What Is a Good SAT Score?
The average SAT score is 1029 (class of 2025). A 1200 beats about 76% of test takers, a 1350 is roughly the top 10%, and 1450+ is top ~4%. “Good” depends on the schools on your list — check your exact score below.
A good SAT score is anything above the national average of 1029; competitive scores are 1200+ (top ~24%) and 1350+ (top ~10%).
- Average (class of 2025)1029
- Median (50th percentile)~1010
- Top 25%~1200
- Top 10%~1350
- Top 1%~1550+
Source: College Board percentile tables and the 2025 SAT Suite Annual Report.
SAT percentiles by score
| Score | SAT-taker percentile | All-students percentile |
|---|---|---|
| 1,600 | 99+ | 99+ |
| 1,550 | 99 | 99+ |
| 1,500 | 98 | 99 |
| 1,450 | 96 | 99 |
| 1,400 | 93 | 97 |
| 1,350 | 90 | 94 |
| 1,300 | 86 | 91 |
| 1,250 | 82 | 86 |
| 1,200 | 76 | 81 |
| 1,150 | 70 | 74 |
| 1,100 | 63 | 67 |
| 1,050 | 56 | 58 |
| 1,010 | 50 | 50 |
| 1,000 | 48 | 48 |
| 950 | 41 | 38 |
| 900 | 33 | 29 |
| 850 | 25 | 21 |
| 800 | 18 | 14 |
| 750 | 11 | 8 |
| 700 | 5 | 4 |
“SAT-taker” compares you to students who took the SAT (past three classes); “all-students” is College Board’s nationally representative estimate including non-takers. Percentiles between listed scores are interpolated in the tool above.
What “good” means by school tier
Mean total was 1029 with a standard deviation of 235 across 2,004,965 class-of-2025 takers. For open-admission and most regional publics, 1000–1150 is solidly usable. Flagship publics mostly center on 1200–1350. The most selective privates report middle-50% ranges around 1450–1560 — and at that tier, scores are a screen, not a differentiator.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good SAT score for 2026 admissions?
Above 1029 beats the average test taker; 1200+ puts you in roughly the top quarter and 1350+ in about the top 10%. For highly selective schools, aim for 1450+.
Is 1200 a good SAT score?
Yes — 1200 is around the 76th percentile of SAT takers, well above the 1029 average, and competitive at many flagship state universities.
What is the average SAT score?
1029 for the class of 2025 (521 Reading/Writing + 508 Math) across just over 2 million test takers.
What SAT score do Ivy League schools want?
Reported middle-50% ranges at the most selective schools sit around 1470–1570. Below the 25th-percentile number, the rest of the application has to carry the score.
Sources & methodology
Sources: College Board — Understanding SAT Scores (percentile tables) · College Board — 2025 SAT Suite Annual Report.
Percentiles are College Board's official 2025-26 tables; between-score values are linear interpolations and labeled as such.