Research · Test scores · October 2026
SAT and ACT score ranges at the 100 most-applied-to colleges
As of October 2026: At the colleges that receive the most applications, the middle half of enrolled first-years who sent an SAT scored 1500 to 1580 at Harvard University and 980 to 1190 at Texas State University. Every University of California campus publishes no band at all, because it does not look at scores.
The table holds each college's published SAT and ACT range next to the share of enrolled first-years who actually sent each test, and it does not describe students who were admitted and went somewhere else.
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
The top of the range is almost the same at every very selective college. Harvard University reports 1500 to 1580. Stanford University reports 1510 to 1580. Yale University and Princeton University both report 1500 to 1580. Johns Hopkins University starts higher, at 1530, and stops at the same 1580. The gap between these colleges is smaller than the gap inside any one of them.
A published band can rest on a small slice of the class. The University of Minnesota-Twin Cities reports 1310 to 1480. Only 8 percent of its enrolled first-years sent an SAT. CUNY City College reports 1220 to 1460 on the same 8 percent. The University of Oregon reports 1130 to 1360 on 9 percent. The band is real. It just describes a small group that chose to be counted.
Colleges that require a test have higher submit shares, not higher bands. Texas A & M University-College Station requires a test. It reports 1140 to 1380, and 80 percent of its enrolled first-years sent an SAT. The University of Florida also requires one. It reports 1300 to 1480 on 79 percent. Both bands sit well below Harvard's 1500 to 1580. Requiring a test changes who gets counted, not how high the college lands.
SAT and ACT ranges at the most-applied-to colleges
Ordered by how many first-year applications the college received.
| College | State | SAT 25th | SAT 75th | ACT 25th | ACT 75th | Share who sent an SAT | Share who sent an ACT | Policy for 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of California-Los Angeles | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of California-San Diego | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of California-Berkeley | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of California-Irvine | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| New York University | NY | 1,480 | 1,570 | 33 | 35 | 27% | 12% | Test-optional |
| University of California-Santa Barbara | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| Northeastern University | MA | 1,460 | 1,550 | 33 | 35 | 27% | 8% | Test-optional |
| University of California-Davis | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | MI | 1,350 | 1,530 | 31 | 34 | 52% | 18% | Test-optional |
| Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus | PA | 1,220 | 1,400 | 27 | 32 | 33% | 6% | Test-optional |
| San Diego State University | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of Southern California | CA | 1,440 | 1,550 | 32 | 35 | 32% | 14% | Test-optional |
| Boston University | MA | 1,400 | 1,520 | 32 | 34 | 28% | 10% | Test-optional |
| California State University-Long Beach | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| Florida State University | FL | 1,240 | 1,390 | 27 | 31 | 66% | 32% | Required |
| Purdue University-Main Campus | IN | 1,190 | 1,460 | 27 | 34 | 73% | 23% | Required |
| Ohio State University-Main Campus | OH | 1,330 | 1,480 | 29 | 32 | 14% | 35% | Required |
| University of California-Santa Cruz | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| University of California-Merced | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | IL | 1,270 | 1,510 | 29 | 34 | 47% | 18% | Test-optional |
| The University of Texas at Austin | TX | 1,230 | 1,490 | 27 | 33 | 63% | 20% | Required |
| Cornell University | NY | 1,480 | 1,560 | 33 | 35 | 37% | 12% | Required |
| University of Florida | FL | 1,300 | 1,480 | 28 | 33 | 79% | 41% | Required |
| University of South Florida | FL | 1,140 | 1,330 | 24 | 29 | 75% | 25% | Required |
| California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | WI | 1,360 | 1,510 | 28 | 32 | 14% | 30% | Test-optional |
| University of California-Riverside | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of Washington-Seattle Campus | WA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| University of Central Florida | FL | 1,190 | 1,350 | 25 | 29 | 73% | 27% | Required |
| Clemson University | SC | 1,230 | 1,390 | 28 | 32 | 39% | 21% | Test-optional |
| University of Pennsylvania | PA | 1,500 | 1,570 | 34 | 35 | 51% | 19% | Required |
| University of Maryland-College Park | MD | 1,370 | 1,520 | 32 | 35 | 42% | 8% | Test-optional |
| Michigan State University | MI | 1,150 | 1,350 | 26 | 31 | 39% | 7% | Test-optional |
| The University of Alabama | AL | 1,170 | 1,400 | 24 | 31 | 18% | 45% | Test-optional |
| University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus | PA | 1,270 | 1,450 | 29 | 33 | 41% | 12% | Test-optional |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | NC | 1,370 | 1,530 | 30 | 34 | 29% | 34% | Required |
| Columbia University in the City of New York | NY | 1,490 | 1,570 | 34 | 35 | 40% | 21% | Required |
| Harvard University | MA | 1,500 | 1,580 | 34 | 36 | 52% | 22% | Required |
| University of Virginia-Main Campus | VA | 1,410 | 1,530 | 32 | 34 | 50% | 16% | Test-optional |
| University of Arizona | AZ | 1,160 | 1,420 | 21 | 30 | 13% | 22% | Test-optional |
| University of Colorado Boulder | CO | 1,230 | 1,420 | 28 | 33 | 20% | 8% | Test-optional |
| Indiana University-Bloomington | IN | 1,170 | 1,400 | 27 | 32 | 41% | 16% | Test-optional |
| Stanford University | CA | 1,510 | 1,580 | 34 | 35 | 47% | 22% | Required |
| Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | GA | 1,330 | 1,530 | 28 | 34 | 77% | 35% | Required |
| Yale University | CT | 1,500 | 1,580 | 33 | 35 | 56% | 26% | Required |
| Northwestern University | IL | 1,490 | 1,560 | 33 | 35 | 50% | 29% | Test-optional |
| Brown University | RI | 1,500 | 1,570 | 34 | 35 | 54% | 22% | Required |
| Texas A & M University-College Station | TX | 1,140 | 1,380 | 25 | 31 | 80% | 20% | Required |
| The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | TN | 1,190 | 1,340 | 25 | 31 | 28% | 78% | Required |
| University of Massachusetts-Amherst | MA | 1,300 | 1,480 | 29 | 33 | 27% | 4% | Test-optional |
| Stony Brook University | NY | 1,320 | 1,490 | 28 | 33 | 36% | 3% | Test-optional |
| Binghamton University | NY | 1,320 | 1,490 | 29 | 34 | 47% | 9% | Test-optional |
| California State University-Fullerton | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| University of Miami | FL | 1,330 | 1,470 | 30 | 33 | 32% | 21% | Required |
| Auburn University | AL | 1,240 | 1,380 | 25 | 31 | 17% | 71% | Required |
| Grand Canyon University | AZ | 1,058 | 1,175 | 19 | 24 | — | — | Test-optional |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | VA | 1,240 | 1,420 | 27 | 32 | 43% | 7% | Test-optional |
| University of South Carolina-Columbia | SC | 1,180 | 1,380 | 26 | 32 | 32% | 17% | Test-optional |
| University of Connecticut | CT | 1,210 | 1,420 | 29 | 33 | 37% | 4% | Required |
| Duke University | NC | 1,510 | 1,570 | 34 | 35 | 50% | 31% | Test-optional |
| California State Polytechnic University-Pomona | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| Vanderbilt University | TN | 1,510 | 1,560 | 34 | 35 | 25% | 26% | Test-optional |
| Southern New Hampshire University | NH | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| Fordham University | NY | 1,330 | 1,490 | 30 | 33 | 23% | 9% | Test-optional |
| University of Georgia | GA | 1,160 | 1,390 | 25 | 32 | 61% | 38% | Required |
| Rutgers University-New Brunswick | NJ | 1,270 | 1,480 | 28 | 33 | 51% | 5% | Test-optional |
| Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College | LA | 1,150 | 1,330 | 24 | 29 | 14% | 86% | Test-optional |
| Syracuse University | NY | 1,260 | 1,430 | 28 | 32 | 24% | 9% | Test-optional |
| Loyola University Chicago | IL | 1,160 | 1,340 | 27 | 31 | 25% | 12% | Test-optional |
| Drexel University | PA | 1,230 | 1,430 | 27 | 33 | 38% | 6% | Test-optional |
| North Carolina State University at Raleigh | NC | 1,300 | 1,460 | 28 | 32 | 21% | 28% | Required |
| University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | MN | 1,310 | 1,480 | 27 | 31 | 8% | 34% | Test-optional |
| Baylor University | TX | 1,210 | 1,400 | 27 | 32 | 31% | 19% | Test-optional |
| Princeton University | NJ | 1,500 | 1,580 | 34 | 35 | 57% | 20% | Required |
| University of Oregon | OR | 1,130 | 1,360 | 22 | 30 | 9% | 5% | Test-optional |
| Case Western Reserve University | OH | 1,430 | 1,540 | 32 | 35 | 43% | 23% | Test-optional |
| Johns Hopkins University | MD | 1,530 | 1,580 | 34 | 35 | 41% | 14% | Required |
| University of Chicago | IL | 1,510 | 1,570 | 34 | 35 | 46% | 30% | Test-optional |
| University at Buffalo | NY | 1,210 | 1,380 | 27 | 32 | 33% | 3% | Test-optional |
| Northern Arizona University | AZ | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| University of Delaware | DE | 1,200 | 1,360 | 27 | 31 | 24% | 3% | Test-optional |
| Texas State University | TX | 980 | 1,190 | 19 | 26 | 47% | 7% | Test-optional |
| Liberty University | VA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| University of North Texas | TX | 980 | 1,230 | 19 | 27 | 43% | 10% | Test-optional |
| Colorado State University-Fort Collins | CO | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| Temple University | PA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| Boston College | MA | 1,430 | 1,540 | 33 | 34 | 28% | 16% | Test-optional |
| San Jose State University | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| James Madison University | VA | 1,170 | 1,320 | 25 | 29 | 19% | 3% | Test-optional |
| The University of Tampa | FL | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-optional |
| Miami University-Oxford | OH | 1,210 | 1,380 | 26 | 31 | 10% | 29% | Test-optional |
| Texas Tech University | TX | 1,090 | 1,270 | 22 | 28 | 33% | 11% | Test-optional |
| Tufts University | MA | 1,460 | 1,550 | 33 | 35 | 36% | 18% | Test-optional |
| Carnegie Mellon University | PA | 1,500 | 1,570 | 34 | 35 | 51% | 17% | Test-optional |
| University of Cincinnati-Main Campus | OH | 1,150 | 1,360 | 24 | 29 | 11% | 36% | Test-optional |
| California State University-Los Angeles | CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | Test-blind |
| Washington University in St Louis | MO | 1,500 | 1,570 | 33 | 35 | 29% | 28% | Test-optional |
| DePaul University | IL | 1,130 | 1,340 | 26 | 31 | 29% | 11% | Test-optional |
| CUNY City College | NY | 1,220 | 1,460 | — | — | 8% | — | Test-optional |
Fall 2023 entering class, the latest federal file, so a college's own page may show a newer number. Each band runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile of ENROLLED first-years who submitted that test -- not admitted students, and not the whole class. A blank means the college reported no figure: the University of California and Cal State campuses are test-blind, and a few test-optional colleges, among them the University of Washington-Seattle Campus and Temple University, reported no band for that year.
How to read a score band
A band is two numbers. The lower one is the 25th percentile. The upper one is the 75th percentile. Half of the enrolled first-years who sent that test scored between them. A quarter scored below the lower number and a quarter scored above the upper one.
These are enrolled students, not admitted ones, and only the ones who chose to send a score. At a test-optional college, the students who send scores are mostly the ones whose scores help them. That lifts the band above the class as a whole. It is why the share who sent a test is printed right next to the band.
Why some colleges show no range
The University of California campuses and most Cal State campuses do not consider SAT or ACT scores at all, so they report no band and a score cannot help or hurt an application there.
A blank is not always test-blind. The University of Washington-Seattle Campus, Temple University, Arizona State University Campus Immersion and Liberty University are test-optional. They simply reported no band for this year. For those colleges the blank means the college does not report it, not that scores are ignored.
What a family should do with this
Find your colleges in the table and read two columns together: the band, and the share who sent that test. Where the share is low, a score under the lower number is unlikely to decide the application, and leaving it off is a normal choice. Where the share is high, or the policy column says required, plan on testing.
Treat the lower number as the target. A score at or above it sits inside the range the college publishes. The climb from there to the upper number is shorter than most families expect. If the list is mostly University of California and Cal State campuses, those hours belong in grades and course rigor, because no score is read.
Questions parents ask
What SAT score does Harvard report?
Harvard University reports 1500 to 1580.
Why do the University of California campuses show no SAT range?
The University of California campuses and most Cal State campuses do not consider SAT or ACT scores at all, so they report no band and a score cannot help or hurt an application there.
Does a published score range describe admitted students?
These are enrolled students, not admitted ones, and only the ones who chose to send a score.
Method & sources: The source is the federal IPEDS Admissions file for the fall 2023 entering class, the latest federal file, so a college's own page may show a newer number. Each band is the 25th and 75th percentile score of enrolled first-years who submitted that test, and each submit share is the portion of enrolled first-years who sent it. Rows are the 100 colleges with the most first-year applicants in that file, ordered by applicant count. Test-blind campuses report no band, a few test-optional colleges reported none for that year, and the policy column is the 2026 policy with the test-blind and required overrides applied.
This brief as data: /research/sat-act-ranges-100-colleges.json. Free for editorial use with attribution to Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach).
Related: Which colleges require the SAT or ACT, state by state · Do test scores still matter? · Acceptance rates at the 100 most-applied-to colleges · SAT vs ACT