6 Of The Best ACT Prep Books To Help Your Teen Succeed

This ACT Prep book by The Princeton Review, one of the longest standing leading experts in the industry, is an all-in-one solution to help students reaching their highest possible score with the most practice on the market. It includes 8 full-length practice tests (4 in the book and 4 online) for realistic prep, content reviews for all test sections, techniques for scoring success, and premium online extras.

When it comes to all things standardized test related, The Princeton Review can be relied on to be one of the most trusted sources to help your teen succeed.

This is a fantastic book to purchase when you want to know exactly what to expect when going into the ACT. Your student will learn how the ACT is designed in this book and understand the expectations.What does this mean exactly? While the test creators want it to be a challenge, it doesn’t mean there isn’t a way to crack the code. There are taught methods in this book that help teach the best way to rule out answers while taking the test in the most efficient way possible. I like to think of this as a way to help identify answers by making educated conclusions. (sounds much more fancy than the word “guessing”)

Is your high schooler ready to buckle down and tackle those pesky hard-to-understand math questions? Even if they aren’t thrilled about the idea, the Ultimate Guide to Math ACT will have them leaving the practice test with a solid understanding of what they aren’t answering correctly.

This book is great if your teen works best when math is broken down into more manageable and understandable sections. (Don’t we all work that way?!)

From one parent to another, prepping for the math section of the ACT can be one of the hardest sections to get ready for. Because of study guides like this book, it really helped my teen know where to put their focus.

Understanding grammar, spelling, and reading comprehension is vital to excelling at taking the ACT college exams. There is a lot of reading to the test, and the directions and phrasing of questions are important to follow closely.

If your high school student shows the difficulty in these areas, The Complete Guide to ACT English can be a fantastic resource.

Not only does it lay out basic strategies for the ACT, but it also helps break down how the questions on the test work and ways to go about answering them more efficiently.

The Official ACT® Prep Guide 2025–2026 book includes six authentic ACT tests—all of which contain the optional writing test—so your teen gets maximum practice before their official test date.These tests are also available online and in a mobile app alongside a seventh bonus test via the PIN code inside.

This guide provides clear explanations for every answer straight from the makers of the ACT to help you improve your teen’s understanding of each subject. The student will also get practical tips and strategies for boosting their score on the English, math, reading, science, and (optional) writing tests, 400+ online flashcards, a customizable online test bank and expert advice on how to mentally and physically prepare for the test

Does your student have their sights set on an Ivy League school that requires higher test scores? Don’t worry. There are ACT prep books made for this type of test-taker specifically. Not only does this test prep book offer tips and tricks on how to boost their score, but they also provide more complex questions that your teen might run across while taking the ACT exam.

It’s also important to remind your teen that perfection isn’t the only goal for doing their best. This is something that I’ve talked about with my teen for a few years now, with the understanding that the only real path to success is always trying to do their best.