A 28 is still a 28. The content is still built on the same skills in English, math, and reading. What changed is the shape of the test: fewer questions, a shorter overall runtime, and a Science section that is now yours to opt into rather than a required part of the day.
Here is the enhanced ACT format, section by section:
If you take the three core sections only, the test is meaningfully shorter than the old version. Adding Science brings the runtime closer to the classic length. Knowing these exact numbers matters because your pacing practice should match them: for example, Reading gives you a little over one minute per question, so timed drills at that pace are the fastest way to build the right instincts.
Science being optional is the change students ask about most. Here is the honest answer: it depends on where you are applying and what you want to study. Science does not affect your Composite score at all. When you take it, it produces a separate STEM-related score that some programs, especially in engineering and the sciences, like to see.
Take Science if you are aiming for STEM majors, if a target school recommends or requires it, or if science reasoning is a strength you want to show off. You can safely skip it if your target programs do not ask for it and you would rather put that energy into raising your English, Math, and Reading scores. When you are unsure, taking it rarely hurts, since a strong STEM score is extra evidence in your favor and a weak one simply does not factor into your Composite.
Each section is still scored on the familiar 1 to 36 scale. Your Composite is the average of just three sections: English, Math, and Reading. Science does not count toward the Composite. When you take Science, it reports as its own STEM-related score alongside your Composite.
The Writing test, the essay, is also optional and completely separate. It does not roll into your Composite either. So the number most colleges lead with, your Composite, comes down to how you do on three sections. That is worth remembering when you plan your study time: every point you gain in English, Math, or Reading moves the number schools see first.
A good score is the one that gets you into your target schools and unlocks the aid you want, so always check your specific colleges. As a rough national guide on the 1 to 36 scale: around 20 is close to average, 24 and up is competitive for many schools, 30 and up is strong, and 34 and up is elite territory.
Do not overlook money. Many state universities tie merit scholarship dollars to specific score thresholds, so a two or three point gain can be worth real tuition savings. Look up the scholarship grids at your in-state schools early, because that number often gives you a concrete, motivating target to aim your studying at.
The enhanced format rewards a few specific habits. First, practice with the real section lengths and timing above, not the old ones, so your pacing is calibrated to 50 English questions in 35 minutes and Math in 50 minutes rather than outdated counts.
Second, lean into the four-choice Math. With one fewer option per question, smart elimination and estimation are even more effective, and educated guessing carries better odds than it used to. Third, decide early whether Science is part of your plan so you are not cramming an optional section at the last minute. Finally, build a simple routine: short daily practice beats occasional marathons, and reviewing why each answer is right or wrong is where the real score gains come from.
On Prep36 you can practice the whole enhanced format for free. The question bank has more than 1,000 original practice questions written to the ACT blueprint and tagged to the official reporting categories, so you are drilling the exact skills the test measures. Every answer comes with an instant explanation, there are 6 full timed practice tests that mirror the new section lengths, plus word banks, a daily challenge, and a study planner to keep you on track.
One important note on honesty: Prep36 questions are original items we write to match the ACT blueprint. They are not real or official ACT questions. For officially released practice tests, go straight to the source at act.org. Prep36 links to those released materials so you can mix official practice with our unlimited original questions, which is the strongest way to prepare: use the real released tests to calibrate, and use Prep36 to drill skills, review explanations, and build stamina in between.