Research · Test scores · October 2026
Average ACT score in every state for the class of 2025, and what moves it
As of October 2026: The national average ACT composite for the class of 2025 was 19.4, and state averages ran from 17.2 in Nevada, where 100% of graduates tested, up to 27.6 in the District of Columbia, where 10% did.
The table holds every state's average composite and the share of graduates who tested, ordered from the states that test nearly everyone down to the states where almost nobody does. It does not describe a single high school.
Analysis: Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach, highschoolreach.com), October 2026. Figures and the table may be quoted with attribution to Test Prep Gurus.
The findings, in plain English
Participation explains most of the spread between states. Every state that tested 90% or more of its graduates averaged 20.0 or below. Nevada tested 100% and averaged 17.2. Mississippi tested 100% and averaged 17.7. At the other end, the District of Columbia tested 10% and averaged 27.6, and Connecticut tested 6% and averaged 27.1. A state that tests everyone is scoring its whole class. A state where only college-bound students test is scoring a group that chose itself.
Fifteen states give the ACT to nearly every graduate. 15 states tested 90% or more of the class of 2025, and nine of them tested 100%: Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Wyoming. Their averages run from 17.2 to 19.2. Those averages count students who never send an application anywhere. That is what pulls them below the states where only a slice tests.
Low participation does not promise a high average. Alaska tested 9% of its graduates and averaged 19.7. New Jersey tested the same 9% and averaged 24.6. Among the states where 10% or fewer tested, averages run from 19.7 to 27.6. Participation sets the floor for a state average, not the ceiling.
Average ACT composite and participation, class of 2025
Ordered by the share of graduates who tested, highest first.
| State | Average composite | Share of graduates who tested |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 18.0% | 100% |
| Kentucky | 18.4% | 100% |
| Louisiana | 18.3% | 100% |
| Mississippi | 17.7% | 100% |
| Nebraska | 19.2% | 100% |
| Nevada | 17.2% | 100% |
| Oklahoma | 17.5% | 100% |
| Tennessee | 18.8% | 100% |
| Wyoming | 19.1% | 100% |
| Arizona | 17.7% | 99% |
| Montana | 19.4% | 98% |
| Wisconsin | 19.4% | 95% |
| Arkansas | 18.5% | 92% |
| North Carolina | 18.3% | 91% |
| Utah | 20.0% | 91% |
| North Dakota | 19.4% | 82% |
| Kansas | 19.1% | 73% |
| Ohio | 18.8% | 72% |
| Missouri | 19.8% | 70% |
| Hawaii | 17.5% | 68% |
| Minnesota | 20.6% | 68% |
| South Dakota | 21.0% | 60% |
| Iowa | 21.0% | 41% |
| Florida | 19.6% | 39% |
| South Carolina | 18.7% | 35% |
| Georgia | 21.4% | 23% |
| Texas | 19.3% | 22% |
| West Virginia | 20.2% | 19% |
| Illinois | 23.1% | 16% |
| Oregon | 20.8% | 13% |
| District of Columbia | 27.6% | 10% |
| Alaska | 19.7% | 9% |
| New Jersey | 24.6% | 9% |
| Colorado | 24.7% | 8% |
| Idaho | 23.3% | 8% |
| New Mexico | 20.6% | 8% |
| New York | 25.9% | 8% |
| Massachusetts | 26.4% | 7% |
| Connecticut | 27.1% | 6% |
| Indiana | 23.5% | 6% |
| Maryland | 24.9% | 6% |
| Vermont | 23.9% | 6% |
| Virginia | 25.2% | 6% |
| Michigan | 24.6% | 5% |
| Pennsylvania | 24.5% | 5% |
| Washington | 24.8% | 5% |
| California | 26.4% | 4% |
| Rhode Island | 25.4% | 4% |
| Delaware | 25.2% | 3% |
| New Hampshire | 25.9% | 3% |
| Maine | 25.4% | 1% |
ACT-tested graduating class of 2025: students who took the ACT at least once between their sophomore and senior years, counted once each. Participation is ACT's own estimate of the share of each state's graduates, not a headcount, and ACT does not publish a test-taker count per state. The composite is the average of the four section scores.
How to read a state average
The ACT composite runs from 1 to 36 and is the rounded average of a student's English, math, reading and science scores. A state average is the average composite of the graduates in that state who tested, not of all graduates.
So read the participation column first and the average second. Two states only compare cleanly when the share of graduates tested is close. Almost 1.4 million graduates in the class of 2025 took the ACT, about 36% of the national class. Those students are spread very unevenly across the states.
What this table does not say
These are state totals, so nothing here describes one high school or one student. A strong school in a low-average state and a struggling school in a high-average state are both invisible at this level.
ACT publishes these figures in its report for the class of 2025. Its general state-score page still shows the class of 2024, so a figure found there may be a year behind these.
What a family should do with this
A state average is not a target. The numbers that matter are the score ranges at the colleges your student is considering. At selective colleges those sit well above every state average here.
Two practical steps. Find out whether your state gives the ACT free on a school day. If it does not, your student has to register and pay the fee. Then set the goal from the published range at each college on the list, and treat the state average as background.
Questions parents ask
What was the average ACT score for the class of 2025?
The national average ACT composite for the class of 2025 was 19.4, and state averages ran from 17.2 in Nevada, where 100% of graduates tested, up to 27.6 in the District of Columbia, where 10% did.
Why are average ACT scores higher in states like Connecticut?
A state that tests everyone is scoring its whole class. A state where only college-bound students test is scoring a group that chose itself.
How many states test every graduate on the ACT?
15 states tested 90% or more of the class of 2025, and nine of them tested 100%: Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Wyoming.
Method & sources: The source is ACT's average scores by state for the graduating class of 2025, from its class of 2025 research release, plus that release's national figures. The population is graduates who took the ACT at least once between their sophomore and senior years, counted once each at their most recent score. Participation shares are ACT estimates against projected graduate counts, and ACT prints no per-state test-taker count, so that column is absent here. Rows are ordered by participation, highest first, and the District of Columbia is included.
- ACT: Average ACT scores by state, graduating class of 2025
- ACT research: graduating class of 2025 database
This brief as data: /research/average-act-score-by-state-2025.json. Free for editorial use with attribution to Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach).
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