When Do ACT Scores Come Out? 2026-27 Dates

October 17, 2026 ACT scores have started posting: online scores on October 22 and paper scores on Tuesday, October 27. Check yours by signing in to MyACT at my.act.org. If yours is not there yet, that is normal: ACT says over 97% of scores are available online within 1-4 weeks of the test date, so the initial release date is when scores begin appearing, not a deadline for everyone. There is no email with your score attached, and multiple-choice scores can appear before writing scores. The next release is December 17 (online) and December 22 (paper) for the December 12 test. ACT has extended the regular registration deadline for that test to Monday, November 9, and late registration (with a fee) runs until November 29.

When do October 2026 ACT scores come out?

Online scores from the October 17, 2026 test started posting on Thursday, October 22, and paper scores started on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Scores that need extra processing, and writing scores, keep posting over the following days and weeks.

When do December 2026 ACT scores come out?

December 12, 2026 scores start posting on December 17 for online testers and December 22 for paper testers. ACT extended the regular registration deadline from November 6 to Monday, November 9; after that, late registration (a $42 fee) runs until November 29.

The dates below come from the official ACT score release table on act.org. Treat each one as the day scores begin appearing, not the day every student sees them.

2026-27 ACT score release dates

ACT publishes an "initial score release date" for each national test date. Online test-takers usually get scores a few days earlier because ACT receives an online test the moment you finish and can start scoring sooner.

Test date	Registration deadline	Late deadline	Online initial score release	Paper initial score release
September 19, 2026	Closed	Closed	Released October 6, 2026	Released October 6, 2026
October 17, 2026	Closed	Closed	Released October 22, 2026	Released October 27, 2026
December 12, 2026	November 9 (extended)	November 29	December 17, 2026	December 22, 2026
February 27, 2027	January 22	February 9	March 16, 2027	March 16, 2027
April 10, 2027	March 5	March 23	April 15, 2027	April 20, 2027
June 12, 2027	May 7	May 25	June 17, 2027	June 23, 2027
July 10, 2027	June 4	June 22	July 15, 2027	July 20, 2027

Source: act.org test dates, registration, and scores pages, checked November 6, 2026. Deadlines close at 11:59 p.m. Central Time. These timelines apply to ACT National testing (and Special Testing where applicable); school-day and state testing follow their own schedules, so check with your school if you tested on a weekday.

Why scores come out in batches, not all at once

The release date is when the first batch posts. Per ACT, the initial release includes any test that has been received, processed, passed all validation checks, and was not affected by an irregularity. Everything else keeps processing during business hours over the following days and weeks, and scores post as they clear. ACT says the majority of scores are released on the initial release date and that more than 97% are out within 1-4 weeks of the test date; a small remainder takes longer for the reasons in the "missing score" section below.

There is no published release time of day. ACT says scores keep processing during business hours, so checking once in the morning and once in the afternoon is enough.

Multiple-choice scores vs. writing scores

If you took the ACT with writing, expect two moments rather than one:

1. Multiple-choice scores first. Your English, math, reading, and (if you added it) science scores, along with your Composite, post as soon as they are available.
2. Writing score later. ACT says writing may take longer because of additional steps in the score verification process, and it does not commit to a fixed gap.

This matters for application deadlines: ACT does not send your scores to colleges until every score from that test date, including writing, is available. If you took writing and a deadline is tight, build that lag into your timeline.

How to check your ACT scores in MyACT

1. Go to my.act.org and sign in with the ACT account you used to register. For school-day or state testing, use the login details your school gave you.
2. Open your dashboard. Scores for each test date appear there as they are released, with section scores and your Composite.
3. If you have tested more than once since September 2016, MyACT also shows your Superscore (more below).

ACT does not email or text scores; MyACT is the only place to see them. Scores from before September 2011 are not in MyACT and must be requested from ACT directly.

My score is missing: what usually happened

A blank spot on release day is normal and rarely means something went wrong. ACT lists the specific reasons a score can be held out of the initial release:

• Your answer document arrived late. A mailing delay, a rescheduled test center, or testing late in a Special Testing window pushes you into a later batch.
• Your matching information did not match. The name, date of birth, and other identifiers on the answer document must match your registration; a mismatch triggers manual review.
• An irregularity was reported at your test center. A room's scores can be held while ACT investigates.
• Additional equating analysis. ACT sometimes runs extra statistical checks before releasing a form.
• Online Special Testing windows. These scores are not released until the whole window closes.

What to do: wait at least a week past the initial release date, confirm you are signed in to the correct account, and contact ACT (contact options are on act.org) if your score still has not posted a few weeks after release. Have your ACT ID and test date ready.

Score reports and what colleges receive

Your registration fee covers reports for you, your high school, and up to four colleges if you entered their codes when you registered. After that, act.org lists $20 per additional report (as of October 2026; confirm before budgeting). You choose what each college gets: scores from one specific test date, or your Superscore. All scores from a test date travel together, so you cannot send only multiple-choice or only writing, and reports go out once every score for that date is ready.

To see which questions you missed, ACT sells My Answer Key for certain national test dates and centers (act.org lists $36 before the test, $44 after). It is the best item-level feedback you can get from a real administration if you plan to retest.

Superscoring: how it works

ACT automatically calculates a Superscore for anyone who has tested more than once since September 2016. It averages your highest section scores across all your test dates, and if two section scores are tied, ACT uses the more recent one. ACT also allows you to combine a writing score from one date with multiple-choice scores from another.

Whether a college uses the Superscore is up to the college. Many do; a few consider only your single best test date. Check each school's testing policy before choosing which report to send.

Should you retake the ACT?

ACT reports that 43% of test-takers take it more than once and that more than half of them improve. That does not make a retake automatic. The decision usually comes down to three questions:

1. Is there a section you can realistically move? At superscoring colleges a retest cannot lower your best section scores, so ask whether a focused month on math or reading can add two or three points there.
2. Does a test date fit your deadlines? Count backward from the release date, and leave extra room if you took writing. For early deadlines in the first half of November, September was the safe choice and October the last realistic one; for later deadlines, December 12 (online scores from December 17, paper from December 22) is the next option.
3. What will you do differently? Retesting without changing your preparation tends to reproduce the same score. My Answer Key or a timed practice section shows you exactly where to focus.

If you retest, register by the regular deadline (about five weeks out) to avoid the $42 late fee act.org currently lists.

If you are retesting on December 12

Start with your score report and work on the section you can realistically move. Paste notes or a prep book chapter into the practice test generator for an untimed set of questions with answers, no account needed, or use the quiz generator for quick drills on one weak topic such as comma rules or linear functions.

To work from a whole PDF, upload it to the app and turn it into a timed exam or a narrated video lecture. On the Free plan that means one AI creation, one upload (8 MB, first 32 PDF pages), and one exam attempt, with no reset. Answering questions on material you have already studied tends to help more than rereading it.

Quick answers

What time of day do ACT scores come out? ACT does not publish a time. Scores post during ACT's business hours as they are processed, starting on the release date.

Do online test-takers get scores faster? Usually. For most 2026-27 dates the online release is about five days before paper; for September and February the two are the same day.

Why is my writing score missing? Writing scores take longer to verify and post after multiple-choice scores. Colleges receive the full report once writing is in.

Can colleges see all of my ACT scores? Only the test dates or Superscore you choose to send. All scores from a single test date are sent together.

The bottom line

October 17 ACT scores are posting in MyACT now, and December 12 scores start on December 17 (online) and December 22 (paper). ACT says most scores come out on the initial release date; the rest follow over the next few weeks, and a missing score usually means a late answer document or a routine check. Use the release dates to plan your application timeline, decide on a retake with the Superscore in mind, and spend the wait on targeted practice rather than refreshing the page.