How Long Is the SAT? Tips to Manage Your Time Wisely

Updated on November 11, 2024

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How long is the SAT exactly? And what does this mean for your prep? Learn expert time management tips and strategies so you can ace the exam.

The SAT assesses students’ reading, math, and writing abilities. Many colleges, including many of the best online colleges, use applicants’ SAT scores during the admissions process.

If you’re planning to take the SAT, it’s important you understand the exam’s format and find the time management strategies that work best for you.

So how long is the SAT exactly? And what can you do to prepare for it?

How Long Is the SAT Test?

The SAT lasts two hours and 14 minutes. You’ll get a 10-minute break between the Reading and Writing section and the Math section. Including the break, the SAT is exactly two hours and 24 minutes long.

That said, you’ll be at the test center for much longer than this. According to the College Board, doors open at 7:45 a.m., and the SAT starts somewhere between 8:15 and 8:45 a.m.

Test-takers with disabilities can get extended test and break times.

Be aware, though, that testing with extended time requires you to stay the entire amount of time. This means you cannot leave early, even if you finish the test before time is up.

You can learn more about extended time accommodations at the College Board website.

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How Many Questions Are on the SAT?

There are 98 total questions on the SAT. Specifically, you’ll have 54 questions on the Reading and Writing section and 44 questions on the Math section.

If you’re taking the SAT as part of a state-administered SAT School Day, you may be required to complete the SAT Essay. This section consists of one passage and one essay prompt. You’ll have 50 minutes to read the passage and write a response.

SAT Length and Format
Section	# of Questions	Time	# of Modules
Reading and Writing	54	64 min	2 (32 min each)
Math	44	70 min	2 (35 min each)
Essay*	1	50 min	1
Total w/o Essay	98	134 min	4
Total w/ Essay*	99	184 min	5

*Only for certain SAT School Day test-takers

3 SAT Time Management Tips and Strategies

Ideally, you’ll start preparing for the SAT well before test day. Here are some essential time management tips for the SAT.

1 | Focus on Getting Faster

Use SAT practice tests to get a sense of how time-pressured you expect to be. If you know you’ll likely run out of time, focus your practice on getting faster.

If you still can’t finish, prioritize the questions you can answer quickly. Do them first before tackling the more time-consuming questions.

In the Reading and Writing section, the vocabulary, grammar, transition, and notes questions can be answered relatively quickly.

In the Math section, earlier questions usually take less time, whereas later questions can take longer and are often extremely difficult. Most test-takers are better off guessing randomly on those later Math questions and prioritizing the easier ones at the beginning.

2 | Know What You’re Being Tested On

To get faster on the SAT, you need to know how the questions work and what these questions are testing you on.

Learn the reading, grammar, and math skills required on every test, and there should be no surprises on test day.

As you practice, you can identify faster ways to solve the questions. On Reading and Writing, for example, get the essence of the passages instead of memorizing the details. On Math, learn how to use the graphing calculator and work backward from the answer choices.

3 | Answer Every Question

Make sure you enter an answer for everything, even if it’s a random guess. There’s no penalty for wrong answers on the SAT, so it’s important you put down an answer.

Multiple-choice questions have four answer choices, so even a random guess has a 25% chance of being right.

Questions that ask you to grid in answers are harder to get right, but you never know — it’s still worth putting down something in the end.

How to Manage Your Time for Each SAT Section

As you prepare for the SAT, work on time management skills for each test section and the general strategies discussed above.

Reading and Writing Section

The Reading and Writing section contains 54 questions and several short reading passages, each ranging from 25 to 150 words. These passages cover literature, science, the humanities, and history/social studies.

You must answer questions related to reading comprehension, vocabulary, and English grammar. On average, you’ll have 71 seconds to answer each question — but make sure you also give yourself time to read the passages.

Here are some crucial tips to remember for Reading and Writing:

The early questions test your vocabulary, but they also have sentences with complex twists and turns. If you can determine what kind of word you’re looking for, you may be able to get the correct answer even if you don’t know all the words.
Questions asking you to analyze ideas tend to be difficult and time-consuming. Don’t panic if you see unfamiliar material. Just get the essence of the passages. Sometimes, all you really need to understand is the author’s conclusion.
If you’re asked to strengthen or weaken a conclusion based on tables and graphs, you may be able to predict the correct answer if you identify the author’s conclusion. If you can’t form a prediction, examine the choices and see which one seems to be in the right direction.
Grammar questions tend to test punctuation, subject-verb agreement, pronouns, possessives, comparisons, and modifiers. Punctuation questions are the most common.
The notes questions at the end can be easy if you focus narrowly on what it asks you to find. Be very precise — wrong answers present information from the notes that doesn’t address the task you’re assigned.

Math Section

In the SAT Math section, you must answer 44 questions in 70 minutes. This comes out to around 95 seconds per question. You may use a calculator for all questions (though it’s not required).

The four topics tested are algebra, advanced math, problem-solving and data analysis, and geometry and trigonometry. The bulk of the Math section (26-30 questions) focuses on algebra and advanced math concepts.

You’ll get a mix of both multiple-choice questions and student-produced response questions that ask you to fill in your answers in a numerical grid.

Here are some helpful tips for SAT Math:

Use practice tests to identify the math skills you need to hone. The SAT doesn’t test everything you’ve learned, so learning what’s important can help you focus your practice.
SAT Math questions are presented more or less in order of difficulty. That means that earlier questions will be more straightforward, and later questions will be more difficult. So, if an early question seems easy, it probably is. But if a late question seems easy, then you might have missed something.
Remember that the SAT is an adaptive test — if you do well on the first section, the second section will be much harder. That harder section might still be easy earlier on, but the later questions will likely be extremely challenging and take more time to solve.
Bring an approved calculator and make sure it’s charged, or get used to using the built-in calculator on the digital test. Lots of questions are easier to solve through graphing.

Figuring Out the Right SAT Pace for You

One of the best ways to prepare for the SAT is to take timed SAT practice tests. Through these, you can determine your biggest strengths and weaknesses and learn where to focus your SAT prep efforts.

Even if you’ve taken the PSAT, carve out time to take practice tests, read SAT prep books, and use online SAT prep resources before taking the exam.

Be sure to start early — at least 1-3 months before your test date.

You can use the results from your timed practice tests to identify which SAT sections take you longer to complete and which subjects you need more practice with.

Use practice questions from those sections to build your confidence so you can ultimately enroll in school and get a bachelor’s degree from the college of your choice.