ACT

What ACT does

ACT is a non-profit assessment and educational services organization headquartered in Iowa City, Iowa, founded in 1959. Its core product is the ACT Test, a standardized college readiness assessment administered in both paper and computer-based formats across the United States and in 130+ countries. The company is accepted by 100% of US colleges, reports an annual national average score of 19.4, and serves approximately 1.38 million domestic test-takers per year. Beyond the flagship test, ACT has assembled a multi-product portfolio spanning grades 3 through career: ACT Aspire for K-12, ACT WorkKeys for workforce readiness, ACT Engage for social-emotional learning, ACT Tessera, and the ACT Holistic Framework for non-cognitive assessment. The underlying technology stack includes the MyACT student portal, an in-house CRASE NLP/ML essay scoring engine, an interest inventory recommendation engine, and predictive analytics powered by longitudinal data on 214 institutions and 230,000+ students managed through the Center for Living and Learning. Post-acquisition platforms — Encoura (data-driven college planning), Knovation (digital content library of 330,000+ resources), Mawi (student data), and ScootPad (adaptive learning) — are integrated into this suite.

The business model combines transactional per-test revenue with recurring institutional contracts. Domestic test fees are $68 (without Writing) and $186.50 internationally, with add-ons for the Writing section ($25) and STEM optional items; score reporting carries a $20 fee. Institutional revenue comes from statewide contracts (Wyoming and Nebraska explicitly cited), district-level deployments of ACT Aspire, ACT WorkKeys enterprise sales, and Knovation licensing. Distribution runs through three channels: direct-to-consumer registration via the MyACT portal, state and district institutional sales, and international partner networks. The company has invested in cloud infrastructure via AWS (including a $30,000 AWS Imagine Grant in 2021) and embedded partnerships with Kaplan, Prepscholar, CrackACT, and Texas Instruments to extend prep ecosystem reach.

Customer concentration is low: 1.38 million individual student fee-payers form a long tail, layered with a diversified mix of state agencies, school districts, and corporate WorkKeys clients; no single buyer dominates disclosed revenue. The company employs 1,001-5,000 people and operates as a 501(c)(3) non-profit, with Steve Tapp appointed President and CEO in October 2025. The most significant business risk is structural — sustained migration of US colleges to test-optional admissions policies, which has driven the test-taker count from 1.78 million in 2019 to 1.38 million in 2025 and is the primary driver of ACT's strategic diversification into AI-enabled scoring, institutional contracts, and adjacent verticals.

Name

ACT

Legal name

ACT Education Corp.

Website

https://act.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ACT is a non-profit assessment organization headquartered in Iowa City, Iowa, that administers the ACT Test, a standardized college-readiness assessment accepted by 100% of US colleges and used by 1.38 million students annually across 130+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Assessment Services

NAICS

Exam Preparation and Tutoring (611691), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131), Technical and Trade Schools (61151)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

National/State Examination Boards & Testing Agencies (EDADAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

University/College Entrance & Admissions Testing Authorities (EDADAFAE), Test Administration, Proctoring & Security Authorities (EDADAFAH), College Entrance Exams (SAT/ACT/PSAT) Prep (EDANABAA), Assessment & Item Writing / Test Content Development (EDAGAKAE)

Keywords

• Standardized testing services
• College readiness assessment
• Educational assessments
• Workforce skills certification
• Test preparation

Headquarters

HQ city

Iowa City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. ACT Test Registration Fees: Primary revenue stream from student test registration fees. Domestic US testing at $68.00 base fee with optional $25 writing add-on and $4 science add-on. International testing at $186.50 with $10 science add-on. Fee waivers available for qualifying students.
2. Score Reporting Services: Revenue from sending scores to colleges, scholarship agencies, and high schools at $20 per test date, with additional $30 archive fee for scores older than three years.
3. Test Preparation Products: Sale of official ACT prep materials, study guides, and test prep resources. Includes free practice tests and premium paid preparation options.
4. Institutional Testing Programs: State and district testing contracts where ACT administers assessments for K-12 education systems. Also includes higher education placement and on-campus testing services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ACT administers the ACT Test, a standardized college readiness assessment offered in paper or computer formats with optional Science and Writing sections, accepted by 100% of U.S. colleges. The company extends this core assessment into a broader portfolio including PreACT (preliminary testing), ACT WorkKeys (workforce skills certification), ACT Interest Inventory and Navigator (career/college planning), ACT Recruit Me (college matching and scholarships), and international programs (Global Assessment Certificate and English Proficiency Program) delivered through partner organizations.

Product overview

ACT is a comprehensive assessment and educational services organization offering an integrated portfolio of college readiness, career planning, and workforce solutions. The core product is The ACT Test, a standardized college entrance examination available in paper or computer formats with optional Science and Writing sections. This core assessment is supported by a platform-plus-services architecture: MyACT serves as the central portal for test registration, score access, and college matching; PreACT provides preliminary assessment for younger students; ACT Interest Inventory and ACT Navigator power career and college exploration; CRASE (Constructed Response Automated Scoring Engine) enables automated writing evaluation using NLP and machine learning; and ACT WorkKeys addresses workforce skills certification. Test preparation is delivered through free resources (practice tests, QuizMe) and a Kaplan partnership for premium prep. International programs include the Global Assessment Certificate (GAC) and English Proficiency Program (EPP). Additional services include ACT Recruit Me for college connections, Superscore aggregation, and ACT My Answer Key for detailed score analysis. Spanish-language resources extend accessibility for Spanish-speaking students and families.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The ACT Test

Quantifiable outcome

• 2M+ students test annually with ACT
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability6 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Texas Instruments Education TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 December 2025ACT partnered with Texas Instruments to create an online resource center with free instructional videos, study materials, and professional development resources designed to help students use TI calculators more effectively on the ACT math test. Resources include short demonstrations showing time-saving calculator functions and strategies for educators to integrate into instruction.
• International UniversitiescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational Partners help deliver the ACT Test, English Proficiency Program (EPP), and Global Assessment Certificate (GAC) Program to international students preparing for study at English-speaking universities around the world.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• College Board: The College Board administers the SAT, ACT's primary direct competitor in college entrance assessment. Both organizations compete for student test-taker share, state and district testing contracts, and institutional acceptance, with overlapping product portfolios in college readiness measurement and college planning tools.
• Prometric: Prometric operates a global test delivery network for certification, licensure, and admissions assessments, directly competing with ACT's national and international test centers. Prometric also delivers assessments for credentialing bodies in workforce and professional certification markets where ACT WorkKeys and ACT EPP operate.
• Pearson VUE: Pearson VUE operates one of the largest global test center networks, directly competing with ACT's national and international test centers for delivery of high-stakes certification and admissions assessments. Both organizations run scheduled, proctored testing at physical sites with similar fee structures.
• The Princeton Review: The Princeton Review is a leading test preparation provider offering SAT, ACT, and graduate exam prep courses, directly competing with ACT's test preparation products and the Kaplan partnership. Both companies target college-bound students and families seeking score improvement.

Emerging players

• Kaplan: Kaplan is both a content partner to ACT (Kaplan Test Prep Suite) and a direct competitor through Kaplan Test Prep's SAT prep offerings. Kaplan competes for the same student mindshare on test preparation and adjacent professional certification markets where ACT also operates.
• Khan Academy: Khan Academy partnered with College Board to provide free Official SAT Practice, creating a free alternative to ACT's paid and free prep products. As a free, high-quality test prep provider, Khan Academy pressures both ACT and Kaplan in the student preparation funnel and shapes college-bound student behavior.
• Curriculum Associates: Curriculum Associates provides iReady, a widely-adopted K-12 adaptive diagnostic and instruction platform that competes with ACT's PreACT and K-12 state and district testing contracts. Both companies serve school districts with formative and summative assessment solutions.

Broad incumbents

• Pearson: Pearson operates a global assessment portfolio including GED, Pearson VUE certification testing, and clinical/health assessments, and competes with ACT's WorkKeys and ACT English Proficiency Program in workforce and English-language assessment. Pearson also owns Pearson VUE, a major test delivery competitor to ACT's national test centers.
• McGraw Hill: McGraw Hill is a major educational publisher and assessment provider serving K-12 and higher education with prep materials, adaptive learning platforms, and curriculum-aligned assessments. McGraw Hill competes with ACT's PreACT, ACT Aspire, and test preparation products for institutional adoption and student market share.
• Educational Testing Service (ETS): ETS is the largest private educational measurement organization, administering GRE, TOEFL, Praxis, and HiSET. While ETS focuses on graduate, English-language, and teacher assessments rather than undergraduate admissions, it competes with ACT's WorkKeys in workforce skills assessment and shares the institutional testing market for state and district contracts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ACT
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TheACTTest
• Facebookfacebook.com/theacttest
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/act
• Instagraminstagram.com/actstudent
• TikToktiktok.com/@actstudent

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A5 records

Investments5 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ACT