SAT · session Aug 2026 to Jun 2027
Math
44 questions, 70 minutes, two modules of 22.
19 subtopics0 diagrams25,604 words
0 of 19 read
AlgebraTest setQuick reference
- ALG.1 Linear equations in one variable one unknown, one equals sign. How do you solve it quickly, and what is the test really asking when it wants the number of solutions instead of the solution?
- ALG.2 Linear equations in two variables two variables, one equation, and a line. How do you write the equation a situation describes, and how do you read a line someone hands you?
- ALG.3 Linear functions the equation is given and nothing needs solving. What does each number in it mean, and why is that a question worth 95 seconds?
- ALG.4 Systems of two linear equations in two variables two equations, two unknowns. Which method, and what is the test really after when it asks how many solutions there are?
- ALG.5 Linear inequalities in one or two variables the same algebra as an equation, with one extra rule and a shaded region. Where do the marks actually go?
Advanced MathTest setQuick reference
- ADV.1 Equivalent expressions the expression in the question and the expression in the answer look nothing alike. How do you get from one to the other without solving anything?
- ADV.2 Nonlinear equations in one variable and systems of equations in two variables the equation has an x², a square root or a fraction with x underneath. Which method, and how many answers should you expect?
- ADV.3 Nonlinear functions a parabola or a growth curve, and a question about what it means rather than where it crosses. What does each number in the function do?
Problem-Solving and Data AnalysisTest setQuick reference
- PSDA.1 Ratios, rates, proportional relationships and units the question is full of numbers with names attached. How do you set it up so the answer comes out in the unit that was asked for?
- PSDA.2 Percentages everyone can find 20% of something. Why does this topic still cost points?
- PSDA.3 One-variable data: distributions and measures of centre and spread a list of numbers, a histogram or a box plot, and a question about the middle or the spread. Which measure, and what happens to it when the data changes?
- PSDA.4 Two-variable data: models and scatterplots a cloud of points and a line drawn through it. What do the line's numbers mean, and what is it safe to say from them?
- PSDA.5 Probability and conditional probability the table has four numbers and three totals, and the question names a group before it names an event. Which number goes underneath?
- PSDA.6 Inference from sample statistics and margin of error a survey of 400 people says 42% with a margin of error of 3%. What exactly are you allowed to conclude, and what does the margin actually measure?
- PSDA.7 Evaluating statistical claims: observational studies and experiments a study is described in three sentences and four conclusions are offered. Which one does the design actually license?
Geometry and TrigonometryTest setQuick reference
- GT.1 Area and volume the formulas are given to you. So what is the question actually testing?
- GT.2 Lines, angles and triangles a figure with two angles marked and a letter where the answer goes. Which rules get you from one to the other?
- GT.3 Right triangles and trigonometry which of sine, cosine and tangent, and when does the test want a special triangle instead of a calculator?
- GT.4 Circles the equation has two squared brackets, or the diagram has a slice cut out of a circle. What is being asked, and which fraction do you need?
Nothing matches that.
The section in one page
The section in one page. 44 questions, 70 minutes, two modules of 22. Calculator throughout, one built into the app, and a formula sheet you never have to memorise.
What you are actually sitting
| Modules | 2 × 35 minutes, separately timed, no going back |
|---|---|
| Questions per module | 22 — of which 20 are scored and 2 are being trialled |
| Question types | ≈75% multiple choice, ≈25% typed answers (student-produced response) |
| Calculator | Allowed on every question; a graphing calculator is built in |
| Reference sheet | Provided: areas, volumes, Pythagoras, special triangles, circle facts |
| Time per question | 95 seconds average |
| Score | 200–800, added to Reading and Writing for 400–1600 |
The second module is chosen by how the first went. Questions run easiest to hardest straight across each module — unlike Reading and Writing, difficulty does not reset in the middle.
The four domains
| Domain | Share | Questions | Skills |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algebra | ≈35% | 13–15 | 5 |
| Advanced Math | ≈35% | 13–15 | 3 |
| Problem-Solving and Data Analysis | ≈15% | 5–7 | 7 |
| Geometry and Trigonometry | ≈15% | 5–7 | 4 |
Seventy per cent of this section is algebra. Linear work and nonlinear work, in almost equal measure. A student shaky on linear equations and quadratics is losing three questions in four, and no amount of circle theorem practice repairs that. Study in the order of the table.
What is not on it
No calculus. No proofs. No trigonometry beyond right triangles and the unit circle. No matrices, no logarithms beyond what an exponential model needs, no imaginary numbers. The ceiling is early pre-calculus, and it has been stable for years.
The typed-answer questions
About eleven of the 44 ask you to type the answer rather than choose it. They are not harder mathematics; they remove the safety net. Three rules:
- Re-read the question before typing. No options means nothing catches you answering for x when it asked for x + 3.
- Fractions or decimals are both accepted. If a decimal does not fit the box, enter the fraction.
- Negative signs count as a character, and a question with several correct values wants one of them.
The calculator changes what counts as hard
Graphing is built in. That turns several question types into reading exercises:
- Solve an ugly equation by graphing both sides and reading the intersection.
- Solve a system by graphing both lines.
- Find a vertex, a zero, or where two curves meet, without algebra.
- Check an answer you got by hand in ten seconds.
The students who gain most from it are the ones who practise with it before test day. The ones who lose time are the ones meeting it for the first time in a module.
Where the time goes
Thirty-five minutes, 22 questions. Roughly:
| Position | Questions | Spend |
|---|---|---|
| First third | 1–7 | 60–75 seconds each — bank time here |
| Middle | 8–15 | around 95 seconds |
| Last third | 16–22 | whatever is left, and flag anything that resists |
Nothing is deducted for a wrong answer. Every box gets filled, even when it is a guess with ten seconds to go.
What to study, in order
- Algebra — linear equations, functions, systems, inequalities. The biggest block.
- Advanced Math — quadratics and other nonlinear functions. The same size, one step harder.
- Problem-Solving and Data Analysis — percentages, ratios, data. Fast points once learned.
- Geometry and Trigonometry — smallest block, and the reference sheet does half of it.
Educerie · written from the published College Board* Assessment Framework for the Digital SAT Suite and Specifications Overview *(Tables 1 and 3). Original text. Last reviewed 12 September 2026.