Why You Should Only Take the ACT on Paper
Should You Take the ACT on Paper or Digital? Here’s What to Consider
The ACT now offers a choice between paper and pencil and digital formats. With both formats available, many students wonder which format is best. While (starting in September) the content, timing, and scoring are identical, the test-taking experience can feel quite different. Here’s a breakdown to help you decide.
Familiarity and Comfort
Many students still prefer the paper ACT simply because it feels more familiar. You can write directly in the test booklet, underline key phrases, and easily look between passages and questions. For math and science, having the problem right in front of you – and being able to jot notes or calculations in the margins – makes a big difference!
Digital Tools and Navigation
The digital ACT does offer some handy features, like a built-in timer, highlighter, and answer-eliminator tools. The highlighter, however, is cleared after every question! 😳 Since all passages have multiple questions, that’s a real handicap. Also, students find scrolling between questions and long passages to be less intuitive and more difficult than being able to see all of it at one time. On the digital test, you must use scratch paper for any calculations, which means constantly looking back and forth between the screen and your notes (and leaving room for introducing errors).
Technical Issues and Real-World Examples
While the digital ACT is designed for test security, there’s always a risk of technical issues. Some students who signed up for and prepped to take the digital ACT for the recent April 2025 administration were told the day before the test date that they would have to take the paper version instead because their test center couldn’t host the digital version after all. 😳 In another recent situation, a computer glitch prevented 300 students’ digital ACT scores from uploading, forcing many seniors to scramble for a retake. 😳😳 WiFi problems and laggy computers can also eat up precious time and add stress on test day. Students often find that school-issued Chromebooks with small screens make it harder to navigate the test smoothly.
Limited Practice Materials
Currently, there are only two official digital practice tests available, making it tough to prepare in the exact format you’ll face on test day. In contrast, there are plenty of paper practice tests, which can help you build confidence and familiarity.
Score Comparability
Both versions are scored the same way, and colleges don’t prefer one over the other. However, the digital ACT appears to have a harsher score curve, in some cases up to four questions tougher than the paper version on identical tests! 😳
Final Thoughts
Given the inherent challenges with the digital platform and the lack of official practice materials, we advise all students to continue to test on paper only. Please let us know all your questions about choosing which version of the ACT as well as whether the SAT or ACT is a better fit overall!
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