How many questions are on the Enhanced ACT?

171 in total: English 50, Math 45, Reading 36, and the optional Science 40. Of those, 142 are scored — the other 29 are unscored field-test questions embedded throughout. The legacy format was English 75, Math 60, Reading 40 and Science 40.

Does Science count toward the ACT composite?

No. On the Enhanced ACT, Science is optional and excluded from the composite, which is the average of English, Math and Reading only. If you take Science it is reported as its own 1–36 score alongside the composite, and some programs still ask for it.

What are field-test questions on the ACT?

Unscored experimental questions that ACT embeds in every section to trial for future tests. They are not marked and look identical to scored questions, so you cannot tell which is which while testing. English has 10, Math 4, Reading 9 and Science 6.

Is the Enhanced ACT easier than the old ACT?

It is shorter, not easier. Fewer questions and more time per question reduces time pressure, which helps students who used to run out of time. The content and difficulty of the questions themselves did not change, and because the composite now averages three sections instead of four, each one carries more weight.

Should I still take the ACT Science section?

Take it if any school on your list asks for it, if you are applying to a STEM program, or if Science is a strength that is worth showing. Skip it if it has historically dragged your composite down — it no longer can, since it is excluded from the composite either way.

Do ACT scores from the old format still count?

Yes. Both formats report on the same 1–36 scale and scores remain comparable, so a 30 from the legacy test and a 30 from the Enhanced ACT mean the same thing to a college.

Enhanced ACT Format: What Actually Changed

The ACT changed, and most of the internet hasn't caught up. Calculators still ask for English out of 75. Guides still describe a four-section composite. If you're prepping from stale material, you're preparing for a test that no longer exists.

Here's what's actually true now.

The Enhanced ACT has 171 questions — English 50, Math 45, Reading 36, Science 40 — and Science is optional and excluded from the composite. Your composite is the average of English, Math and Reading only.

Score yourself on the current format

Most calculators online still average four sections and use the old English total. This one is built for the Enhanced ACT — English out of 40, Reading out of 27, Science excluded. Free, no signup.

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The structure, side by side

Section	Legacy ACT	Enhanced ACT	Minutes	In composite?
English	75 questions	50 questions	35	Yes
Math	60 questions	45 questions	50	Yes
Reading	40 questions	36 questions	40	Yes
Science	40 questions	40 questions	40	No — optional

English lost 25 questions. Math lost 15. Reading lost 4. Science kept its count but left the composite.

Every section is still scored 1–36, and the composite is still 1–36, so scores stay comparable to previous years.

The part almost nobody mentions

Not every question you answer counts.

The Enhanced ACT embeds unscored field-test questions in every section — experimental items ACT is trialling for future tests. They aren't marked. They look exactly like real questions. And there are more of them than most people expect:

Section	Questions	Scored	Don't count
English	50	40	10 (20%)
Math	45	41	4 (9%)
Reading	36	27	9 (25%)
Science	40	34	6 (15%)
Total	171	142	29

A quarter of the Reading section does not affect your score — and you have no way to tell which quarter.

Two practical consequences:

Answer everything as if it counts. You can't identify field-test items, there's no penalty for a wrong answer, and leaving one blank costs exactly what guessing wrong costs. Never leave a bubble empty.

Your raw score is out of the scored count. This is where most calculators break. ACT's official conversion table for English is indexed on a raw score out of 40, not 50. Feed it a number out of 50 and your estimated score comes out too high.

Convert a raw score properly, with the official conversion chart →

Science is optional — should you take it?

Science is now a separate, optional section. Skipping it doesn't change your composite, because it isn't in your composite either way.

Take Science if:

A school on your list asks for it (check each one — policies vary)
You're applying to a STEM program
It's a genuine strength worth showing

Skip Science if:

It has historically dragged your score down
No school on your list requires it
You'd rather spend the preparation time on the three sections that do count

The old calculus — "Science is pulling my composite down" — no longer applies. It can't pull your composite anywhere.

What changed inside the sections

Math has four answer choices, not five. A blind guess is now a 25% shot instead of 20%, and eliminating one wrong answer helps more than it used to. The content and difficulty didn't change.

English and Reading passages are shorter. A direct response to complaints about time pressure. Fewer questions across less text means more time per question.

Each section carries more weight. Averaging three sections instead of four means one weak section moves your composite more than it used to. A 5-point gap in one section used to cost you about 1.25 composite points; now it costs about 1.67.

Is it easier?

Shorter, not easier.

What genuinely improved is time pressure. Students who used to run out of time now have more room, and that's a real gain if pacing was your problem.

What didn't change is the difficulty of any individual question. And the three-section composite means there's nowhere to hide a weak section — if English is your problem, it's now a third of your score.

Find out where you actually stand on the Enhanced ACT

Real Enhanced ACT-format questions, a projected score for every section, and the concepts costing you the most points. About three minutes, no account.

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