Best Educational Apps for SAT and ACT Prep

If you have an older high schooler, you’re probably swimming in information about SATs, ACTs, GPAs, college applications, and more. Not every kid may have plans to go to college, but if it’s something your family has decided on, it’s understandable if you all feel overwhelmed during test season. 

As a quick reminder for both you and your child — take a minute and breathe! As a parent, you want to encourage your child to do their very best, but it’s also hard to see them stressed out or even anxious about their test performance. Don’t forget to remind them that you’re proud no matter what, and you’ll support them the best way you know how. 

And we want to help, too! We surveyed tons of educational apps that claim to help students with standardized testing and picked the top five for your high schooler to try out. Whether your teen needs material to study or some practice tests, they’ll be able to find it in this list. And the best part? All these apps are free to use! 

Best Educational Apps to Crush the Exams 

My Study Life

To start us off, this app is less for studying and more for students to organize their academic lives. It allows them to add their class and study schedule so that all their important information is in one place. Managing homework for multiple classes can already be a lot for kids, let alone adding SAT/ACT studying outside of it. If your child needs an easy way to structure their academic time, this is a great app to look into. 

Khan Academy 

Hands down, Khan Academy is always one of the go-to's for reliable study content. And luckily they have great resources for those preparing for standardized tests. In fact, Khan Academy has partnered with the College Board to provide SAT practice tests and answer keys that will give kids real experience before the big test day comes.  

If your child has taken the PSAT through the College Board, they can upload their test to Khan Academy and it will recommend specific practice areas based on their results. Students can find everything from videos that break down difficult concepts to guides that will help them put together a study plan for the SAT. 

SAT Exam Prep & Practice by Magoosh

Magoosh has tons of apps to help with standardized testing, but this main one focuses on getting kids prepared for what their SAT or ACT journey will look like. Then, they can scroll through Magoosh’s other apps for specific study material, depending on what test they’re preparing for. For example, they have a flashcard app that will give teens a litany of need-to-know SAT terms and concepts. Whether they need to practice geometry or grammar rules, this educational app will give them a good idea of what they already know and what they need to freshen up on. 

Princeton Review — SAT/ACT/AP

The Princeton Review is another reputable test prep program. They have tons of helpful courses that usually come with a hefty price tag, but their free-to-use app has quality practice tests for reading, writing, and math. 

The practice tests offer two options — they will either give you explanations for answers as you go or allow you to take the whole thing and review the answers at the end. The explanations for each question are thorough and rely on helpful test-taking strategies. Princeton Review’s study material will definitely boost your kid’s study game, no matter what test they’re preparing for! 

Quizlet 

If your child is looking for just a general flashcard app where they can create some of their own material, Quizlet is a must-have educational app. Sometimes writing out your own material helps commit it to memory much faster and Quizlet allows you to easily make your own digital flashcards. It can also take your material and create practice tests and memory games for a variety of study options. 

Students can also look through decks that other students have made public and study those — just make sure your child knows the content is accurate before they start practicing with it. 

Need Help With Study Distractions?

While your child is studying for a big test, it can be understandably hard for them to focus if their phone or laptop keeps dinging with notifications. Or if their “study break” of scrolling on Instagram for 10 minutes accidentally turns into an hour (it happens to the best of us!). So to help limit those distractions, consider using Bark’s screen time controls, which allow you to block apps and sites at certain times of the day when you know they’ll be studying — but still allow the ones they need access to. 

Bark can also help monitor their content, so even if they have to use apps like YouTube to study, you’ll be alerted if they come across any inappropriate content. Try Bark with a free, 7-day trial today!