A little over six months have passed since the “Enhanced ACT” went live for all, would-be college students in September of 2025. Since then, we’ve collected feedback from the tens of thousands of students who have taken Piqosity’s full-length practice ACT tests. Additionally, ACT has released two new, official practice tests.

We’ve learned that the Enhanced ACT has actually turned out to be easier than the “old ACT,” and it looks like ACT is mimicking SAT by adding charts and graphs to the Reading Test. As such, we’ve made comprehensive updates to our 12 full-length Enhanced ACT practice tests:

  • Simplifying Math Questions: We’ve removed some of what were previously the hardest math questions on our ACT practice tests. The removed questions often required an out-of-the-box kind of thinking, which no longer seems tested on the ACT. In their place are simpler, computational style questions; however, novel thinking can still result in faster answers.
  • Removing Complex English Questions: We’ve eliminated or minimized some question types that are no longer tested or tested at a lower rate. These include subjective grammar skills like awkwardness and parallelism in the English section, which previously required a higher level of mastery of the English language. We’ve replaced these relatively complex questions with simpler, more mechanical ones.
  • Adding New Reading Passages: In the English section, we added two new passages to each test, reflecting the shorter passages that now appear in addition to the traditional, longer ones. In the Reading section, we added charts to a passage in approximately half of our tests and added in new data analysis questions to reflect the inclusion of such a passage and questions in one of the official practice ACTs.

In total, our spring 2026 update resulted in edits to about 15% of the questions on our 12 full-length ACT practice tests. While the updated tests are easier, we are confident they’re in line with the Enhanced ACT’s revised difficulty. For students wishing to push themselves with “competition-style,” hard questions, they’re still available in Personalized Practice.

What’s Tested on the Enhanced ACT for 2026

Overall, there are fewer questions per section on the new, enhanced ACT, fewer questions per passage (in the English and Reading sections), and shorter passages. The Science section, once considered emblematic of the ACT’s reputation as the “STEM” test, is now optional; students can decide whether or not they want to take it. The same is true for the Essay section. The result is a much shorter test that is more in line with competitors like the SAT. Look at the table below to see the format changes on the enhanced ACT.

New ACT 2025 Format

Test Section Number of Questions Time Limit (minutes) Time Per Question (seconds)
English 50 35 42
Math 45 50 ~67
Reading 36 40 ~67
Science (optional) 40 40 60
Essay (optional) 1 40 n/a
Totals: 131 + 41 optional 125 + 80 optional n/a

For a more specific look at what’s tested on the enhanced ACT section-by-section, feel free to check out our ACT content deep dives:

  • ACT English Test: fewer questions in all, fewer grammar questions, two short passages + four long ones for a total of six passages.
  • ACT Math Test: fewer questions in all, fewer long, complex word problems, fewer questions that require a synthesis of skills across mathematical topics.
  • ACT Reading Test: one fewer question per passage, a couple fewer reading comprehension questions per test, potential for chart-based data analysis questions.
  • ACT Science Test: more time for the section.

Read More about the Enhanced ACT Test: