Superscoring means you can combine your best Math score with your best Reading and Writing (R&W) score from different SAT® attempts.
Many colleges use superscoring in their admissions process. If you achieve your best section scores in different test attempts, you should send both results! However, some colleges don’t use superscoring, and you’ll need to send your best individual SAT® score. If a college requires all your scores, send them all. This page is part of Happi’s full SAT® guide — here’s superscoring on its own, with a worked example.
Why superscoring changes your strategy
Re-attempting the SAT® exam without noticeable improvement can be frustrating. For example, a high-achieving student might score 1500, 1490, and 1520 on three different attempts. Superscoring can still turn this situation around! Here’s an example:
- Math score: 730
- R&W score: 770
- Total score: 1500
- Math score: 750
- R&W score: 740
- Total score: 1490
- Math score: 780
- R&W score: 740
- Total score: 1520
At first glance, the reattempts may seem unproductive. However, superscoring takes the best R&W score (770) and the best Math score (780) from any attempt. For colleges that use superscoring, the total score is 1550 (770 + 780) — a significant improvement, even though no single attempt broke 1520.
- Check the score submission policies of your target colleges to find out whether they allow superscoring.
- If you’ve already taken the SAT® exam more than once before, check what your superscore is in addition to the total scores from your single attempts.
Superscoring changes how retakes pay off
Superscoring is a big part of why retaking the SAT® is usually worth it: a weaker attempt doesn’t erase a strong section score from an earlier one, it just doesn’t get used. And since your best-ever section scores are what get combined, deciding when to test matters less about any single “perfect” date and more about giving yourself enough attempts within your timeline.
Sharpen the section that’s holding your superscore back.