Utah ACT Scores Rise in 2026
Local students increased their average composite ACT score to 20.1, outpacing the national average of 18.8.
Updated on Oct. 15, 2026 in Secondary Education
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Utah students achieved an average composite ACT score of 20.1 in 2026, marking an improvement over the 19.9 recorded in 2025. This result places Utah above the 2026 national average of 18.8.
Why it matters
These results provide families with insight into how local students are performing in core academic subjects compared to national peers. The state's consistent testing of over 90 percent of graduates offers a broad look at college readiness across the region.
Utah students achieved an average composite ACT score of 20.1 in 2026, improving upon the 19.9 average from 2025. While 57 percent of graduates met the English benchmark, only 34 percent met the math benchmark and 27 percent met all three core benchmarks.
The players
ACT
A standardized test used by colleges to measure student readiness for post-secondary education.
The details
The state facilitates testing by providing the ACT to all high school juniors at no cost. Students have the opportunity to improve their standing through superscoring, which calculates an average based on the best scores from each section across multiple attempts. This methodology resulted in a higher average superscore of 25.8 for those who opted to retest.
Timeline
2019: Baseline year for student proficiency assessment.
2021: Trough year for Utah student proficiency during the pandemic.
2025: Prior year average ACT score and benchmarks.
2026: Most recent year for testing results.
The Home Front
These scores align with established national college readiness benchmarks that track academic preparation across public school systems. This assessment provides a state-wide look at how local students compare against the national ACT participation pool of 1.3 million students.
Parents can review these state benchmarks to better understand the college readiness landscape for their high school students. It is helpful to discuss these testing opportunities and the impact of superscoring with your student's school counselor.
The takeaway
Understanding the role of superscoring can help students maximize their results if they choose to test multiple times. Families should review individual score reports to determine if additional preparation in specific subjects like math is needed to reach target college benchmarks.
Further reading
For more information on academic standards, visit the Secondary Education page.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Deseret News.
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