As of October 2026. Every number below is sourced; the list is at the end.
As of October 2026, the honest answer is 6 to 12 weeks before the first official sitting, and you should pencil in three official test dates from the start, not one. There are two ways to lay those three out, and both are below with the real 2026-27 dates from College Board and ACT.
The belief that costs families the most
Almost every parent I talk to has the same plan in their head. Junior spring. A few weeks of review. One Saturday morning, one score, done.
It feels efficient. It is also the plan that runs out of road.
Real preparation is 24 hours of one-on-one instruction: one 2-hour session a week for 12 weeks, 2 to 3 hours of homework a week, and at least 5 full-length practice exams. It covers the whole SAT or ACT, every sitting, not math one time and reading the next. Six weeks is the floor. Twelve is the plan.
Two paths, three dates each
Both paths start the same way in 10th grade. Before summer, take the PSAT and a practice ACT so you can choose the test. Over the summer, make the plan.
| Standard path | Accelerated path | |
|---|---|---|
| Who | Most students | Early Action or Early Decision applicants, and ambitious juniors |
| 11th grade fall | Maybe prep for the October PSAT | Prep for the October PSAT, then Test 1 |
| 11th grade spring | Test 1 | Test 2 |
| Summer before senior year | Test 2 | Test 3, the backup |
| 12th grade fall | Test 3, the backup | Scores already in hand |
Why three? The first official sitting is the first time the whole thing is real, with a strange room and a clock that does not stop. Most students have more left on the second one. The third is insurance you hope not to need, and you only have it if the date was on the calendar from the start.
Skip June
June looks open on the calendar. It is not. The June SAT and ACT land on top of AP exams and finals, so a student walks in tired and under-prepared for the one test that was supposed to be the focus. I much prefer spring, then summer, then early fall: a March, April or May sitting, the July ACT or the August SAT, and a September or October date as the backup.
Count backward from the test date
Pick the sitting first. Then count back 12 weeks.
Twelve weeks before the March 6, 2027 SAT lands in mid-December 2026. Twelve weeks before the April 10, 2027 ACT lands in mid-January 2027. Twelve weeks before the July 10, 2027 ACT is mid-April, and twelve weeks before the August 28, 2027 SAT is early June. So a junior who wants a spring score starts the work over winter break, which means the call gets made this fall and not in February.
The 2026-27 dates
SAT weekend test dates and registration deadlines:
| SAT | Register by |
|---|---|
| Oct. 3, 2026 | Sept. 18, 2026 |
| Nov. 7, 2026 | Oct. 23, 2026 |
| Dec. 5, 2026 | Nov. 20, 2026 |
| March 6, 2027 | Feb. 19, 2027 |
| May 1, 2027 | Apr. 16, 2027 |
| June 5, 2027 | May 21, 2027 |
College Board also lists August 28, 2027 and September 18, 2027 as anticipated dates for the next cycle; registration for those opens later.
ACT national test dates and registration deadlines:
| ACT | Register by |
|---|---|
| Sept. 19, 2026 | Aug. 14, 2026 |
| Oct. 17, 2026 | Sept. 11, 2026 |
| Dec. 12, 2026 | Nov. 6, 2026 |
| Feb. 27, 2027 | Jan. 22, 2027 |
| Apr. 10, 2027 | Mar. 5, 2027 |
| June 12, 2027 | May 7, 2027 |
| July 10, 2027 | June 4, 2027 |
The dates that decide the backup
The third date only helps if the score arrives in time. For Early Action and Early Decision, the last sitting that reliably makes it is the October SAT or the September ACT of senior year. For Regular Decision, it is the December SAT or the December ACT. A senior reading this in October 2026 has the Nov. 7, 2026 SAT, which closes on Oct. 23, 2026, and then the Dec. 5, 2026 SAT and Dec. 12, 2026 ACT, and that is the end of the runway.
The PSAT is not automatic
Schools host the PSAT in an October window, but it is opt-in, so your student has to sign themselves up for it. Nobody is going to chase them about it. Treat it as a real practice run and prepare for it months out, not two weeks out.
The move
This month, pick the path, then put three test dates and their registration deadlines on the calendar. Count back 12 weeks from the first one and start there. Before you spend a dollar, take the two free diagnostic tests, one SAT and one ACT, so you know which exam your child should be sitting for: prepgurus.com/take-the-next-step, or call 949.229.5359 and we will set up a strategy call.
Questions parents ask
My child is a junior. When do we actually need to start?
If you want a spring score, start over winter break: 12 weeks before the March 6, 2027 SAT lands in mid-December 2026, and 12 weeks before the April 10, 2027 ACT lands in mid-January 2027.
How many official test dates should we plan on?
Three, from the start. On the standard path that is junior spring, the summer before senior year, and a senior-fall backup; on the accelerated path it is junior fall, junior spring, and a summer backup.
Is June a good test date?
No. The June SAT and ACT land on top of AP exams and finals. Spring, then summer, then early fall is the order to plan around.
Written by Nick Standlea, founder of Test Prep Gurus. Updated October 2026.
Sources
- College Board, SAT dates and deadlines (2026-27 dates and the anticipated 2027-28 fall dates) — https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/registration/dates-deadlines
- ACT, national test dates — https://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/registration/test-dates.html
- Test Prep Gurus, program structure and free diagnostics (FAQ) — https://www.prepgurus.com/frequently-asked-questions
- Nick Standlea, "Testing: What Changed and Who Should Test?", IUSD College Fair, Oct. 5, 2026 (the two testing timelines)