What's the Highest SAT Score Possible? What's an Average SAT Score?
Last updated February 28, 2023
You might know you need to get a certain score for college applications, or for specific college and state financial aid. However, once you get your scores back from the SAT it’s not always clear what they mean! What's the average SAT score the college will accept? Don’t worry, we’ll help you clarify what score you got!
Your SAT score can have a big impact on your financial aid and college acceptance, so always aim to get the highest SAT score possible. No matter what your score, there are a few things you should know about how to interpret and understand it:
Your score can range from 400-1600.
This is the cumulative score your college looks at! You also get a breakdown of how you compare to other students who took the SAT the same time you did, which is reported in the percentile breakdowns in your score report.
The average SAT score — 50th-percentile SAT composite score — is between 1050 and 1060.
The test is deliberately designed so that the average score hovers around 1000 on the 1600-point scale—about 500 per subsection. The average score for math is between 520 and 530 (520 is 49th-percentile and 530 is the 53rd). The average SAT score for Evidence-Based Reading and Writing is between 530 (49th percentile) and 540 (52nd percentile).
Calculate your Cumulative Score
You get your Cumulative Score by adding up your score from the Evidence-based Reading and Writing section and the Math section
- Reading is worth 200-800 points
- Math is worth 200-800 points
Cumulative score = Reading + Math score
For a full breakdown of how you scored and what questions you got wrong, check your mail/email for your official scores, and check out the official SAT score guide by College Board.
Find the range of SAT scores
Use a college search tool like BigFuture to find the range of SAT scores for students admitted to a specific school you're thinking of applying to. This can give you a good idea of what an "ideal" SAT score might be based on past college admissions data.
Have any questions about taking or registering for the SAT? Text #Hello to 33-55-77!