Enhanced ACT Practice Tests — the New 2025 Format
The ACT changed in 2025 — shorter test, fewer questions, and Science is now an optional section that no longer counts toward the composite. Most practice material still mimics the old exam. Crimsora's full-length mocks match the enhanced format exactly, timed section by section and scored the way test day is scored.
- Questions
- 171 questions with Science
- Timing
- 165 min with Science
- Scoring
- Composite 1–36
- Science
- Optional add-on
What changed in the enhanced ACT
The enhanced ACT debuted on the April 2025 national digital test date, and from September 2025 the paper version follows the same design. The core test is now three sections: English (50 questions, 35 minutes), Math (45 questions, 50 minutes), and Reading (36 questions, 40 minutes) — 131 questions in roughly two hours and five minutes, nearly an hour shorter than the old exam.
Science became an optional add-on: 40 questions in 40 minutes that you choose at registration. It no longer counts toward your composite at all. Instead, the composite is simply the average of your English, Math, and Reading scaled scores, rounded to the nearest whole number. If you do sit Science, it's reported separately and combines with Math into a STEM score that some programs like to see. Same 1–36 scale as always — but a different test underneath it.
Science became an optional add-on: 40 questions in 40 minutes that you choose at registration. It no longer counts toward your composite at all. Instead, the composite is simply the average of your English, Math, and Reading scaled scores, rounded to the nearest whole number. If you do sit Science, it's reported separately and combines with Math into a STEM score that some programs like to see. Same 1–36 scale as always — but a different test underneath it.
Why old practice tests mislead you
There are decades of released ACT tests in prep books and PDFs, and almost all of them rehearse the wrong exam. The legacy test packed 215 questions into just under three hours — about 49 seconds per question. The enhanced core gives you roughly 57 seconds per question, which changes pacing strategy in every section: fewer forced skips, more time to actually reason, and different time-per-passage math in Reading and English.
The scoring change matters just as much. On the old test a weak Science section dragged your composite down a point or two, so prep plans spent heavily on it. Now Science can't touch the composite — every hour spent drilling old Science passages is an hour not spent on the three sections that decide your score. Practicing on legacy tests trains old pacing and old priorities. If your practice composite comes from four sections, it isn't predicting the score colleges will see.
The scoring change matters just as much. On the old test a weak Science section dragged your composite down a point or two, so prep plans spent heavily on it. Now Science can't touch the composite — every hour spent drilling old Science passages is an hour not spent on the three sections that decide your score. Practicing on legacy tests trains old pacing and old priorities. If your practice composite comes from four sections, it isn't predicting the score colleges will see.
How Crimsora ACT mocks work
Crimsora's full-length ACT mocks are built from the enhanced blueprint: English, Math, and Reading at the new question counts and timings, with Science available as the same optional add-on the real registration offers — scored and reported, but excluded from your composite exactly as it is on test day.
The test-day-style player runs each section on its own countdown timer with a question palette, mark-for-review, and an answer eliminator. When you finish, each section converts to the 1–36 scale through realistic curves, and your composite is the English–Math–Reading average, rounded like the real report. Then the score report goes a level deeper than a number: it maps every miss to the concept behind it, and the AI voice tutor can pick up any missed question and reteach that skill in a live session. You leave a mock knowing not just where you are, but what to fix next.
The test-day-style player runs each section on its own countdown timer with a question palette, mark-for-review, and an answer eliminator. When you finish, each section converts to the 1–36 scale through realistic curves, and your composite is the English–Math–Reading average, rounded like the real report. Then the score report goes a level deeper than a number: it maps every miss to the concept behind it, and the AI voice tutor can pick up any missed question and reteach that skill in a live session. You leave a mock knowing not just where you are, but what to fix next.
How to use practice tests in your prep
Take one full-length mock early as a diagnostic — before content review — so you know your baseline composite and which of the three scoring sections is cheapest to improve. From there, alternate cycles: a week or two of focused lessons on your weakest concepts, then another timed full-length to see whether the score moved.
Simulate test conditions every time: one sitting, real section timers, no pausing. The enhanced ACT's gentler pacing only helps if you've practiced trusting it — students trained on the old test tend to rush and leave accuracy on the table. Decide early whether you're taking Science, and if you are, practice it the way you'll sit it: after the core, when you're already two hours in. In the last two weeks before test day, shift from taking tests to reviewing them — reworking every missed question beats one more cold mock.
Simulate test conditions every time: one sitting, real section timers, no pausing. The enhanced ACT's gentler pacing only helps if you've practiced trusting it — students trained on the old test tend to rush and leave accuracy on the table. Decide early whether you're taking Science, and if you are, practice it the way you'll sit it: after the core, when you're already two hours in. In the last two weeks before test day, shift from taking tests to reviewing them — reworking every missed question beats one more cold mock.
Old ACT vs enhanced ACT
| Old ACT | Enhanced ACT | |
|---|---|---|
| Core questions | 215 | 131 |
| Core testing time | 2 hr 55 min | 2 hr 5 min |
| Science | Required, in composite | Optional, separate score |
| Time per question | About 49 seconds | About 57 seconds |
Frequently asked questions
- Is Science still on the ACT?
- Yes, but as an optional add-on you select at registration. It no longer affects your composite — that's now the average of English, Math, and Reading. If you take Science, it's reported separately and pairs with Math into a STEM score.
- Do these practice tests use the new format?
- Yes. Crimsora mocks follow the enhanced blueprint: English 50 questions in 35 minutes, Math 45 in 50, Reading 36 in 40, plus the optional 40-question Science section — with Science excluded from the composite, exactly like the real exam.
- How is the ACT composite calculated now?
- Your English, Math, and Reading sections are each scaled 1–36, averaged, and rounded to the nearest whole number. Science is scored on the same scale but sits outside the composite entirely.
- Can I try Crimsora free?
- Yes — start a free trial lesson with the AI tutor, no signup required. Full-length practice tests are part of the ACT course membership.
Full-length ACT practice tests, included
Every Crimsora course includes full-length timed mocks in the real test-day format, scored like test day — plus an AI voice tutor for every concept the report says you missed.
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