Free Resources for SAT® Test Prep
Osama Neiroukh, PhD
Osama Neiroukh, PhD has been tutoring SAT and ACT for several years, has scored 770/800 on both sections of the SAT, and some of his students have scored in the top 1%. He tutors in Detroit metro area.
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Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that
It is absolutely possible to prepare for the SAT without spending any money. It will take you longer so you should start earlier.
This page lists all free resources to help with SAT known to the author. I welcome feedback and corrections to this page, and will strive to keep it updated.
College Board
The makers of the SAT test and other tests have a wealth of free resources on their website. These include an electronic version of the “Blue Book”, which contains the syllabus of the material covered on the SAT as well as a number of previous tests and their solutions. Warning: the solutions to some of the math problems are excessively complicated and there are many instance where there are simpler approaches. Check out the daily practice SAT app where a new question is posted everyday.
https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat
Khan Academy SAT Practice
Likely most students will have heard about Khan Academy. My take on it:
- A great repository of videos explaining almost every concept, especially Math
- Not mobile friendly: while the app has gotten better recently, it still redirects to web page for actual practice
https://www.khanacademy.org/sat
Reddit:
There are a number of ways of using Reddit SAT forum effectively including:
- Finding an archive of every published QAS (question and answer service) SAT test
- Ask almost any SAT question, including why the answer isn’t something else. You will get instant answers
- Uplifting experiences of students who were determined and raised their scores by hundreds of points through hard work, mostly on their own
As long as you follow forum rules, you can gain a ton of benefit through it.
However, I should also state that Reddit SAT forum can be intimidating. Some of the things to watch out for:
- Scorers in 1400’s and 1500’s and even perfect scores posting their scores, yes they really exist
- Reports of students who studied for 6 months or a year only to see their score get lower, that can happen too
- A lot of speculation about tests before any results are posted, and engaging in question and answer discussions right after tests are taken with a lot of anxious students debating how they answered
College Confidential Website:
Another very rich and active forum covering everything from test prep to college admissions and other areas of interest to high school students
https://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-act-tests-test-preparation
Sparky Prep Free Tutoring:
A free online tutoring service. It is difficult to believe that such a thing exists, but I have seen multiple testimonials from Reddit SAT users about it. Try it and let others know in the comments section below how it works for you.
The Critical Reader Website:
Erica Meltzer’s books are among the highest rated for SAT Reading and Writing, but a complete set for SAT EBRW will set you back around $100. Her blog has many useful tips including free study guides. In particular I recommend the following:
https://thecriticalreader.com/study-guides/
https://thecriticalreader.com/complete-sat-grammar-rules/
Your local library:
- Most libraries stock a wealth of test prep books. I have borrowed multiple books before deciding whether to purchase or not. You may need to put holds on them and likely won’t be able to keep them very long, but the savvy student will know how to use this time wisely.
Crack the SAT Website:
While content has not been updated in a while, it has a number of tests where you can answer questions on the page and check for correctness