What SAT or ACT score do you need for Princeton?

As of November 2026: Princeton is test-optional for fall 2027 entry (the 2026-27 admission cycle), and the middle half of enrolled first-years who sent an SAT scored 1500 to 1580. Princeton says standardized testing will be required beginning with the 2027-28 admission cycle, for fall 2028 entry.

Princeton is test-optional for this year's seniors and test-required for the students right behind them. Here is what the score bands mean, who sends a score, and what our students do about it.

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

The middle half of SAT senders scored 1500 to 1580. Among enrolled first-years in fall 2023 who sent an SAT, a quarter scored below 1500 and a quarter scored above 1580. For ACT senders, the middle half scored 34 to 35.

57 percent of enrolled first-years sent an SAT. Another 20 percent sent an ACT. Even with a test-optional policy, many of the students who enrolled chose to send a score.

Princeton admitted 1,784 of 39,644 applicants. That is an admit rate of 4.5 percent for fall 2023. The full price of a year is $84,040, and the average net price after aid is $6,128.

Does Princeton require the SAT or ACT?

This is Princeton's testing policy as its own admissions page states it, with the cycle it covers.

College	Policy	Applies to	What changes next	In Princeton's words	Source
Princeton University	optional	fall 2027 entry (2026-27 admission cycle)	standardized testing will be required beginning with the 2027-28 admission cycle (fall 2028 entry)	Princeton remains test optional.	Source

Optional means a family chooses whether to send a score. Required means every applicant sends one.

Princeton: score bands, who sends a score, how many get in, what it costs

These figures cover the fall 2023 class. Score bands describe enrolled first-years who sent that test.

Measure	Value
applicants, fall 2023	39644
admits, fall 2023	1784
admit rate, percent	4.5
SAT 25th percentile, enrolled submitters	1500
SAT 75th percentile, enrolled submitters	1580
ACT 25th percentile, enrolled submitters	34
ACT 75th percentile, enrolled submitters	35
share of enrolled first-years who sent an SAT, percent	57
share who sent an ACT, percent	20
application fee, dollars	70
full price of a year, dollars	84040
average net price after aid, dollars	6128

Bands describe enrolled first-years who sent that test in the fall 2023 class, the latest federal numbers. Prices come from the College Scorecard.

Does Princeton require the SAT or ACT?

No, Princeton does not require the SAT or ACT for students applying in the 2026-27 admission cycle, who start college in fall 2027. Princeton's own admissions page says it in plain words: "Princeton remains test optional."

Parents often ask us to confirm this. Yes, Princeton is test-optional for high school seniors in the 2026-27 school year. Test-optional means your family decides whether to send a score. For this cycle, sending a score is a choice, not a rule.

That choice is a real one, and we want families to make it on purpose. The rest of this page gives you the numbers you need to decide.

Will Princeton require scores for younger students?

Yes, Princeton says standardized testing will be required beginning with the 2027-28 admission cycle, for students who start college in fall 2028. That covers high school juniors in the 2026-27 school year, who apply in the 2027-28 school year, and the students who come after them.

For those students, every applicant sends a score. We tell families of juniors to plan as if the SAT or ACT is part of the application, because for them it will be. The question shifts from whether to send a score to how strong that score can be by the time it counts.

What SAT score do enrolled first-years carry?

The middle half of enrolled first-years who sent an SAT scored between 1500 and 1580. These are students from the fall 2023 class, the latest federal numbers, who enrolled and chose to send a score.

A quarter of those senders scored below 1500, and a quarter scored above 1580. So the band is not a cutoff. It is a picture of the students your child would sit next to in class, among those who sent an SAT.

We tell families to read the band that way. It shows where most SAT senders landed. It does not set a floor, and it does not promise anything to a student who scores inside it.

What ACT score do they carry?

The middle half of enrolled first-years who sent an ACT scored 34 to 35. A quarter of ACT senders scored below 34, and a quarter scored above 35.

That is a tight band, and it sits near the top of the ACT scale. Students who send an ACT to Princeton tend to send a very high one.

Our rule is to pick the test that fits your child, not the one that looks easier on paper. Some of our students do better on the SAT, and some do better on the ACT. A full-length mock of each test is the clearest way to find out which one suits your child.

How many send a score?

57 percent of enrolled first-years sent an SAT, and 20 percent sent an ACT. These shares come from the fall 2023 class. At a selective test-optional college like this one, we tell families it is nearly always good to have a score: a strong one bolsters the odds of getting in, and most merit scholarships are keyed to a score.

We do not add these two shares together, because a student can send both tests. What they do show is that, even at a test-optional college, many of the students who enrolled chose to send a score.

For your family, that means a score is a normal part of a Princeton application. Choosing not to send one is allowed this cycle, but it is a decision to make with care.

Should my child send a score to Princeton?

Our rule is simple: an SAT at or above 1500, or an ACT at or above 34, is a score to send. That puts your child inside or above the band for enrolled first-years who sent a score.

A score below the band is one to think hard about before sending. For students applying in the 2026-27 cycle, that choice belongs to your family. Look at the score next to everything else your child has built, and ask whether the score adds to that story or pulls against it.

For students applying in the 2027-28 cycle or later, every applicant sends a score. For them, the goal is to make that score as strong as it can be. We would rather a student start early and have room to improve than rush into a test date that counts.

How hard is it to get in?

Princeton admitted 4.5 percent of applicants in fall 2023. That year 39,644 students applied and 1,784 were admitted.

We tell families to treat Princeton as a reach for every student, even one with a top score. A score inside the band means your child tests like the students who enrolled. It is not a promise of a seat.

Our advice is to build a college list with schools at different levels of reach. Then a strong SAT or ACT score helps across the whole list, not only at Princeton.

What does it cost to apply and attend?

The application fee at Princeton is $70. The full price of a year is $84,040. The average net price after aid is $6,128.

The sticker price and the price families actually pay are far apart, so we tell parents not to rule out Princeton based on the full price alone. Princeton publishes a net price calculator, as every US college must. Your family can enter its own income and savings at home and see an estimate built for you.

What should we do this month?

Sit a free full-length mock SAT and a free full-length mock ACT with Test Prep Gurus this month. Then compare each result with the bands above: 1500 to 1580 on the SAT and 34 to 35 on the ACT.

Pick the test that fits your child, and plan 6 to 12 weeks of prep before a test date that counts. Our students prepare for the whole test every sitting, every section each time, not just the weakest part.

To book a free mock SAT or a free mock ACT, call us at 949.229.5359 or visit https://www.prepgurus.com/take-the-next-step. We will go over the results with you and help you choose a plan.

Questions parents ask

Does Princeton require the SAT or ACT?
No, Princeton does not require the SAT or ACT for students applying in the 2026-27 admission cycle, who start college in fall 2027.

Is Princeton test-optional?
Yes, Princeton is test-optional for high school seniors in the 2026-27 school year.

Will Princeton require scores for younger students?
Yes, Princeton says standardized testing will be required beginning with the 2027-28 admission cycle, for students who start college in fall 2028.

What SAT score do Princeton students have?
The middle half of enrolled first-years who sent an SAT scored between 1500 and 1580.

Should my child send a score below the band?
A score below the band is one to think hard about before sending.

What does Princeton cost after aid?
The average net price after aid is $6,128.

Ready to plan the next test date? Free mock SAT and free mock ACT at Test Prep Gurus, then a plan built on the result: prepgurus.com/take-the-next-step or 949.229.5359.

Method and sources: The policy comes from Princeton's own admissions page and applies to fall 2027 entry, the 2026-27 admission cycle; the same page says testing will be required beginning with the 2027-28 cycle. The SAT and ACT bands describe enrolled first-years in the fall 2023 class who sent that test, from the latest federal file, not every applicant or every admitted student. Applicant and admit counts are also from fall 2023, and prices come from the College Scorecard.