SAT Math: What’s Tested and How to Score Higher

• Two modules of 22 questions, 35 minutes each, which works out to about 95 seconds per question. Module 2 is harder or easier depending on how you did on Module 1.
• About 75% multiple-choice (four options) and about 25% student-produced response, where you type your answer.
• About 30% are in context: word problems set in science, social studies, or everyday situations. The rest are pure math.
• Easiest to hardest within each module. Early questions should go fast; bank that time for the end.
• Calculator on everything. The Desmos graphing calculator is built into Bluebook, and you can bring your own approved calculator.
• A reference sheet with common area and volume formulas, the Pythagorean theorem, special right triangles, and basic angle and arc facts is available throughout.
• 4 of the 44 questions are unscored pretest questions (2 per module). You can't tell which ones, so give every question your full effort.

Read that table twice. Algebra plus Advanced Math is about 70% of your Math score. Linear equations, systems, quadratics, and exponential functions show up constantly. If you're short on time, don't spend it memorizing rare circle theorems. Master lines and quadratics first.

Multiple-choice questions give you four options, which opens up two shortcuts: plugging choices back into the problem, and eliminating choices that are the wrong sign or size.

Student-produced response (SPR) questions give you nothing to check against, so accuracy matters more. The entry rules trip people up:

• If there's more than one correct answer, enter just one.
• Positive answers can use up to 5 characters; negative answers up to 6, including the minus sign.
• If a fraction is too long to fit, enter its decimal. If a decimal is too long, round or cut it off at the fourth digit.
• Enter mixed numbers as improper fractions or decimals: 3½ goes in as 7/2 or 3.5.
• Leave out $, %, commas, and units.

Example 1: Systems in context (Algebra)

A food truck sells tacos for $4 each and burritos for $9 each. One day it sold 150 items for a total of $860. How many burritos did it sell?

Algebra route. Let t = tacos and b = burritos. Then t + b = 150 and 4t + 9b = 860. Substitute t = 150 − b: 4(150 − b) + 9b = 860, so 600 + 5b = 860, 5b = 260, and b = 52.

Desmos route. Type x + y = 150 and 4x + 9y = 860, then click the intersection: (98, 52). Same answer, less algebra. Either way, check that you're reporting burritos, not tacos.

Example 2: Minimum of a quadratic (Advanced Math)

The function f is defined by f(x) = x² − 10x + 21. What is the minimum value of f(x)?

Complete the square: x² − 10x + 25 − 4 = (x − 5)² − 4. The squared term is never negative, so the smallest f can be is −4, at x = 5. In Desmos, graph the function and click the vertex: (5, −4).

The trap is answering 5. That's where the minimum happens, not the minimum value. Read what's being asked.

Example 3: Back-to-back percent changes (Problem-Solving and Data Analysis)

A price increases by 25% and then decreases by 20%. What is the overall percent change?

Percent changes multiply, not add: 1.25 × 0.80 = 1.00. The price ends exactly where it started, so the change is 0%. Answering “5% increase” (25 − 20) is precisely the mistake the question is built to catch. When in doubt, start with $100 and just run the numbers.

Desmos is the biggest free advantage on the digital SAT. Most students barely use it. Learn these moves in practice, not on test day:

• Solve any equation by graphing both sides. For 2x − 1 = √(x + 7), graph y = 2x − 1 and y = √(x + 7) and click the intersection: (2, 3), so x = 2. Solving by squaring also produces x = −3/4, which is extraneous; on the graph it simply never shows up.
• Systems: type both equations and read the intersection. Parallel lines (no intersection) mean no solution; one line on top of another means infinitely many.
• Quadratics: graph and click to see the vertex, the zeros, and the y-intercept instantly.
• Sliders for unknown constants: type y = x² + kx + 9 and Desmos offers a slider for k. Drag it to see which value makes the parabola touch the x-axis exactly once.
• Test answer choices: graph an expression and each choice; the one whose graph matches exactly is equivalent.

Don't overdo it. Mental math is faster for 15% of 80. Desmos shines on systems, quadratics, and anything with a constant you'd otherwise solve for algebraically.

• Answering the wrong quantity. The question asks for x − 2, the width, or the number of burritos, and x, the length, or tacos is sitting right there in the choices. Underline what's asked before you start.
• Sign errors with negatives. Squaring −3 gives 9, and subtracting −2 is adding 2. Most wrong choices are built from exactly these slips.
• Slope and intercept mix-ups. In a model like C = 45 + 12n, 12 is the rate per unit and 45 is the starting amount. Interpretation questions test this constantly.
• “At most” and “at least.” At most means ≤ and at least means ≥. Flip one and you'll land on the trap choice.
• Growth factor vs. growth rate. 1.035^t means 3.5% growth per period, not 103.5%.
• Diameter vs. radius, and area vs. arc length. Label every value in a geometry problem before you plug it into a formula.
• Extraneous solutions. After squaring both sides of a radical equation, plug your answers back into the original equation.

1. Week 1: Baseline and linear algebra. Take a full practice test (ours or Bluebook). Then drill linear equations, slope, systems, and interpretation questions until they're automatic.
2. Week 2: Advanced Math. Factoring, completing the square, vertex form, exponential models, and exponent rules. Do every problem once by hand and once in Desmos.
3. Week 3: Data and geometry. Percentages, rates, tables and scatterplots, probability, margin of error, then triangles, circles, and right-triangle trig with the reference sheet open.
4. Week 4: Timed modules. Two 22-question, 35-minute sets per week under real conditions. Review every miss and log the trap that got you.

Ready to test yourself? Take one of our two free full-length SAT practice tests, which score you by domain. The SAT overview covers format, scoring, and registration.