Does University of Florida Require the SAT or ACT in 2026? Yes, and Here Are the Scores

As of October 2026: Yes. University of Florida requires an SAT or ACT score, and the rule applies to fall 2027 applicants. The middle of the enrolled class sits at 1300 to 1480 on the SAT and 28 to 33 on the ACT, with an admit rate of 24.0 percent.

UF is a required-test school, not test-optional. Here are the score bands, the submit shares, the cost, and what we would do with the next 6 to 12 weeks.

By Nick Standlea, Test Prep Gurus. Figures may be quoted with attribution to Test Prep Gurus.

The score is required, not optional University of Florida lists its test policy as required, and the rule applies to fall 2027 applicants. The source is Florida Board of Governors regulation 6.002 and the UF admissions page. There is no test-optional path here, so a score is part of the file from day one.

The middle band is 1300 to 1480 on the SAT Among enrolled first-years who sent an SAT, the lower band mark was 1300 and the upper band mark was 1480. The ACT band ran 28 to 33. Those bands describe the fall 2023 class, the latest federal file, so treat them as the shape of the class rather than a cutoff.

24.0 percent of 65,375 applicants were admitted UF drew 65,375 applicants and admitted 15,690, an admit rate of 24.0 percent. That is a school where a strong score moves a file. The application fee is 30 dollars, which keeps the cost of trying low.

Does University of Florida require the SAT or ACT?

This row comes from the college's own admissions page. It tells you the policy, who it applies to, and where the rule is written down.

College	Test policy	Applies to	Source of the rule	Note
University of Florida	required	fall 2027 applicants	Florida Board of Governors regulation 6.002; UF admissions	public university: see Reach's state test-policy page

One row. Florida's public universities sit under a single state regulation, so the policy is not set campus by campus.

What are the UF score bands, admit rate, cost, and payoff?

These rows come from IPEDS Admissions 2023 and the College Scorecard, by way of highschoolreach.com. Score bands describe enrolled first-years who submitted that test.

Measure	Value
applicants	65375
sat_25	1300
sat_75	1480
act_25	28
act_75	33
sat_submit_pct	79
act_submit_pct	41
test_policy_2026	Required
admits	15690
admit_rate	24.0
application_fee	30
net_price_with_aid	6541
full_price	22523
npc_url	https://npc.collegeboard.org/app/ufl
earnings_10yr	71588
ten_years_pay	715880
four_years_cost	26164
net_gain	689716
four_year_grad_pct	91.1
median_debt_completers	15000

Repeated applicant rows in the source file were kept once. Bands describe enrolled first-years who submitted that test (fall 2023 class, the latest federal file).

Does University of Florida require the SAT or ACT in 2026?

Yes. The policy row reads required, and it applies to fall 2027 applicants. The second table says the same thing in a different column: test_policy_2026 is listed as Required. There is no optional lane and no waiver path shown in our data.

The rule is not a choice UF made on its own. It traces to Florida Board of Governors regulation 6.002 along with the UF admissions page. That matters for families looking at more than one Florida public campus. The state sets the floor, so the answer tends to look the same across the system rather than changing school by school.

Many families got used to the test-optional years and assumed the change was permanent everywhere. It was not. A school can require a score again, and Florida did. If your child is building a list that mixes optional schools with required ones, the required school sets the plan. You cannot opt out of a test that one college on the list demands.

So the practical read is simple. If University of Florida is on the list, your child is taking the SAT or the ACT. The only open questions are which test, how many times, and how much prep comes first. We answer those further down the page.

What SAT score do you need for University of Florida?

Among enrolled first-years who sent an SAT, the lower band mark was 1300 and the upper band mark was 1480. That span covers the middle half of the class. Some enrolled students who submitted scored below 1300, and some scored above 1480.

We like to read those two numbers as zones, not gates. A 1300 is not a rejection and a 1480 is not an admit. A score near 1480 puts the file in the comfortable part of the pile. A score near 1300 means the rest of the application has to carry more of the load.

A fair target for most families is the upper band number, 1480. Aiming there and landing a little short still leaves your child inside the middle half. Aiming at 1300 and falling short leaves the file under the band, which is a harder place to recover from.

Keep in mind what the band describes. These are enrolled students in the fall 2023 class, the latest federal file. Enrolled is a smaller group than admitted. Students who were admitted but chose another school are not counted. Bands also shift a little year to year, so treat 1300 and 1480 as a map and not a promise.

What ACT score do you need for University of Florida?

The ACT band at University of Florida runs from 28 at the low end to 33 at the high end. Those marks come from enrolled first-years who submitted an ACT in the fall 2023 class.

The two bands are close cousins. A 1300 SAT and a 28 ACT both sit at the lower edge of the middle half. A 1480 SAT and a 33 ACT both sit at the top edge. UF does not prefer one test over the other in our data, so the choice is about which test fits your child.

That choice is real and it is testable. Some students read fast and do better on the ACT, where pace is the main hurdle. Others think better with more time per question and do better on the SAT. We settle this with a timed mock of each test rather than a guess.

If your child has already taken both, compare where each score lands against these bands. A score just inside the ACT band is not the same as a score just under the SAT band. Put your prep hours behind the test that is already closer to the top of its band.

How many admitted students actually send a score?

Of enrolled first-years, 79 percent submitted an SAT and 41 percent submitted an ACT. Those shares add past 100 because some students send both tests.

The SAT is clearly the house test at UF. Four out of five enrolled students had an SAT on file. That does not make the ACT a weak choice. Two out of five students sent one, which is a large group by any measure.

What the submit shares tell you is that your child will not stand out as odd either way. The readers see both tests in volume every year. There is no bonus for picking the less common one and no penalty for picking the common one.

There is one practical note. Since some students send both, a second test is an option if the first one lands below the band. We would rather see one test prepared well than two tests prepared halfway. But if there is time, a second score can only help when the policy is required.

How hard is it to get into University of Florida?

University of Florida received 65,375 applicants and admitted 15,690, for an admit rate of 24.0 percent. Roughly one in four files got an offer.

That is selective but not out of reach. Compare it with schools that admit under 10 percent, where a top score is table stakes and still not enough. At 24.0 percent, a score inside or above the 1300 to 1480 band is a real lift to the outcome, which is why we treat prep as the highest-return task on the list.

Volume also shapes how files are read. With 65,375 applicants, a reader cannot spend an hour on each one. Clear, easy-to-read strengths matter. A score at or above 1480 is one of the fastest signals a reader can take in.

The application fee is 30 dollars. That is low for a school this size, and it is part of why the applicant pool is so large. For your family, the low fee means applying is a small cost. The large pool means the score still has to do work.

Should my child send a score if it is below the band?

Yes, because the policy is required and applies to fall 2027 applicants. There is no option to hold a score back at University of Florida.

This is the biggest shift from the test-optional years. At an optional school, a low score can simply stay home. At UF, that score goes in the file. That changes the math on prep completely. The question is not whether to send, it is how high the number is when it gets sent.

So the plan starts earlier. We want a first official sitting with real prep behind it, not a cold attempt that becomes the number on file. Most students we work with need 6 to 12 weeks of steady prep before a sitting counts.

If your child is below 1300 or below 28 right now, that is a starting point, not a verdict. There is almost always room to move with focused work on the sections that lose the most points. The thing we would not do is shrug and hope a different part of the application makes the score invisible. At a required school, it never is.

When should my child take the SAT or ACT for a fall 2027 application?

We would plan the first real sitting about 6 to 12 weeks after prep starts, and finish all testing before applications go in for fall 2027. The policy row names fall 2027 applicants, so that is the class on the clock.

Working backward is the simplest way to set dates. Pick the last test date that still lands scores before the application goes out. Then schedule a sitting before that one as a backup. Then count back 6 to 12 weeks from the first sitting and start prep there.

Junior spring and the summer after junior year are the stretches most families use well. School is lighter, and a student can hold a steady weekly routine. Fall of senior year gets crowded with essays, grades, and activities, so we do not like to leave the first attempt there.

One rule we hold firmly: prepare for the whole test every sitting. Students sometimes plan to focus on math this time and reading next time. Scores do not work that way. Each sitting is a full test, and the full test should be ready. Partial prep produces a partial score that still lands in a required file.

What does University of Florida cost a family each year?

The net price with aid is 6,541 dollars and the full price is 22,523 dollars. Net price is what a typical family actually pays after grants and scholarships come off.

The gap between those two numbers is large. Families who look only at the 22,523 figure can rule out a school that would have cost them a fraction of that. We tell parents to treat the full price as a sticker and the net price as the real conversation starter.

Your own number will differ. Net price is an average across families with aid, and aid depends on income, assets, and household size. The College Board net price calculator for UF is linked in our table at npc.collegeboard.org/app/ufl. It takes a few minutes and gives a figure built on your numbers rather than an average.

The pack lists a four-year cost of 26,164 dollars, which is how the payoff math below is framed. Add the 30 dollar application fee on the front end. Against those figures, the cost of applying and the cost of attending both look modest for a school this selective.

Does a University of Florida degree pay off?

Graduates show earnings of 71,588 dollars ten years out, which comes to 715,880 dollars over ten years against a four-year cost of 26,164 dollars. The pack puts the net gain at 689,716 dollars.

That is a wide margin, and it holds up because the cost side is small. A low net price with aid of 6,541 dollars does more for the final number than almost anything else. Two schools with the same earnings can end up far apart once cost is counted.

Median debt for completers is 15,000 dollars. That is a manageable figure next to earnings of 71,588 dollars ten years out. It is a small slice of one year of pay at that level, which is the kind of ratio that does not follow a graduate around.

One caution. Earnings figures mix every major together. An engineering graduate and a humanities graduate both sit inside 71,588 dollars. Field of study moves pay more than almost any other factor, so use the number as a school-level signal rather than a forecast for your child.

How likely is my child to graduate from UF in four years?

The four-year graduation rate at University of Florida is 91.1 percent. Nine in ten students finish on time.

That number deserves more attention than it usually gets. A fifth year of college adds cost and delays the start of earnings. At 91.1 percent, the odds of that extra year are low, which is part of why the four-year cost of 26,164 dollars stays contained.

High on-time graduation also says something about the students and the support around them. Schools with strong advising, open seats in required courses, and prepared students finish classes on schedule. Schools that stall students in course bottlenecks do not post a 91.1 percent figure.

For families comparing offers, we put this number next to net price. A cheaper school where students take five or six years can cost more in the end than a school at 6,541 dollars net with a 91.1 percent four-year rate. The published annual price is only half of the story.

Which test should my child prepare for first?

Start with the test that already sits closer to the top of its band, either 1480 on the SAT or 33 on the ACT. The gap you can close fastest is the one to chase.

Our data does not show a preference at UF. The submit shares say 79 percent sent an SAT and 41 percent sent an ACT, so both tests arrive in large numbers. A reader is used to seeing each one. The pick is about your child, not about taste at the college.

We settle it with two timed mocks on separate days. One full SAT, one full ACT, both under real timing. Then we line each result up against 1300 to 1480 and 28 to 33 and see which climb is shorter.

After that, we pick one test and stay with it. Splitting 6 to 12 weeks of prep across two tests slows both. One test, full prep, one strong number in a required file is the plan that holds up.

What should we do this month?

Take one timed mock SAT and one timed mock ACT, then put 6 to 12 weeks of prep behind whichever test scores closer to the top of its band. That single step settles the test choice and sets the calendar.

Here is the order we use. First, the two mocks, taken under real timing on separate days. Second, compare each result against 1300 to 1480 on the SAT and 28 to 33 on the ACT. Third, pick the test with the shorter climb. Fourth, book the official date that sits 6 to 12 weeks out. Fifth, prepare for the whole test, not a favorite section.

Do not skip the mocks because a school practice test already exists. A real timed test under real conditions is the only result we trust for this decision. Guessing which test fits costs weeks of prep in the wrong place.

The move: take a free mock SAT and a free mock ACT with us. Call 949.229.5359 or go to prepgurus.com/take-the-next-step. We will score both, show you where your child sits against the UF bands, and lay out the weeks between now and the first official sitting.

Questions parents ask

Is University of Florida test-optional in 2026?
No. The policy row reads required, and it applies to fall 2027 applicants.

What SAT score does University of Florida want?
Among enrolled first-years who sent an SAT, the lower band mark was 1300 and the upper band mark was 1480.

What ACT score does University of Florida want?
The ACT band at University of Florida runs from 28 at the low end to 33 at the high end.

How selective is University of Florida?
University of Florida received 65,375 applicants and admitted 15,690, for an admit rate of 24.0 percent.

Can my child skip sending a low score?
No. There is no option to hold a score back at University of Florida.

What will University of Florida cost us?
The net price with aid is 6,541 dollars and the full price is 22,523 dollars.

Do UF graduates earn enough to cover the cost?
Median debt for completers is 15,000 dollars.

Will my child finish in four years?
The four-year graduation rate at University of Florida is 91.1 percent.

Method and sources: The policy row comes from the college's own admissions page, which cites Florida Board of Governors regulation 6.002 and the UF admissions office. Score bands, submit shares, admit rate, fee, price, earnings, debt, and graduation rate come from IPEDS Admissions 2023 and the College Scorecard, by way of highschoolreach.com. Score bands describe enrolled first-years who submitted that test in the fall 2023 class, the latest federal file, so admitted students who enrolled elsewhere are not counted. The policy table carries no source URL in our file, so the quote column names the rule instead of linking to it. Only one college is covered here, so rows are not ranked.