Best ACT Prep Courses Of 2026: Online, Live And Self-Paced

Best ACT Prep Courses At A Glance

Here is how the six ACT prep providers we recommend compare on price, format and score guarantees. Prices are the regular list prices on each provider's site, not limited-time promo codes, and our ACT and SAT prep cost breakdown explains what drives the spread.

Best ACT Prep Courses Of 2026

Each pick below wins a specific category. Read the “best for” label first, then check the price and guarantee against your starting score. If you haven't taken the ACT yet, take a free official practice test before you buy anything, since most score guarantees require a prior official score, as our college entrance exams explainer notes.

Best Overall: The Princeton Review

The Princeton Review has the most complete ACT lineup of any company we reviewed, and its flagship ACT 31+ course is built for students who want a top-10% score. The course includes 36 hours of live online instruction and five full-length practice tests for $2,199. Our full Princeton Review test prep review covers the teaching approach in more detail.

The 31+ guarantee is specific. Students who start below 26 need a 5-point gain to avoid a refund, and students who start between 26 and 30 need a 31 or higher. Fall short and you get a full or 50% refund depending on the result, according to the course terms. You have to attend all 36 hours, finish four practice tests and the homework, and submit your official score within 60 days, so it rewards students who will do the work, which is the same lesson in our ACT score breakdown.

Families who don't need a full course have cheaper options. ACT Essentials runs 18 hours of live instruction starting at $949, and the ACT Self-Paced course costs $299 with a 14-day free trial and five enhanced-ACT practice tests. Students who want one-on-one help can buy ACT 34+ Tutoring at $315 an hour, a premium price aimed at students chasing a 34 or higher, so compare it with the average cost of tutoring first.

Best Budget Pick: Magoosh

Magoosh is the best value in ACT prep. Its Premium plan costs $129 for 12 months and includes 250+ video lessons, 8,000+ practice questions with explanations and up to 33 full-length official tests, according to its plans page. Both plans are labeled “Enhanced ACT ready.” Our Magoosh review walks through the dashboard.

Students who want instruction without a live class schedule can step up to Premium + On-Demand Classes for $399. That adds 16 hours of recorded classes from a 99th-percentile instructor. These classes are on-demand, not live, so this plan suits a self-motivated student, the kind who also does well with study apps.

The Magoosh score guarantee promises a 4-point increase or a full refund for students who originally scored 30 or below. You need an official ACT score less than five years old and must submit it at signup. Magoosh also has a 7-day free trial and a 7-day money-back window, and plans don't auto-renew, which keeps the total close to the low end of our test prep pricing research.

Best Live Online Value: Kaplan

Kaplan sells the cheapest live online ACT class on this list. Its Live Online course costs $649 for 16 hours of instruction from 99th-percentile teachers, plus three official practice tests and six months of access, according to Kaplan's ACT page. Kaplan also powers ACT's own paid prep products, as our Kaplan Test Prep review explains.

The $179 Self-Paced course is one of the better deals in ACT prep. It includes 35 on-demand lessons, three official practice tests and a bank of 2,000+ official questions. Online tutoring starts at $849, with packages from 5 to 40 hours, and our cost of tutoring research shows how that compares with local tutors.

Read the guarantee carefully. Kaplan's Higher Score Guarantee covers ACT tutoring packages of 10 or more hours, not the self-paced or live courses. If you need a refund promise on a group class, the Princeton Review or Prep Expert is the better fit, and our Prep Expert review has the details on that option.

Best Adaptive Self-Study: PrepScholar

PrepScholar builds a study plan around your weak spots instead of walking every student through the same lessons. The Complete Online ACT Prep program costs $397 for 12 months and includes 54+ skill lessons, more than 60 hours of content and four official ACT tests, according to PrepScholar. Our PrepScholar review covers the adaptive engine.

PrepScholar backs its course with a 4-point guarantee. Students who start below 31 need a 4-point gain, and students who start at 31 or above need a 34 or higher. It also sells live instructor-led classes capped at nine students for $895 and one-on-one tutoring starting at $995, plus an ACT and SAT bundle for $597 for students still deciding which college entrance exam to take.

Best Weekend Live Classes: Prep Expert

Prep Expert offers a mid-priced live course built around weekend classes. Its 6-Week Flagship New ACT Course costs $1,196 and meets twice a week for three-hour live online classes, about 36 hours of class time, with six full-length tests, according to Prep Expert. The company counts 72 total course hours once exams and homework are included, and our Prep Expert review explains the format.

The guarantee is a full refund if your official ACT score doesn't rise 4 points from a previous official score after you complete the course. Prep Expert also sells an 8-week Capstone course, a self-paced video course and a weekend review, though prices for those weren't posted when we checked. Families can split the flagship into four $299 payments, which can help with budgeting for college costs during junior year.

Best Question Bank: UWorld

UWorld is known for hard practice questions with detailed explanations, which makes it a good add-on for students who already have a course. The ACT Question Bank starts at $99, and the full ACT Prep Course starts at $299 with 2,500+ ACT-level questions, video lessons and a full-length mock exam, according to UWorld. Our UWorld review covers the explanations.

UWorld does not cover ACT Science, which it treats as optional. That's fine for most students now that science doesn't count toward the Composite, but STEM applicants whose target schools want a science score need another resource. UWorld also offers no score guarantee, so think of it as practice volume rather than a complete plan, one piece of a broader college admissions strategy.

Which ACT Prep Course Is Best For You?

The best ACT prep course is the cheapest one that matches how your student learns and how far they need to move. A student who needs 1 or 2 points rarely needs a $2,199 course, while a student who needs 6 points and won't study alone probably does. Use these quick calls, then check our good ACT score targets for your colleges.

• Best overall: The Princeton Review ACT 31+, for students who want live classes and a high score target.
• Lowest cost full course: Magoosh at $129, for self-motivated students.
• Cheapest live class: Kaplan Live Online at $649 for 16 hours.
• Low cost per live hour: Prep Expert at about $33 per live hour.
• Personalized self-study: PrepScholar, which adapts lessons to your weak areas.
• Extra practice on top of a course: UWorld starting at $99.
• $0 budget: ACT's four free official practice tests, covered in the free resources section below.

What Is On The ACT In 2026?

The ACT now has three required sections, English, math and reading, that take 125 minutes combined. Science and writing are optional add-ons, and ACT says they “do not affect your Composite score.” Your Composite is now the average of English, math and reading on the familiar 1 to 36 scale, which is the score most college applications ask for.

The new ACT is 75 minutes shorter than the old version, with 44 fewer questions, and math questions now have four answer choices instead of five. Students who take science still get a separate science score and a STEM score. Colleges decide whether they want science or writing, so check each school before you register, especially if you're applying to engineering or other STEM programs listed in our college admissions coverage.

The ACT is offered on paper, online at a test center and through a bring-your-own-device option, according to ACT registration. Online scores often arrive a few days before paper scores, according to ACT's score release schedule. If you're weighing the two exams, our digital SAT explainer shows how the SAT compares.

How Much Does The ACT Cost?

The ACT costs $70 for English, math and reading, $75 with science, $95 with writing and $100 with both, according to ACT's fee page. Late registration adds $42, and changing your test date or center costs $49. Those fees add up fast for students who test three times, so plan your dates the way you would plan any other college cost.

Students in 11th or 12th grade with financial need can get an ACT fee waiver from their school counselor. A waiver covers up to two ACT registrations, including science and writing, and adds a year of the Official ACT Self-Paced Course for free. Pair it with the free resources in our scholarship search roundup.

When Are The Next ACT Test Dates?

The next national ACT test date with registration still open is December 12, 2026. Regular registration closes November 6 and late registration closes November 29, according to ACT. Most students take their first ACT in the fall or spring of junior year, which leaves time to retest before early action and early decision deadlines.

Work backward from the test date when you pick a prep course. Live classes like Prep Expert's six-week flagship run on fixed schedules, so a December test means enrolling in October or earlier. Self-paced courses can start any time, which helps students who also juggle extracurricular activities.

What Is A Good ACT Score?

A good ACT score is one that lands at or above the middle of your target colleges' admitted-student range. Nationally, the class of 2025 averaged a 19.4 Composite, according to ACT. A 24 sits at about the 80th percentile and a 28 at about the 91st, based on ACT's national ranks. Our good ACT score breakdown goes school by school.

Every point matters more near the top. Moving from 28 to 31 jumps you past roughly 5% of all test takers, and that range is where many colleges set their merit scholarship cutoffs. ACT lets you take the test as many times as you want, and colleges that superscore will combine your best section scores.

How Much Does ACT Prep Cost Per Hour?

Live ACT group classes cost between about $33 and $61 per hour of instruction in 2026, while private tutoring runs $315 an hour at the top end. We divided each course's list price by its published live hours to compare them on equal footing. Self-paced courses have no live hours, so they don't fit this math, but they cost $129 to $397 for six to 12 months of access, as our test prep cost research shows.

Price per hour isn't the whole story. The Princeton Review 31+ costs the most per hour among group classes, but it adds a specific 31+ or 5-point guarantee. Kaplan is cheaper per hour but offers no guarantee on its live course. Weigh those trade-offs the same way you would compare student loan offers: the sticker price is only one number.

How Do ACT Score Guarantees Compare?

Most ACT score guarantees promise a 4- or 5-point increase or your money back, but every one comes with conditions. You almost always need a prior official ACT score, full attendance or completion, and an official retest within a set window. Read the terms before you buy, just as you'd read the fine print on any scholarship offer.

A guarantee protects your money, not your score. ACT's own research found students who prepared scored 0.71 Composite points higher on a retest than similar students who didn't, according to a 2018 ACT working paper. That is a modest average, which is why guarantees tie refunds to homework and practice tests, the same habits that help with AP exams.

How Long Should You Study For The ACT?

Plan on about 40 hours of focused ACT study spread over two to three months for a meaningful score gain. PrepScholar recommends at least 40 hours of study, and a 2020 ACT study found students who used ACT's online prep for 7+ hours gained more than double the points of students who didn't prepare. Here's a simple timeline that fits most junior-year schedules.

1. Take a free official practice test about 10 to 12 weeks before test day to set your baseline.
2. Pick a course that fits your gap. A 1- to 3-point goal often needs only self-paced prep, while 5+ points usually calls for live help.
3. Study 3 to 5 hours a week, focusing on your two weakest sections first.
4. Take a full timed practice test every two to three weeks and review every missed question.
5. Register before the regular deadline to avoid the $42 late fee, then plan a retest date in case you need it.

Students who score near their goal on the first try can skip paid prep altogether. Students who are several points short and also chasing a full-ride scholarship usually get the best return from a structured course.

Free ACT Prep Resources

ACT offers four free full-length official practice tests, in both digital and paper formats, plus section quizzes and a daily practice question, according to ACT's free test prep page. Every student should take at least one before paying for a course. Our college entrance exams explainer covers how these tests fit into admissions.

• Official ACT practice tests: four full-length tests, timed or untimed, with scoring keys.
• Free trials: Princeton Review (14 days), Magoosh (7 days), UWorld (7 days) and PrepScholar (5 days).
• Kaplan free class and practice test, linked from Kaplan's ACT page.
• Fee-waiver students get the Official ACT Self-Paced Course free for a year.

We found no official Khan Academy ACT course, so skip any site claiming one. Khan Academy's official partnership is with the SAT, which we cover in our Khan Academy SAT review.

How We Picked The Best ACT Prep Courses

We reviewed every major ACT prep provider The College Investor has covered and focused on courses that say they're updated for the enhanced ACT. We scored each on price, live instruction hours, practice test count, score guarantee terms and free trial options, and checked every price on the provider's own site on October 11, 2026. Our editorial standards explain how we handle partner relationships.

We used list prices rather than limited-time promo codes, since several providers were running sales that expire within days. Varsity Tutors offers ACT classes and tutoring, but it doesn't publish prices, so we left it off this list. You can read about it in our Varsity Tutors review.

More Test Prep Rankings From The College Investor

ACT Prep FAQs

Should I Take The ACT Science Section?

Take science only if a college on your list requires or recommends it. Science no longer counts toward your Composite score, and colleges decide whether they want it, according to ACT. It adds $5 and 40 minutes, so check each school's admissions requirements first.

How Many Times Can You Take The ACT?

You can take the ACT as many times as you want, and each attempt costs a full registration fee. About 43% of test takers retest, and more than half of them improve, according to ACT. Colleges that superscore count your best section scores, as our good ACT score page explains.

Should I Take The ACT Or The SAT?

Take a free official practice test for each and compare your percentiles. Colleges that accept test scores take either exam, so the right choice is whichever test you score higher on. Our best SAT prep rankings cover the digital SAT side.

How Far In Advance Should I Start ACT Prep?

Start about two to three months before your test date. That leaves time for roughly 40 hours of study and several timed practice tests. Students targeting fall-of-senior-year scores for early decision should start the summer before.

Is ACT Prep Worth The Money?

ACT prep is worth it when the score gain can unlock admission or merit aid. Independent ACT research shows modest average gains, so the payoff comes from steady practice, not the course alone. A free practice test and a $129 course are enough for many students, as our merit scholarship overview shows.