Is 1400 a Good SAT Score? Percentile & ACT Equivalent

The short answer

1400 is one of the strongest SAT results you can post. It is at the 97th percentile of U.S. 11th and 12th graders (College Board nationally representative sample), a top-10% score nationally.
Among actual SAT takers it is at the 93rd percentile (SAT User Group).
It is 355 points above the class of 2026 national average of 1045.
On the official ACT/SAT concordance, 1400 corresponds to an ACT composite of about 31.
It beats the average SAT score in 51 of 51 states and DC (class of 2026).

1400 SAT percentile

College Board publishes two percentile scales. On the nationally representative scale (a research sample of U.S. 11th and 12th graders, including students who never take the SAT), a 1400 is at the 97th percentile: about 97% of students would score at or below it. On the user scale, based on students who actually took the SAT in the past three graduating classes, it is at the 93rd percentile. The user figure is the fairer comparison with the other applicants you will meet.

SAT total	Nationally representative percentile	SAT User percentile	ACT equivalent
1300	91st	85th	28
1350	94th	89th	29
1400	97th	93rd	31
1450	99th	95th	33
1500	99th	97th	34

Table: SAT percentiles around 1400. Source: College Board, SAT Understanding Scores (retrieved October 2026); ACT/SAT concordance tables (2018).

What section scores add up to 1400?

The total is the sum of Reading and Writing (200–800) and Math (200–800). Different splits reach the same 1400, and they read differently: colleges and scholarship programs sometimes look at one section, and College Board’s college-readiness benchmarks are 480 for Reading and Writing and 530 for Math.

Reading & Writing	Math	RW percentile	Math percentile	Meets both benchmarks?
620	780	77	98	Yes
660	740	86	95	Yes
700	700	92	91	Yes
740	660	97	85	Yes
780	620	99th+	79	Yes

Table: example section splits for a 1400 total, with College Board section percentiles (nationally representative). Score your own practice test with the SAT score calculator.

How does 1400 compare with state averages?

A 1400 is higher than the class of 2026 SAT average in 51 of 51 states and DC, including Nebraska (1270), Wisconsin (1244), Utah (1242), Wyoming (1239).

State averages mostly reflect who takes the test. In the 8 states where at least 90% of graduates sit the SAT (usually a school-day requirement), averages are low because everyone tests; a 1400 beats the average in 8 of them. States with tiny participation post the highest averages because mostly college-bound students test. The full table is in our SAT and ACT scores by state study.

Is 1400 good enough for college?

At the 93rd percentile of test takers, a 1400 sits at or above the middle-50% range at most colleges; at the most selective ones, check whether it reaches the 75th percentile, where scores become a clear plus. The reliable check is each college’s middle-50% SAT range, published in its Common Data Set (section C9) or admissions profile: inside the range is typical for admitted students, above the 75th percentile is a plus, below the 25th percentile is a reach on scores alone. See which colleges require the SAT again, read what is a good SAT score for the full method, and keep your GPA in view with the high school GPA calculator.

Raising a 1400 to 1450

Moving from 1400 to 1450 means 50 more points, roughly 25 per section. That shifts you from the 97th to the 99th percentile nationally (95th among SAT takers) and from about 31 to about 33 on the ACT scale. Use the SAT score calculator with a practice test to see how many more correct answers that takes on your own module mix. If math is your weaker section, the ACT score calculator shows whether the ACT suits you better.

Sources

College Board Research, SAT nationally representative and user percentiles (retrieved October 15, 2026).
College Board, SAT Suite of Assessments Annual Report 2026 (national and state results).
College Board and ACT, ACT/SAT Concordance Tables (2018).

Frequently asked questions

What percentile is a 1400 SAT score?

A 1400 is at the 97th percentile on College Board’s nationally representative scale and the 93rd percentile among students who actually took the SAT in the last three graduating classes. That means roughly 93% of recent SAT takers scored at or below 1400.

What is a 1400 SAT score on the ACT?

The official ACT/SAT concordance maps a 1400 SAT total to an ACT composite of about 31. Concordance is an approximation based on students who took both tests, so use it to compare, not to predict an exact ACT score.

Is 1400 a good SAT score for college?

Compare 1400 with each college’s middle-50% SAT range in its Common Data Set. Inside the range is typical for admitted students; above the 75th percentile helps; below the 25th percentile makes scores a weak point. At test-optional colleges you can choose not to send a score that falls below the range.

Is 1400 above the national average SAT score?

The class of 2026 national average SAT total was 1045, according to College Board’s annual report, so a 1400 is 355 points above it. The national average includes students tested on school day in states that require the SAT.