Old SAT to New SAT Conversion Chart [Easy Guide]

The Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) is a centralized entrance exam that various educational institutions in the United States use to streamline college admission. The SAT Format underwent various amendments, notably in 2016,  to better assess students’ readiness for college. 

The journey of the old SAT to the new SAT demonstrated several changes in the test’s pattern, scores, and more. One such change is in the total score of the test. The original score of 2400 was reduced to 1600.  

What is the SAT? It is a 3-hour, (excluding essay) pencil-paper examination consisting of multiple-choice questions for primarily three sections- reading, writing, and mathematics. The College Board offers the SAT 7 times a year worldwide. The scorecard for the SAT exhibits a scale of 400-1600. 

The SAT composite score is the computed summation of critical reading and writing and math scores. Each of these categories are examined on a scale of 200-800 (individually). 

 

Old SAT to New SAT - The Basics

The New SAT demonstrates a few changes in score remodeling, sections, and question logistics:

Score Remodeling 

In March 2016, the College Board remodeled the scoring system of the SAT. The total score shifted from a 2400-marks scale to a 1600-marks scale.

Although you must combine the scores of each SAT section to calculate your total SAT score, the two-section scores are quite dissimilar when comparing section-wise scores and total scores.  

Hence, to obtain the most accurate results, experts recommend that each SAT section is scored separately. 

 

Revised Sections and Optional Essay

The new SAT incorporates two sections - Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW), and Mathematics. Both sections are equally important, holding the same weight. 

The EBRW section comprises 52 questions,15 questions less than the original 67 questions of the old SAT reading section. 

The College Board also included an optional essay component in the new SAT. Unlike the old SAT, the new SAT has a consolidated math section comprising two subsections: one that grants the use of the calculator, and one that prohibits it.

Convert Old SAT to New SAT

Overall, the changes to the SAT from 2016 were extensive. There was a consolidation of sections, change in the scoring methodology, and inclusion of a supplemental essay component.

The new composite, or total SAT score, is 1600. Each section (EBRW, and Math) is scored on a scale of 200 to 800. The sum total of both sections, a total maximum of 1600, forms the total SAT score. Let us look closely at the old SAT to new SAT composite, as well as at a score conversion chart for each individual section. 

Convert Old SAT to New SAT Composite Score
Old SAT ( Critical Reading + Writing + Math)	New SAT (EBRW + Math)
600	400
610	410
620	420
630	430
640	440
650	450
660	460
670	470
680	480
690	490
700	500
710	510
720	520
730	530
730	540
740	550
750	560
760	570
770	580
780	590
790	600
800	610
810	620
820	630
830	640
840	650
850	660
860	670
870	680
880	690
900	700
910	710
930	720
950	730
960	740
980	750
990	760
1010	770
1030	780
1040	790
1060	800
1070	810
1090	820
1110	830
1120	840
1140	850
1150	860
1170	870
1180	880
1200	890
1210	900
1220	910
1240	920
1250	930
1270	940
1280	950
1300	960
1310	970
1330	980
1340	990
1360	1000
1370	1010
1390	1020
1400	1030
1420	1040
1430	1050
1450	1060
1460	1070
1480	1080
1490	1090
1510	1100
1530	1110
1540	1120
1560	1130
1570	1140
1590	1150
1610	1160
1620	1170
1640	1180
1650	1190
1670	1200
1680	1210
1700	1220
1710	1230
1730	1240
1750	1250
1760	1260
1780	1270
1790	1280
1810	1290
1820	1300
1840	1310
1850	1320
1870	1330
1880	1340
1900	1350
1920	1360
1930	1370
1950	1380
1970	1390
1990	1400
2000	1410
2020	1420
2040	1430
2060	1440
2080	1450
2090	1460
2110	1470
2130	1480
2150	1490
2170	1500
2190	1510
2210	1520
2230	1530
2260	1540
2280	1550
2300	1560
2330	1570
2350	1580
2370	1590
2390	1600

 

 

Since there were no changes in the total score of the Math section of the SAT, the conversion process for this section is quite simple. The figures remain the same in both the old and new scores. 

 

Old SAT Math to New SAT Math Score
Old SAT Math	New SAT Math
200	200
200	210
210	220
220	230
220	240
230	250
240	260
240	270
250	280
260	290
260	300
270	310
280	320
280	330
290	340
300	350
310	360
330	370
340	380
350	390
360	400
370	410
380	420
390	430
400	440
410	450
420	460
430	470
440	480
450	490
460	500
470	510
490	520
500	530
510	540
520	550
530	560
550	570
560	580
570	590
580	600
590	610
600	620
610	630
620	640
630	650
640	660
650	670
650	680
660	690
670	700
680	710
690	720
700	730
710	740
720	750
740	760
750	770
760	780
780	790
800	800

 

While the older version of Reading + Writing SAT was calculated out of 1600, with both Reading and Writing sections consisting of 800 each, the new version of EBRW SAT section is scored out of 800 in total.

Old SAT (Critical Reading + Writing) to New SAT (EBRW) Score
Old SAT (Critical Reading + Writing)	New SAT (EBRW)
400	200
410	210
420	220
430	230
440	240
440	250
450	260
460	270
470	280
480	290
490	300
500	310
520	320
550	330
570	340
600	350
620	360
640	370
660	380
690	390
710	400
730	410
750	420
770	430
790	440
800	450
820	460
840	470
860	480
880	490
890	500
910	510
930	520
950	530
970	540
990	550
1010	560
1020	570
1040	580
1060	590
1080	600
1100	610
1120	620
1150	630
1170	640
1190	650
1210	660
1240	670
1260	680
1290	690
1310	700
1340	710
1370	720
1390	730
1420	740
1450	750
1480	760
1510	770
1540	780
1560	790
1590	800

The data from the above charts were retrieved from the official College Board website. Experts recommend that you convert section-wise scores to get an accurate composite SAT score. Conversely, if you need a new SAT to old SAT conversion, this chart can also help you easily do that too.

For instance, if you scored an SAT Math score of 650, the new SAT Math would come up to 680 (as per the conversion chart). Tally both your scores (for each section), and calculate your total score accordingly. Once you have your scores, compare them with average SAT scores.

Conclusion

The SAT, like many examinations, can be amended when there’s a need for improvement, or if there is a shift in world circumstance, like the COVID-19 pandemic. The new SAT scoring vs. old scoring is more demonstrative of a student’s readiness for college. 

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