As an SAT  taker, time pressure can create your worst impression. After all, how many times do you have a minute or less to answer a high school English or math test? and get the pacing tips you need to get your dream score.

HOW LONG DOES THE SAT TAKE?

The SAT is 3 hours long (3 hours 15 minutes including intermission). If you choose the written option, the SAT exam takes 3 and 50 minutes to complete (or 4 and 5 minutes with intermission).

SAT TEST LENGTH BY SECTION 

TIPS FOR SAT PACING 

Are you ready to take the SAT exam? The biggest mistake most test takers make is spending too little time on easy and medium questions and too much time on difficult questions. The problem with this approach is that if you rush through the easy and medium questions, you are almost guaranteed to make some mistakes regularly. Here are pacing steps to help you improve your score.

SLOW DOWN, SCORE MORE 

Your score is independent of how many questions you solve. You are graded according to how many questions you answer correctly. Asking fewer questions means more accurate answers overall! 

MIMIC THE REAL THING 

When you take a practice test, time yourself the same way you time the real SAT. For example, find out how much 35 minutes and how much time you can spend to solve the puzzle. If you know what to do in advance, you will be less nervous.

Don’t Get Bogged Down on the Tough Questions

Don’t burden yourself with difficult or time-consuming problems. Let go of the part of your brain that says, “But I spent too much time working on this problem.”… I know I can do it! Learn more tips for SAT cryptic questions.