Score release · 2026-2027
When do ACT scores come out?
ACT states that over 97% of scores are available online within one to four weeks of the test date, with multiple-choice scores normally reported as early as two weeks after testing. That range is the whole problem: two weeks and four weeks are very different answers when something depends on the score arriving, so every date below is given as both ends.
Earliest
14 days
Plan against
28 days
Posted on
Tue–Wed
Next release
Dec 26
The rule worth following
Plan against four weeks, not two.
If a deadline matters, the cost of being early is nothing and the cost of being late is the entire award. Every “plan against” date on this page is the four-week end of ACT’s own published window.
28 days of waiting
The wait is four weeks. So is the gap before the next sitting.
Most students improve on a second attempt and many colleges superscore, so the weeks spent refreshing a score portal are the same weeks that would move the retake. Finding which concepts cost you points the first time takes about three minutes.
Raise my ACT score →Free to start, no card. Built for the Enhanced ACT format.
Score release windows for every 2026-2027 date
The first column after the test date is when scores often begin posting. The last is the date to plan against.
| Test date | Scores often post from | Plan against |
|---|---|---|
| September 19, 2026 | October 3, 2026 | October 17, 2026 |
| October 17, 2026 | October 31, 2026 | November 14, 2026 |
| December 12, 2026 | December 26, 2026 | January 9, 2027 |
| February 27, 2027 | March 13, 2027 | March 27, 2027 |
| April 10, 2027 | April 24, 2027 | May 8, 2027 |
| June 12, 2027 | June 26, 2027 | July 10, 2027 |
| July 10, 2027 | July 24, 2027 | August 7, 2027 |
Two dates are worth noticing: the December sitting lands its plan-against date in January, and the September sitting only clears by mid October.
The December 12, 2026 sitting, specifically
This is the one that costs people money, and the arithmetic is not subtle.
Scores from December 12, 2026 begin posting around December 26, 2026 and should be in hand by about January 9, 2027. A very common merit priority deadline is December 1, 2026.
Put those together: the December test happens 11 days after the December 1, 2026 deadline has already closed. A student who registers for it believing they are getting a score in before the cutoff has missed it before sitting down. For that deadline the last usable sitting is October 17, 2026.
December still works for regular-decision deadlines and for February 1 priority dates. It is first-year merit money, specifically, that it usually misses.
Which sitting your deadline allows
The last test date whose scores reliably arrive before each of the four deadlines schools actually use.
| Your deadline | Last usable test date |
|---|---|
| November 1 early action | September 19, 2026 |
| December 1 merit priority | October 17, 2026 |
| January 1 regular decision | October 17, 2026 |
| February 1 priority | December 12, 2026 |
Check each school’s scholarship page rather than its admissions page — they are frequently different deadlines, and the scholarship one is usually earlier. More on how merit deadlines work.
Why part of your report arrives first
A partially posted score report is normal. Multiple-choice sections are machine-scored and go out in the first batch; the rest follow.
| Section | In composite | Reported |
|---|---|---|
| English | Yes | First batch |
| Math | Yes | First batch |
| Reading | Yes | First batch |
| Science | No | Can trail by a week+ |
On the Enhanced ACT Science is optional and sits outside the composite, so a late Science score cannot hold up the number colleges actually read. The writing score, where taken, trails as well.
Waiting on a score is the wrong time to start preparing for the next one.
Most students improve on a second attempt, and many colleges superscore. The four weeks you spend waiting are four weeks you could spend on the concepts that cost you points the first time.
Find what’s costing me points →What these dates are not
- They are not announced release days. ACT publishes a one-to-four-week range, not a per-date calendar, so these are the bounds of that range counted forward from each test date.
- They are not a guarantee. ACT's own wording is "over 97%", which leaves a real minority outside the window — usually for answer-document or identification issues rather than anything the student controls.
- They do not cover writing or Science reliably. Those can trail the multiple-choice sections by a week or more, and a deadline that needs a writing score needs more headroom than one that needs a composite.
- They say nothing about when a college processes the score. Receiving a score and having it attached to your application are different events, and the second one can add days.
Questions about ACT score release
How long does it take to get ACT scores?
ACT states that over 97% of scores are available online within one to four weeks of the test date, and that multiple-choice scores are normally reported as early as two weeks after testing. Plan against four weeks, not two: if a deadline depends on the score, the cost of being early is nothing and the cost of being late is the entire award.
When do ACT scores come out?
Scores post in batches, normally on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, starting about 14 days after the test and completing for almost everyone by about 28 days. For the December 12, 2026 sitting that means scores often post from December 26, 2026 and should be in hand by about January 9, 2027.
When do December 12, 2026 ACT scores come out?
Around December 26, 2026 at the earliest, and by roughly January 9, 2027 at the four-week end of ACT's published window. This is the sitting that catches families out: its scores land after most December 1, 2026 and January 1 scholarship priority deadlines have already closed, so the December test is usually too late for first-year merit money.
Why are some of my section scores missing?
Multiple-choice scores come first. Science and the writing score can trail the rest by a week or more, so a partially posted report is normal rather than a problem. On the Enhanced ACT, Science sits outside the composite, so a late Science score does not hold up your composite.
Which ACT test date should I take for scholarships?
Work backwards from the earliest scholarship priority deadline on your list, subtract four weeks for score release, then pick the last test date that still fits. For a December 1, 2026 priority deadline the last usable sitting is October 17, 2026.
Related
Test dates come from ACT’s published national test date schedule, last confirmed on October 24, 2026. Release windows are ACT’s own one-to-four-week range counted forward from each test date, not a per-date calendar ACT publishes — so treat them as the bounds of the published range rather than as announced release days.