ACT Science practice test: a free timed drill on tables and experiments
ACT Science is optional on the enhanced ACT: 40 questions in 40 minutes, a minute each, scored separately from the Composite. Take the free drill below: two data sets with six questions each, answered from a table, at the real pace, with every answer explained. Most ACT Science questions need no outside science, just careful reading of the data.
- 40
- questions on the real section
- 40 min
- a minute each
- Optional
- not in the Composite
- Free
- no sign-up
Last checked · Section facts from ACT, read 22 October 2026
Free Science drill: 12 original ACT-style questions at the real ACT Science pace, then every answer explained. No sign-up.
12
questions
12 min
time limit
Free
every answer explained
By the LifeScore Editorial Team · Updated · How we check facts · How this is scored
What is on ACT Science?
Passages built around tables, graphs and short descriptions of experiments, in three formats: data representation, research summaries and conflicting viewpoints. The questions test reading data, understanding how an experiment was designed, and comparing explanations.
| Format | What it is | In our practice? |
|---|---|---|
| Data representation | One or more tables or graphs to read and interpret | Yes |
| Research summaries | A description of an experiment and its results | Yes |
| Conflicting viewpoints | Two or more scientists' explanations of one phenomenon | No |
Our Science sets each describe a study and give one table, with six questions that read values, describe trends, interpolate and extrapolate, compare conditions and test a claim. We do not include a conflicting-viewpoints passage, so practise that format on an official ACT test.
What do ACT Science questions look like?
A table and a question about it. Here are two worked step by step: one asks you to estimate between data points, one asks about the trend.
ACT-style question 1 · Interpolation
Students measured how much sugar dissolved in 100 mL of water at four temperatures (Table 1). At 50°C, the amount dissolved would most likely be:
Water temperature (°C) Sugar dissolved (g per 100 mL) 20 200 40 238 60 287 80 362 - Abetween 238 and 287 g
- Bless than 200 g
- Cbetween 287 and 362 g
- Dgreater than 362 g
Worked answer
A: between 238 and 287 g. 50°C lies between the 40°C and 60°C rows, and the amount rises steadily with temperature, so it falls between 238 and 287 g.
- Find the rows on either side of 50°C: 40°C and 60°C.
- Their values are 238 and 287 g.
- The trend is steady, so the answer lies between them.
The trap: Picking the 60°C to 80°C interval by reading the wrong pair of rows.
ACT-style question 2 · Trends
Based on Table 1, as water temperature increases by each 20°C step, the increase in sugar dissolved:
Water temperature (°C) Sugar dissolved (g per 100 mL) 20 200 40 238 60 287 80 362 - Agets larger with each step
- Bstays the same
- Cgets smaller with each step
- Dis zero
Worked answer
A: gets larger with each step. The increases are 38 g (20 to 40°C), 49 g (40 to 60°C) and 75 g (60 to 80°C), so each step adds more than the last.
- Subtract neighbors: 238 - 200 = 38.
- 287 - 238 = 49; 362 - 287 = 75.
- The increases grow: 38, 49, 75.
The trap: Answering "stays the same" because the temperature steps are equal. Equal steps in x do not mean equal steps in y.
ACT-style question 3 · Extrapolation
If the trend in Table 1 continues, the amount of sugar that dissolves in 100 mL of water at 100°C would most likely be:
Water temperature (°C) Sugar dissolved (g per 100 mL) 20 200 40 238 60 287 80 362 - Agreater than 362 g
- Bbetween 287 and 362 g
- Cbetween 200 and 238 g
- Dless than 200 g
Worked answer
A: greater than 362 g. The amount rises at every step and the increases are getting larger, so at 100°C, beyond the last row, it should be more than the 362 g measured at 80°C.
- 100°C is past the last row (80°C), so this is extrapolation.
- Every step up in temperature raised the amount, and by more each time.
- So the value at 100°C should exceed 362 g.
The trap: Choosing an interval from inside the table. Beyond the last row, a rising trend points past the last value.
How do I read ACT Science tables and graphs fast?
Read the headings and units before any numbers, find the one row and column each question needs, and say the trend out loud before you choose.
- Skim the description for what was changed (the independent variable) and what was measured.
- Read the column headings, axis labels and units.
- For each question, go straight to the row and column it names.
- For a trend, compare first and last values, then check the middle for a peak or dip.
- For "every" or "all" claims, check every row.
Four Science drills and eight mocks
The ACT Pass Pack has four Science drills, eight full mocks and every answer explained from the table.
The ACT Pass Pack gives you 8 full mocks on the real clock, 16 drills of 12 questions for the sections that cost you points, and a predictor that turns your mocks into the odds of reaching your target. One payment, no subscription, and your free score stays free.
Prep courses for these tests usually cost $19 to $129. The ACT Pass Pack is US$39 (£29), once.
- 8
- timed mocks
- 16
- topic drills
- 1
- score predictor
Which skills does ACT Science test most?
Reading a value, describing a trend, estimating between and beyond the data, comparing conditions, and judging whether the data support a claim. Each of our Science sets asks all six.
| Skill | What it asks | How to answer |
|---|---|---|
| Reading a table | The value in one row and column | Find the row first, then the column, then check the units |
| Trends | What happens to one variable as another rises | Compare first and last rows, then look for a peak or a dip |
| Interpolation | A value between two rows | Find the rows on each side; the answer lies between them |
| Comparing data | Which condition differs most, or which is higher | Subtract the matching values row by row |
| Extrapolation or a maximum | A value beyond the data, or where a peak is | Follow the trend past the last row, or find the largest value |
| Evaluating a claim | Whether the data support a statement | Check every row the claim covers, not just one |
These six cover most data representation and research summary questions. The real section adds questions on experimental design (which variable was controlled, why a step was included) and, in conflicting-viewpoints passages, questions on what each scientist would predict. Our practice does not cover conflicting viewpoints, so read one official example before test day.
How is ACT Science scored?
On the same 1 to 36 scale as the other sections. It is not part of the Composite, but it is averaged with Math into a STEM score. ACT's College Readiness Benchmark for Science is 23, and for STEM it is 26.
Because Science is reported separately, a weak Science score does not lower your Composite. It does show on your score report if you take it, and colleges that ask for Science will see it, so prepare for it properly if you sign up.
Our result shows Science as its own section score, next to English, Math and Reading, so you can judge where it stands before you choose whether to take it.
Should I take ACT Science?
Take it if any college or program on your list asks for it, if you want a STEM score, or if science is a strength you want to show. Otherwise it is optional and does not change your Composite.
Science adds 40 minutes and, usually, a fee. Check each college's testing policy. Engineering and other STEM programs are the most likely to want it.
Our free mock includes Science so you can see where you stand before you decide. Take the full ACT practice test, or practise the other sections: English, Math and Reading.
What are the most common ACT Science mistakes?
Reading the wrong column, using outside science instead of the data, and accepting a claim about all values after checking one.
- Reading the right row in the wrong column under time pressure.
- Answering from what you learned in class when the table says something else.
- Assuming a trend continues straight when the data curve or peak.
- Checking one row for an "every" claim.
- Spending too long on the description before looking at the questions.
Frequently asked questions
Is ACT Science required?
Do I need to know science facts for ACT Science?
How many questions are on ACT Science?
Does ACT Science count toward the Composite?
Does your practice include conflicting viewpoints?
Is this the real ACT?
Read the data faster than the clock
Eight full ACT-style mocks, four Science drills and 12 more across English, Math and Reading, every answer explained, in one payment.
The ACT Pass Pack gives you 8 full mocks on the real clock, 16 drills of 12 questions for the sections that cost you points, and a predictor that turns your mocks into the odds of reaching your target. One payment, no subscription, and your free score stays free.
Prep courses for these tests usually cost $19 to $129. The ACT Pass Pack is US$39 (£29), once.
- 8
- timed mocks
- 16
- topic drills
- 1
- score predictor