ACT national test dates · 2026-2027
When is the next ACT test?
The next ACT national test date is December 12, 2026, 42 days away. Regular registration closes November 6, 2026, in 6 days.
Next test
Dec 12
Days away
42
Days to register
6
Scores by
Jan 9
Closing soon
6 days left to register
Regular registration for December 12, 2026 closes November 6, 2026 at 11:59pm Central. After that it is late registration with a fee until November 29, 2026. Test centres also fill up, so registering on the deadline often means a long drive.
Register at act.org →42 days to prepare
Enough time to move a score. Not enough to waste on the wrong sections.
Most students spend the weeks before a test re-reading material they already know. The points are in the concepts you are actually missing, and finding them takes about three minutes.
Raise my ACT score →Free to start, no card. Built for the Enhanced ACT format.
Every remaining 2026-2027 ACT test date
Regular registration closes 36 days before each test. “Scores by” is the four-week end of ACT’s published release window — the date to plan against if a deadline depends on it.
| Test date | Register by | Late deadline | Scores from | Scores by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 12, 2026 | November 6, 2026 | November 29, 2026 | Dec 26 | Jan 9 |
| February 27, 2027 | January 22, 2027 | February 9, 2027 | Mar 13 | Mar 27 |
| April 10, 2027 | March 5, 2027 | March 23, 2027 | Apr 24 | May 8 |
| June 12, 2027 | May 7, 2027 | May 25, 2027 | Jun 26 | Jul 10 |
| July 10, 2027 | June 4, 2027 | June 22, 2027 | Jul 24 | Aug 7 |
Looking for the full year including dates already past, and the registration detail? All seven 2026-2027 dates and the timing trap underneath them.
Picking the date your scholarship deadlines allow
The test date you need is usually earlier than the one you would pick, because the score has to arrive before the deadline, not the test.
Many universities award merit scholarships automatically from a published grid, gated behind an application priority deadline. A very common one is December 1, 2026. Scores take one to four weeks, so the last sitting whose scores reliably arrive before it is October 17, 2026 — not the December test, which happens 11 days after the deadline has already closed.
- 1Find the earliest scholarship priority deadline on your list — check each school's scholarship page, not its admissions page, because they are frequently different dates.
- 2Subtract four weeks for score release.
- 3Pick the last test date that still fits.
Projected dates for the following year
ACT publishes these in advance and marks them subject to change. Treat them as planning estimates, not as dates you can register for.
| Projected date | Status |
|---|---|
| September 11, 2027 | Subject to change |
| October 16, 2027 | Subject to change |
| December 11, 2027 | Subject to change |
| February 26, 2028 | Subject to change |
| April 8, 2028 | Subject to change |
| June 10, 2028 | Subject to change |
| July 15, 2028 | Subject to change |
What this page cannot tell you
- Whether a centre near you has seats. Registration capacity is per test centre and ACT does not publish it in advance — centres fill up, and registering on the deadline often means a long drive.
- Your own deadline. The dates here are national; the one that decides your test date is whichever scholarship or application deadline falls earliest on your own list.
- Exact score release. ACT publishes a one-to-four-week range rather than a per-date calendar, and writing and Science can trail the multiple-choice sections by a week or more. The "scores by" column is the four-week end of that range, which is the one to plan against.
- Whether dates have moved. ACT can change a published date, so the schedule on act.org is the authority and this page is a reading of it taken on October 24, 2026.
Questions about the next ACT test
When is the next ACT test?
December 12, 2026, which is 42 days away. Regular registration closes November 6, 2026, in 6 days.
How many ACT test dates are left this year?
5 of the seven 2026-2027 national dates remain: December 12, 2026, February 27, 2027, April 10, 2027, June 12, 2027, July 10, 2027.
When do I need to register by?
November 6, 2026 for the December 12, 2026 test, at 11:59pm Central. Late registration runs to November 29, 2026 with an additional fee. Every regular deadline in the 2026-2027 year falls 36 days before its test date.
Will I get my scores back in time for scholarship deadlines?
Scores from the December 12, 2026 test normally begin posting around December 26, 2026 and should be in hand by about January 9, 2027 at the four-week end of ACT's published window. Plan against the later date. For a December 1, 2026 priority deadline — a very common one — the last usable sitting is October 17, 2026.
Is the next ACT the Enhanced ACT?
Yes. Every national sitting in the 2026-2027 year is the Enhanced ACT: three scored sections — English, Math and Reading — with Science optional and outside the composite. Practice material written for the old format has the wrong question counts in every section, so a raw score taken from it converts through a table that does not apply.
Related
Test dates and registration deadlines come from ACT’s published national test date schedule, last confirmed against it on October 24, 2026. Confirm there before you register, because dates can change. Score release windows are ACT’s own one-to-four-week range counted forward from each test date, not a per-date calendar ACT publishes. All deadlines are 11:59pm Central.