Updated: September 2026. Our original post on this topic ran in October 2023, when digital testing was still rolling out and largely theoretical for U.S. students. Both tests have since fully transitioned. Here’s a completely refreshed look at where things actually stand.
The Digital SAT: Fully Rolled Out, Not New Anymore
The digital SAT is no longer a future change—it’s been the only version of the SAT available for nearly three years. The full timeline: the digital SAT launched internationally in March 2023, with the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test and PSAT 8/9 following digitally in fall 2023 in the U.S. The digital SAT then launched for all U.S. students on March 9, 2024, completing the full transition of the SAT Suite of Assessments to digital testing. The paper SAT no longer exists as a national option.
What the Digital SAT Actually Looks Like
- Length: About 2 hours 14 minutes, roughly an hour shorter than the old paper test
- Format: Section-adaptive—your performance on the first module of a section determines the difficulty of the second module
- Sections: Two Reading & Writing modules (32 minutes each), two Math modules (35 minutes each)
- Scoring: Still the familiar 400-1600 scale
- Testing app: Taken through College Board’s Bluebook application on a laptop or tablet, with an on-screen calculator built into the Math section
The ACT: The Bigger, More Recent Change
While the SAT’s digital transition is now old news, the ACT has undergone its own major overhaul more recently, and this is the change most families haven’t fully absorbed yet. Starting in 2025, ACT rolled out what it calls the “Enhanced ACT,” with two fundamental changes.
Change 1: Science Is Now Optional
The ACT Science section is now optional, similar to how the Writing section has long been. This means test-takers can now choose from four different versions: the base ACT (English, Math, Reading), the base plus Writing, the base plus Science, or the base plus both. Because Science is optional, students who skip it will answer only 131 core questions, compared to 215 questions in the full traditional format.
Should you skip Science? Not automatically. Some colleges and specific majors, especially STEM-focused programs, may still want to see a Science score, so check your target schools before deciding to opt out.
Change 2: The Test Is Meaningfully Shorter
The core test (without Science) now takes about 2 hours and 5 minutes, down from roughly 3 hours in the traditional format—even though students actually get more time per question, about 18% more on average, which is intended to reduce rushing and careless errors.
Change 3: Smaller Structural Tweaks
Math questions now have four answer choices instead of five, and English and Reading passages have been shortened. ACT has stated that despite these changes, the overall difficulty of the test remains consistent with the legacy format.
Rollout Timeline
These changes rolled out in phases: April 2025 for the national Saturday online version, September 2025 for the national Saturday paper version, and spring 2026 for school-day testing (both online and paper). By now, virtually all students taking the ACT are on the Enhanced format.
SAT vs. Enhanced ACT: Quick Comparison
| Category | Digital SAT | Enhanced ACT (without Science) |
|---|---|---|
| Length | ~2 hours 14 min | ~2 hours 5 min |
| Adaptive? | Yes, section-adaptive | No, linear format |
| Format options | Digital only | Paper, online at a test center, or bring-your-own-device |
| Optional sections | None | Science and Writing |
| Scoring scale | 400-1600 | 1-36 composite |
What Hasn’t Changed
Despite all this format churn, some fundamentals remain the same: both tests are still accepted equally by virtually every college that requires or considers testing, neither is objectively “easier,” and the right choice for you still comes down to which format plays to your strengths—adaptive and more reading-heavy (SAT) versus linear and slightly faster-paced (ACT).
The Bottom Line
If you last looked into this topic before 2025, most of what you knew is now outdated on the ACT side specifically. Both tests are fully digital-capable, both are shorter than their pre-2023 versions, and the ACT now offers more flexibility in which sections you take. For a deeper dive into whether you should test at all given current test-optional policies, see our companion post, Should I Take the SAT, ACT, Both, or Neither?