Is 16 a Good ACT Score? (2026)

A 16 is a below-average ACT score: 41% of recent test takers scored 16 or lower, and the national average composite is 19.2. It still meets some published admission floors, it is inside the range of enrolled students at a few four-year universities, and it sits on the part of the scale where a three-point gain moves you past about one in six test takers.

So is 16 a good ACT score? Not by national standards, and it is better to hear that plainly. On ACT's current national ranks a 16 composite is the 41st percentile, about three points under the class of 2026 average, and it lines up with roughly an 890 on the SAT. But below average is not the same as out of options. A 16 is the exact score Mississippi's public universities name in one of their admission routes, open-admission universities take you with or without it, and the climb from 16 to 19 crosses 17 percentile points. If your September 19 scores just came in, here is what a 16 means and what to do next.

What Percentile Is a 16 ACT Score?

ACT's 2026-2027 National Ranks put a 16 composite at the 41st percentile: 41% of recent high school graduates who took the ACT scored 16 or lower, and 59% scored higher. These are the "US Rank" figures printed on score reports for tests taken from September 2026 through August 2027, based on ACT-tested graduates of 2024, 2025, and 2026. The SAT column comes from the official ACT/SAT concordance, which gives a single equivalent and a range.

The ranks climb fast here. Every point between 15 and 20 is worth five to seven percentile points, so a 16 and a 19 describe very different places in the national pool even though they are only three points apart. Near the top of the scale it is the opposite: a 34 and a 35 share the same rank.

The national average composite for the class of 2026 was 19.2, from ACT's class of 2026 national profile report, released October 14, 2026. For every score from 1 to 36, see our ACT percentiles chart.

Your Section Scores Matter More Than the 16

On the enhanced ACT, the composite is the average of English, Math, and Reading, rounded to the nearest whole number, with halves rounding up. Science is optional and reported separately, so it does not change your 16.

A 16 means your three section scores add up to 47, 48, or 49. That could be an even 16-16-16, or a split like 19 English, 14 Math, 15 Reading. The same number ranks differently in each section:

ACT sets its College Readiness Benchmarks at the score that gives a student about a 50% chance of a B or better, and about a 75% chance of a C or better, in a matching first-year course. With a 16 composite you can meet the English benchmark (18) if English is your strong section, but a 22 in Math or Reading would leave 27 points or fewer for the other two sections. That is the usual shape of a 16: one section near its benchmark and one or two well short.

Section scores also decide where you start in college. Mississippi's public universities, for example, require an Intermediate course in the first year for entering students whose ACT Math, English, or Reading score is 16 or less, and they may require it for scores of 17 to 19. One exception is a student with at least a 15 in that section who earned an 80 or higher in the state's approved transitional course (IHL Board Policy 608). So a 16 in a single section can mean a required Intermediate course in your first year, while at 17 it becomes the university's choice. Our ACT score report guide shows where those section scores and ranks appear on your report.

Colleges and Admission Rules Where a 16 Works

A published 16 floor: Mississippi's public universities

Mississippi's public university system publishes its ACT floor, and 16 is the number. Under the Board of Trustees' admission standards, a student who completes the College Preparatory Curriculum earns full admission in one of three ways:

• A 3.20 GPA or higher, with no ACT or SAT score required.
• A 2.50 GPA or a class rank in the top 50%, plus an ACT composite of 16 or higher.
• A 2.00 GPA plus an ACT composite of 18 or higher.

The board also says its universities "will use ACT or SAT superscores," and that from April 2025 the composite is based on English, Math, and Reading. So for a Mississippi student with a 2.50 GPA, a 16 is not a weak score. It is the score that completes the admission.

Colleges where a 16 is inside the middle 50%

Both ranges come from each school's own Common Data Set (section C9) and describe enrolled first-year students who sent an ACT; they are the newest files each school had posted on October 8, 2026. They mean different things. At Lincoln, in Jefferson City, about half the entering class sent an ACT, so a 16 really is a typical score there. At Texas A&M-Kingsville only 9% sent an ACT and 27% sent an SAT, so its ACT range describes a small group; far more of its students sent the SAT.

Open-enrollment universities

Some public universities admit first-year students without a minimum test score at all. Weber State University in Utah states it directly: "Weber is an open-enrollment university." At a school like this, a 16 does not decide whether you get in, though a college can still use test scores for course placement and scholarships, so read its placement and aid pages too.

At more selective schools, check the middle 50% before you send a 16. Where a school is test-optional and your grades are stronger than the score, applying without it may be the better application, and our 17 ACT and 19 ACT guides show how quickly the college list widens with each point.

Scholarships and a 16 ACT

A few state programs pay at this level, and the exact lines matter because they move one point at a time:

• Kentucky KEES bonus: an ACT composite of 15 or higher adds a bonus to the GPA-based award. A 16 is worth $71 for each year of college, compared with $36 for a 15 and $107 for a 17, rising to $500 at 28 or above. You also need at least a 2.75 GPA in a year of high school, and KHEAA uses "the highest score you make before you graduate" (KHEAA).
• Mississippi MTAG: entering freshmen need at least a 15 on the ACT and a 2.5 high school GPA, and superscores are accepted. A 16 clears the score line for an award of up to $500 a year in the first two years.
• Wyoming Hathaway: the Provisional award needs a 17 and the Opportunity award a 19, each with a 2.5 GPA, so a 16 is one point short of the first level.

Every program has conditions beyond the score (residency, coursework, and for MTAG a FAFSA showing less than the maximum Pell Grant), so confirm the rules with the state agency before you count on the money.

Should You Retake the ACT With a 16?

Usually, yes. A 16 sits just under several lines that pay off right away: at 17, a Mississippi university is no longer required to place that section in an intermediate course, a 17 composite reaches Wyoming's Provisional Hathaway award, and each point adds about $36 a year to a KEES bonus. ACT reports that students who take the test more than once raise their superscore by an average of 2.4 points (ACT, class of 2025 release), and our ACT superscore guide explains how colleges combine your best sections.

The October 17 test is no longer an option: its standby deadline was October 12. The next national dates are:

December gives you about eight weeks from today. The ACT costs $70 for English, Math, and Reading (ACT fees), and 11th and 12th graders who meet ACT's economic-need criteria can take it free up to two times with an ACT fee waiver. December scores start arriving on December 17 for online tests and December 22 for paper, so check each college's score deadline first: a December retake helps most with regular decision applications, placement, and state aid.

How to Turn a 16 Into a 19

A 19 is the 58th percentile, above the middle of the national pool. Getting there from 16 means raising your section total from 47-49 to 56-58, about nine points across three sections, or three per section. That is a real goal for a few months of steady work. A practical order:

1. Fix the section that is furthest from its benchmark first. Because the Math and Reading benchmarks sit at 22, that is usually one of those two. Moving one section from 13 to 18 does as much for the composite as moving all three up by almost two.
2. Bank the English rules. Punctuation, sentence boundaries, and agreement questions repeat on every form, and English has the lowest benchmark of the three, 18.
3. Answer every question. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so a blank is always a lost chance.
4. Practice timed, in short daily sets. Fifteen or twenty focused minutes a day, reviewed carefully, does more than one long weekend session.
5. Keep a mistake log. After two or three weeks you will see the four or five error types that cost you the most points.

Frequently Asked Questions About a 16 ACT Score

Is 16 a good ACT score?

It is below average. A 16 is the 41st percentile on ACT's 2026-2027 national ranks, about three points under the 19.2 national average for the class of 2026. It is still enough for some admission routes and state aid programs.

What percentile is a 16 on the ACT?

A 16 composite is the 41st percentile, so 41% of recent ACT-tested graduates scored 16 or lower and 59% scored higher. By section, a 16 is the 46th percentile in English, the 45th in Math, and the 37th in Reading.

What SAT score is a 16 ACT equal to?

The official ACT/SAT concordance pairs a 16 ACT with an 890 SAT, within a range of 880 to 910. Our ACT to SAT conversion chart covers every score.

Can you get into a university with a 16 ACT?

Yes. Mississippi's public universities grant full admission with a 16 composite, a 2.50 GPA or top-half class rank, and the College Preparatory Curriculum. Open-admission universities do not require a minimum score, and some four-year schools report a 16 inside their middle 50%.

Does a 16 ACT qualify for any scholarships?

A few state programs. In Kentucky a 16 adds a $71 yearly KEES bonus, and in Mississippi it clears MTAG's 15-point minimum. It is one point short of Wyoming's Provisional Hathaway award.

How long does it take to go from a 16 to a 19?

That is a nine-point gain across your three section scores. As an estimate, a few months of short, regular practice focused on your weakest section is a realistic plan, and the December 12 and February 27 test dates both leave time for it.

Want to see which section is holding your 16 back? Start a free ACT practice quiz on Larry Learns. The free plan gives you 3 quizzes a day from 25,000+ SAT and ACT practice questions, on web, iPhone, and Android. Create a free account to track your progress and build a daily streak toward a 19.