Average SAT Score by State 2026: Rankings & Participation
Miyagi Labs ·
Average SAT Score by State 2026: Rankings & Participation
TL;DR
The national average SAT score for the Class of 2025 is 1029 out of 1600. State averages range from 875 (New Mexico) to 1256 (Kansas), but this gap is almost entirely driven by participation rates, not educational quality. States that require every student to take the SAT have lower averages; states where only a few motivated students choose the SAT have inflated averages. The only number that truly matters for college admissions is your target school’s middle 50% SAT range, not your state’s average.
Quick Answer: Average SAT Scores by State in 2026
The average SAT score in the United States for the Class of 2025 is 1029 out of 1600.
However, state averages vary dramatically. Kansas reports the highest average score at 1256, while New Mexico reports the lowest at 875.
These rankings can be misleading.
The biggest factor affecting state SAT scores is participation rate. States that require every student to take the SAT almost always report lower averages. States where only a small percentage of college-bound students choose the SAT typically report much higher scores.
Before comparing yourself with your state's average, check three numbers:
- Your state's SAT participation rate
- Your national percentile
- Your target college's middle 50% SAT range
For admissions purposes, your target college's score range matters far more than your state's average.
National Average SAT Score (Class of 2025)
Before looking at the average SAT score by state, it helps to know the national baseline. The College Board reports a mean total SAT score of 1029 for the Class of 2025, broken down as 521 in Reading and Writing and 508 in Math. Over 2 million students took the test, the first time participation exceeded that mark since 2020.
This was also the first majority-digital cohort, with 97% of students taking the Digital SAT. About 68% tested during the school day rather than on a weekend.
A few more numbers worth noting:
College readiness benchmarks: The College Board sets them at 480 for Reading and Writing and 530 for Math. Only 39% of the Class of 2025 met both, down from 45% pre-pandemic.
Year-over-year trend: The 2025 average of 1029 is a slight improvement over 1024 in 2024, but still roughly 30 points below pre-pandemic levels.
Post-pandemic trajectory: From 2020 to 2024, average scores declined in line with drops seen on NAEP and PISA assessments. The 2025 uptick is the first positive movement since 2021.
If you’re wondering where your own score falls nationally, a score predictor tool can give you a data-backed estimate based on your current practice performance.
Graduating Class | Average SAT Score |
|---|---|
2019 | ~1059 |
2020 | ~1051 |
2021 | ~1060 |
2022 | ~1050 |
2023 | ~1028 |
2024 | 1024 |
2025 | 1029 |
Average SAT Scores by State: Full Rankings Table
Here is the complete average SAT score by state for the Class of 2025, ranked from highest to lowest. Pay close attention to the participation rate column, as it explains nearly everything about where each state falls.
Rank | State | Avg Total | Avg RW | Avg Math | Participation Rate | Statewide Mandate? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Kansas | 1256 | 632 | 624 | ~2% | No |
2 | North Dakota | 1254 | 631 | 623 | ~1% | No |
3 | Wyoming | 1253 | 630 | 623 | ~1% | No |
4 | Utah | 1230 | 619 | 611 | ~2% | No |
5 | Nebraska | 1228 | 617 | 611 | ~2% | No |
6 | Wisconsin | 1225 | 616 | 609 | ~2% | No |
7 | Iowa | 1222 | 615 | 607 | ~2% | No |
8 | South Dakota | 1218 | 614 | 604 | ~2% | No |
9 | Minnesota | 1215 | 612 | 603 | ~3% | No |
10 | Mississippi | 1210 | 607 | 603 | ~2% | No |
11 | Missouri | 1205 | 605 | 600 | ~3% | No |
12 | Montana | 1202 | 604 | 598 | ~4% | No |
13 | Kentucky | 1198 | 601 | 597 | ~4% | No |
14 | Louisiana | 1195 | 598 | 597 | ~3% | No |
15 | Arkansas | 1193 | 597 | 596 | ~3% | No |
16 | Alabama | 1190 | 596 | 594 | ~4% | No |
17 | Oklahoma | 1185 | 594 | 591 | ~4% | No |
18 | Tennessee | 1180 | 592 | 588 | ~5% | No |
19 | Oregon | 1175 | 590 | 585 | ~8% | No |
20 | Alaska | 1170 | 588 | 582 | ~8% | No |
21 | Arizona | 1165 | 585 | 580 | ~25% | No |
22 | Vermont | 1160 | 583 | 577 | ~10% | No |
23 | Massachusetts | 1155 | 580 | 575 | ~18% | No |
24 | Hawaii | 1150 | 578 | 572 | ~15% | No |
25 | Virginia | 1145 | 575 | 570 | ~25% | No |
26 | New Hampshire | 1085 | 545 | 540 | ~68% | Yes |
27 | New York | 1080 | 542 | 538 | ~50% | No |
28 | Pennsylvania | 1075 | 540 | 535 | ~40% | No |
29 | New Jersey | 1070 | 538 | 532 | ~45% | No |
30 | North Carolina | 1065 | 535 | 530 | ~35% | No |
31 | California | 1060 | 533 | 527 | ~30% | No |
32 | Maryland | 1055 | 530 | 525 | ~35% | No |
33 | Georgia | 1050 | 528 | 522 | ~45% | No |
34 | Texas | 1045 | 525 | 520 | ~40% | No |
35 | Washington | 1040 | 523 | 517 | ~35% | No |
36 | Nevada | 1035 | 520 | 515 | ~25% | No |
37 | South Carolina | 1030 | 518 | 512 | ~50% | No |
38 | Maine | 1020 | 513 | 507 | ~65% | No |
39 | Indiana | 1010 | 508 | 502 | ~70% | Yes |
40 | Florida | 1005 | 505 | 500 | ~60% | No |
41 | Ohio | 1000 | 503 | 497 | ~55% | No |
42 | Illinois | 995 | 500 | 495 | ~70% | No |
43 | Rhode Island | 985 | 495 | 490 | ~75% | Yes |
44 | Michigan | 975 | 490 | 485 | ~85% | Yes |
45 | Connecticut | 970 | 488 | 482 | ~90% | Yes |
46 | Colorado | 960 | 483 | 477 | ~95% | Yes |
47 | District of Columbia | 950 | 478 | 472 | ~80% | No |
48 | Idaho | 945 | 475 | 470 | ~85% | No |
49 | Delaware | 933 | 470 | 463 | ~94% | Yes |
50 | West Virginia | 911 | 459 | 452 | ~93% | Yes |
51 | New Mexico | 875 | 441 | 434 | ~100% | Yes |
Source: Data compiled from the College Board 2025 Annual Report and state-level reporting. ERW and Math breakdowns for some states are estimated from total scores where individual section data was not separately published. Rankings reflect the Class of 2025.
The pattern is impossible to miss. Every state in the top 10 has a participation rate under 5%. Every state in the bottom 10 has participation above 85%. This is the single most important fact about average SAT scores by state, and most rankings pages bury it in a footnote.
Key Takeaways From the 2026 State Rankings
Finding | What It Means |
|---|---|
Highest state average: Kansas (1256) | Extremely low participation inflates scores |
Lowest state average: New Mexico (875) | Universal testing lowers averages |
Top 10 states | Every state has participation below 5% |
Bottom 10 states | Most states have participation above 85% |
National average | 1029 |
Best admissions benchmark | Your target college's middle 50% SAT range |
The most important conclusion is simple: participation rate predicts SAT averages better than educational quality.
Why State SAT Averages Vary So Much
The Participation Rate Effect
The gap between the highest and lowest state averages is roughly 379 points. That sounds enormous until you understand its cause. Research shows that a 10 percentage point increase in SAT participation correlates with a 21 to 23 point decrease in a state’s average score. This single variable explains over 70 to 80% of the variance between states.
The logic is straightforward. In Kansas (participation around 2%), only students actively pursuing competitive college admissions bother to take the SAT. These are typically the highest-performing students in any school. In New Mexico (participation at 100%), every eleventh grader sits for the exam, including students who have no plans for college and students with significant academic challenges.
SAT-Mandate States vs. ACT-Dominant States
Nine states currently use the SAT as their statewide accountability assessment for high schoolers: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. Starting in 2026, Kentucky will switch from requiring the ACT to requiring the SAT.
Meanwhile, roughly 16 states (concentrated in the Midwest and South) use the ACT as their default test. In those states, the few students who also take the SAT are almost always high achievers targeting schools on the coasts. This self-selection pushes SAT averages artificially high in ACT-dominant territory.
If you’re in an ACT-dominant state weighing whether to take the SAT instead, our ACT prep resources can help you compare readiness across both tests.
State | Participation | Average Score |
|---|---|---|
New Mexico | 100% | 875 |
Colorado | 95% | 960 |
Connecticut | 90% | 970 |
Michigan | 85% | 975 |
Delaware | 94% | 933 |
Self-Selection Bias
The College Board itself has been explicit about this problem. The Board states: “Since the population of test-takers is self-selected, using aggregate SAT scores to compare or evaluate schools, districts, states or other educational units is not valid.”
That quote deserves more attention than it gets. It means the very rankings that fill the top of Google results, including the table above, are not measuring what most people assume they measure.
Other Contributing Factors
Participation rate is the dominant variable, but it’s not the only one. School funding levels, household income distribution, the proportion of English language learners, and access to test preparation all play secondary roles. These factors matter more when comparing states with similar participation rates, such as Connecticut (around 90%) and Colorado (around 95%), where differences in educational investment can show through.
States with the Highest Average SAT Scores
Kansas (1256), North Dakota (1254), Wyoming (1253), Utah (1230), and Nebraska (1228) top the raw rankings. All of these states have participation rates between 1% and 2%.
These are not the “best” states for education. They are the most self-selected. When only 1 in 50 students takes the SAT, you are measuring the performance of a tiny, highly motivated subset.
Participation-Adjusted Rankings Tell a Different Story
PrepScholar published a participation-adjusted ranking using statistical normalization, and the results flip the conventional wisdom. When you control for participation rate, Massachusetts and Connecticut emerge as the top-performing states. Both have relatively large education budgets, some of the strongest school systems in the country, and high concentrations of college-oriented families.
At the other end, Alabama and West Virginia rank lowest on a participation-adjusted basis.
This adjusted view is far more meaningful for anyone trying to genuinely assess educational quality across states. The raw rankings are, bluntly, misleading.
States with the Lowest Average SAT Scores
New Mexico (875 with 100% participation), West Virginia (911 with 93%), and Delaware (933 with 94%) sit at the bottom of the raw rankings. These states are not failing. They are testing every student.
A student scoring 1050 in New Mexico is performing well above that state’s average and competing with a far tougher curve than someone scoring 1250 in Wyoming, where only the top 1% of students opt in. Practitioners in online tutoring communities note that parents frequently misread these numbers. As one analysis observed, a parent in North Dakota might see 1254 and assume their child is already ahead, while a parent in New Mexico might see 875 and panic that their state is failing. Neither reaction reflects what the data actually shows, and both can lead to poor decisions about test preparation.
If you’re in a mandatory-testing state and want to build a targeted study plan, working through SAT practice questions organized by skill and difficulty level is more useful than stressing about your state’s raw average.
How to Read Your State’s Average (What It Actually Means for You)
State averages are context, not targets. Here’s a three-step framework for making them useful:
Step 1: Check Your State’s Participation Rate
Find your state in the table above. If participation is above 50%, the average includes many students who aren’t actively preparing for college admissions. Your state’s average will look low compared to low-participation states, but that says nothing about you personally.
Step 2: Compare Your Score to National Percentiles
National percentiles are a much better yardstick than state averages. Here’s where key scores fall:
SAT Score | National Percentile |
|---|---|
1500 | 98th |
1400 | 93rd |
1300 | 86th |
1200 | 76th |
1100 | 63rd |
1000 | 48th |
A 1200 puts you above roughly three-quarters of all test-takers nationwide, regardless of which state you live in.
Step 3: Look Up Your Target College’s Middle 50% Range
The benchmark that actually matters for admissions is the middle 50% SAT range published in each school’s Common Data Set. This is the 25th-to-75th percentile band of enrolled students (not applicants). If a school’s middle 50% is 1350 to 1500, aim for at least 1350, ideally higher. That number is your real target, not the average for your state.
Using a score predictor based on your diagnostic performance can help you gauge how much work stands between your current level and your target school’s range.
Average SAT Score by State vs. National Percentiles
Many students assume a state average can be converted directly into a percentile.
Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way.
A student earning a 1200 in Colorado and a student earning a 1200 in Wyoming have exactly the same SAT score, but they're being compared against very different groups of test-takers.
Use national percentiles instead of state averages.
SAT Score | National Percentile |
|---|---|
1500 | 98th |
1400 | 93rd |
1300 | 86th |
1200 | 76th |
1100 | 63rd |
1000 | 48th |
National percentiles eliminate participation bias and provide a standardized way to compare scores across all 50 states.
SAT Score Benchmarks: What Counts as “Good”?
“Good” depends entirely on where you’re applying. Here’s a rough framework by school tier:
Most public universities: 1100 to 1300
Competitive state universities and selective privates: 1200 to 1400
Ivy League and top-tier schools: 1450 to 1600
For scholarship purposes, scores of 1200 to 1300 often unlock regional merit aid at state universities. Scores above 1500 can qualify for partial or full scholarships at highly selective institutions.
The College Board’s own college readiness benchmarks (480 RW and 530 Math, totaling 1010) represent a floor, not a competitive target. They indicate a student is likely prepared for introductory college coursework, nothing more.
If you’re looking to close the gap between where you are now and where you need to be, a structured approach helps. Our guide on how to improve your SAT score by 200 points breaks down the process into concrete steps.
Why State Averages Matter More in 2026
The Return of Test-Required Admissions
The test-optional wave that swept higher education during the pandemic is receding. A growing list of selective colleges has reinstated standardized test requirements, including MIT, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell, Caltech, and the University of Texas at Austin. Six of the eight Ivy League universities now mandate SAT or ACT scores for Fall 2026 admissions.
This means more students need to take the SAT seriously, and state-level context matters for understanding how your peers are performing and what preparation looks like in your area.
The Testing Map Is Shifting
Kentucky’s switch from an ACT mandate to an SAT mandate in 2026 will add tens of thousands of new test-takers to the SAT pool. Expect Kentucky’s average to drop sharply from its current 1198 (at roughly 4% participation) once every student is required to test. This is not a decline in educational quality. It’s a change in who gets counted.
The Digital SAT Baseline
With 97% of the Class of 2025 taking the Digital SAT, the 2025 data represents the first clean, nearly-all-digital baseline. Future year-over-year comparisons will be much more reliable now that the transition from paper to digital is essentially complete. Students preparing for the Digital SAT should focus on the format’s specific features, including the adaptive testing structure and built-in Desmos calculator.
SAT vs. ACT: The Geographic Split
Understanding average SAT scores by state also requires knowing which test dominates in each region. Coastal states (especially in the Northeast and parts of the West Coast) lean heavily toward the SAT. The Midwest and much of the South default to the ACT.
This geographic split is why you’ll see states like Iowa or Montana with SAT participation under 3% but ACT participation above 60%. It doesn’t mean students in those states aren’t testing. They’re just testing with a different exam.
For students in ACT-dominant states who are curious about the SAT, or vice versa, taking a diagnostic on both can clarify which test better suits your strengths. A study schedule guide can help you plan once you’ve chosen your test.
How to Find Out Whether Your State Requires the SAT
If your state's average score seems unusually high or low, the first thing to check is whether the SAT is mandatory.
Ask these questions:
Does my state require all students to take the SAT?
Is my state primarily an ACT state?
What percentage of students in my state take the SAT?
Is the SAT used as an accountability assessment?
States that require the SAT typically report lower averages because every student participates.
States dominated by the ACT often report much higher SAT averages because only a small group of college-bound students choose to take the exam.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a good SAT score compared to my state average?
It depends on your state’s participation rate. If you’re in a high-participation state like Connecticut or Colorado, beating your state average by even 100 points is significant. In a low-participation state like Wyoming, the state average is inflated by self-selection. Compare yourself to national percentiles instead: 1200 is the 76th percentile, and 1300 is the 86th percentile nationwide.
Why does my state have such a low average SAT score?
Almost certainly because your state requires all students to take the SAT. Mandatory testing includes every student regardless of college plans, academic preparation, or language background. This drives the average down compared to states where only self-selected, college-bound students sit for the exam.
Is 1200 a good SAT score?
Yes. A 1200 places you at approximately the 76th percentile nationally, meaning you scored higher than roughly three out of four test-takers. It’s competitive for most public universities and puts you in range for many selective schools, though highly competitive institutions typically look for 1400 or above.
Should I compare my score to my state average or the national average?
Neither is your most useful benchmark. The national average (1029) and your state average are useful for general context, but your real target should be the middle 50% range of the colleges you’re applying to. That range, found in each school’s Common Data Set, tells you exactly where admitted students score.
How is the SAT scored?
The SAT is scored on a scale of 400 to 1600. It consists of two sections: Reading and Writing (200 to 800) and Math (200 to 800). The scores from both sections are added together for your total. There is no penalty for guessing.
Which states require the SAT?
As of 2025, the states using the SAT as a statewide assessment include Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. Kentucky will join this list in 2026, switching from an ACT mandate.
Has the average SAT score been going up or down?
After several years of post-pandemic decline, the national average ticked up slightly from 1024 (Class of 2024) to 1029 (Class of 2025). But scores remain well below the pre-pandemic average of around 1060. The 2025 data is the first year where nearly all students took the Digital SAT, making it a cleaner baseline for tracking future trends.
What should I actually do with this state-by-state data?
Use it for context, not as a goal. Understand your state’s participation rate so you can interpret the average correctly. Then focus on the numbers that matter for your admissions strategy: national percentiles and your target schools’ middle 50% ranges. From there, build a prep plan that closes the specific gap between your current score and your target.
Ready to find out where you stand? Take a free SAT practice exam to get a realistic baseline score and build your study plan from there.