Interactive concordance tool
SAT to ACT Score Converter
Enter your SAT total score or ACT Composite score to calculate the official concordant equivalent, national percentile rank, and selective college admissions tier.
How the score conversion works
Standardized test concordance is not a mathematical formula. Because the SAT (400–1600) and ACT (1–36) test different section mixes and pacing dynamics, the College Board and ACT, Inc. conducted a comprehensive research study analyzing hundreds of thousands of students who took both exams within a short window.
Admissions offices at colleges nationwide rely on this exact concordance chart when evaluating applicants who submit different test types.
Score milestones and admissions tiers
1500–1600 SAT / 34–36 ACT (Top 1–2%)
Highly Selective / Ivy League: Within the middle-50% range for MIT, Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and other top-tier universities. At this level, score increases yield diminishing returns; preparation shifts to preserving accuracy on careless traps.
1400–1490 SAT / 31–33 ACT (Top 3–7%)
Very Selective: Extremely competitive for top state flagships (e.g. UVA, Michigan, UNC Chapel Hill, Georgia Tech) and top-30 private universities. A targeted 40–80 point push in one weaker section often crosses the 1500 threshold.
1200–1390 SAT / 25–30 ACT (Top 10–25%)
Competitive / Flagship: Above national averages and qualifies for generous merit scholarships at many regional and national universities. Focused skill remediation in high-weight domains (SAT Linear Equations, ACT Punctuation) delivers the highest point-gains in this band.
1000–1190 SAT / 19–24 ACT (Top 26–55%)
Standard Admissions: Meets admission requirements at most four-year colleges and universities. Eliminating pacing panic and reviewing fundamental algebra formulas routinely yields 100+ point improvements.
Frequently asked questions
Is a 1400 SAT score the same as a 31 ACT score?
Yes. According to the official concordance tables, a 1400 on the SAT corresponds to an ACT composite score of 31. Both scores rank at approximately the 93rd percentile nationally.
Will colleges convert my score automatically?
Yes. College admissions offices use software that automatically maps SAT and ACT scores to an equivalent scale based on the official concordance table.
Which test should I submit if my percentiles are equal?
If your concordant percentiles are equal, you can submit either test without disadvantage. If you took one test multiple times with a higher superscore, submit the test with the higher superscore.