Applying for college soon? Then you ought to know that the SAT scores are one of the most critical elements in your college applications as they can make the difference between getting accepted or rejected from your dream school. Fortunately, there is an overwhelming number of SAT prep courses out there that can help you get ready for your SAT.
Whether you prefer to walk through a course yourself at your own pace or need the help of a personal coach; whether you have a whole year to study or just a month before the exam; or whether you want to learn through video lessons or just drill practice questions, there is no doubt the best SAT prep course for everyone.
But with so many SAT prep courses online, it can get a little confusing to decide which is right for you. We’ve done the hard work of researching and reviewing every major SAT prep course to make it easy for you to pick. Let’s dive straight into the best SAT prep courses available now.
Best SAT Prep Courses Online
Magoosh SAT
Magoosh is a newcomer in the test prep industry compared to more established companies like the Princeton Review and Kaplan. However, Magoosh has quickly become one of the most popular SAT test prep course providers with an aim to make test prep affordable and effective. Magoosh SAT oreo is an online-only, flexible course with plenty of high-quality materials for students to make use of.
Students can choose to subscribe to the one-, three-, or twelve-month plans with Magoosh. Each course delivers a personalized, efficient way for you to study for the SAT with friendly support and video-based instructions. With over 1500 explanation videos and 200 lesson videos covering every topic from simple math to more advanced reading and writing, the Magoosh SAT course is a great option for those who prefer learning by watching videos.
The Magoosh SAT prep course also provides unlimited access to over 1500 practice questions and up to three full-length practice tests for you to get used to the exam condition. Each practice problem comes with its own video and text explanation, a transcript of the video, and even additional resources related to the topic. The quizzes are hyper-focused on the topic and level you need to help you quickly master one topic at a time or work on an entire subject area.
One of the best things about Mahoosh is that the founders decided that they wanted their courses to be more personalized, making it easier for students to study what they need at their own level and pace. This is where the personalized SAT preparation course steps in. On your dashboard, you’ll be able to see suggested lessons, your progress, and how you’re currently doing compared to other students.
Magoosh also offers you the ability to customize your practice sessions based on difficulty, topic, timing, and even lets you choose between ‘quiz mode’ or ‘practice mode’. There’s also a detailed performance analysis that shows you a summary of your past answers, and filters by subject, question type, and difficulty. With this function, you can better determine which weak areas require more attention rather than wasting time figuring out what subjects to work on.
Each course even comes with a personalized study plan that recommends study materials and tasks to keep you on track. The system tracks your progress as you complete lessons and levels you up when you need it during practice quizzes. Other than that, Magoosh offers a 100-score point guarantee for all of its SAT prep courses. If your score does not improve after completing one of their courses, Magoosh offers you a full refund.
Pros
- Magoosh offers one of the best value SAT classes available with an excellent combination of features and pricing. Magoosh provides study schedules, video lessons, and mobile accessibility for up to a year, along with a 100 point improvement guarantee.
- Magoosh provides customized practice sessions according to your own needs. You can choose to drill yourself on specific subjects and difficulty levels. And if you’re stuck on anything, the SAT preparation website has a detailed text explanation and video tutorial to help you out.
- Magoosh has a generous 100 point score improvement guarantee, which is one of the highest – coming in second on our list to PrepScholar, which offers a 160 point score improvement guarantee.
Cons
- Magoosh only offers self-paced online courses and they do not have live online or in-person courses.
Prep Expert SAT
Prep Expert was only established a few years ago, but they’ve quickly become a standout SAT test-prep service known for their quality instruction. Prep Expert employs expert instructions and offers a detailed, intense curriculum to drastically improve their students’ SAT scores. Prep Expert only hires the top 1% of SAT test-takers, with several of the teachers, including the founder Shaan Patel himself achieving perfect scores on the SAT and/or the ACT.
Prep Expert also provides private tutoring services where the instructors can guide students through the SAT in general or through specific sections and subjects that the students need help on. Not only are we impressed by the fact that the SAT prep course is led by some of the most knowledgeable instructors out there, but we were happy to find out that many students have praised their teachers’ ability to make studying for the SAT engaging and fun.
Unlike Magoosh, Prep Expert lets you choose either online or in-person lessons, though their in-person courses are not nation-wide yet and are only available in Princeton, NJ, or Las Vegas, NV areas.
If you can’t make it for in-person lessons, no worries as Prep Expert have engaged educators that always find ways to keep students engaged online. To keep students involved, Prep Expert uses a polling system during their classes to make sure students are engaging with the material. All classes are conducted through Adobe Connect and students are expected to complete a certain percentage of these polls during class time or they won’t be considered as present for the class.
Students must be present for a certain percentage of their class sessions in their 6-week and 3-week courses in order to qualify for the Prep Expert’s promised score improvement. The polling feature is a great way to incentivize students to stay engaged with the material they’re learning, maximizing the use of technology, and improving the online learning environment.
Furthermore, students who enroll in a Prep Expert class even gain free access to Prep Expert’s thorough course books on top of their lessons, live sessions, and assignments. These course books contain a wealth of Prep Expert insight into SAT techniques, tricks, and concepts that form the basis of their curriculum. The best part is that students have access to both Prep Expert’s course books and lessons beyond the duration of their course, allowing students enough time to go back through these materials after they’ve received their SAT score report.
Pros
- Prep Expert’s SAT preparation 200-point score improvement guarantee is the highest on this list that could take students from the top 60% to the top 16% through their 6-week SAT prep course.
- Company founder Shaan Patel achieved a perfect score on the SAT and crafted the SAT prep course based on his own experience and alongside other perfect-scorers.
- Prep Expert employs instructors who have scored in at least the 99th percentile in their SAT and/or ACT.
Cons
- Prep Expert implements a rigorous schedule for their students in the 6-week and 3-week SAT prep courses which have students taking the equivalent of up to 3 SATs per week, with strict deadlines for assignments that are hard to meet in an already-packed schedule.
PrepScholar SAT
Though it isn’t one of the largest and oldest companies in the test prep world, PrepScholar is founded by two perfect SAT scorers and has grown into an effective, widely-used test-prep service that has a unique goal which is to provide SAT students with personalized instruction that guarantees SAT score results.
To accomplish their goal, PrepScholar employs top-notch instructors, adaptive algorithms, and a stellar guarantee for every course. No matter which PrepScholar course you pick, they will personalize your studying experience to meet specifically your needs, schedule, and abilities via an algorithm they call CustomPrep. When you first log in to your SAT PrepScholar course, you’ll need to take a diagnostic SAT practice test where the CustomPrep algorithm will then determine how comfortable you are with dozens of niche concepts. The CustomPrep algorithm will then provide you with the exact material you need from PrepScholar’s extensive database to work on your weaknesses.
Signing up for an SAT prep course generally gets you access to thousands of questions to practice, but PrepScholar is where they blow other SAT prep courses out of the park with the provision of over 7,100 practice SAT questions for you to complete online. This is the highest amount of practice questions that we’ve seen in any SAT prep offers. With this, it means that you’ll never run out of material to go over and will have enough questions to help you through a concept that you’re struggling with.
PrepScholar boasts one of the best selections of course options available that lets you choose between self-paced studying, classroom package, or individual guidance. Their Complete SAT Online Prep Course lets you tackle information according to your own customizable schedule while the PrepScholar Classes package gives you 9 hours of dedicated classroom time with an expert instructor as part of a small group of 9 students. Those looking for individual guidance and consider the Complete + Tutoring package that comes with 50 hours of tutoring (plus all their self-paced material). On top of that, PrepScholar also offers a two-year self-paced package and an SAT + ACT package.
Just like the SAT prep company we reviewed above, PrepScholar hires some of the best staff in the business. All the instructors at PrepScholar scores within the top 1% of SAT scorers and many of them have even received perfect SAT scores. These are the instructors who design your SAT tutoring lessons, questions, and overall curriculum.
On top of that, PrepScholar also offers progress reports that supply their students and parents with up-to-date information. One of the most essential parts of the learning process is to see where you’ve come from and knowing where you still need improvement, so the level of detail PrepScholar’s progress reports provide is important to help you achieve your preparation target.
Finally, when you subscribe to any of the PrepScholar SAT prep courses, you’re guaranteed to score 160 points higher on the SAT. This guarantee could result in massive score increases that could drastically improve your chances of getting into your dream college.
Pros
- PrepScholar provides an impressive 7100 practice questions for students to practice and drill.
- They provide interactive lessons with varying formats and include written instruction, drills, videos, and practice tests. Their dynamic interactive lessons are designed to keep students engaged.
- PrepScholar offers one of the most generous score guarantees with a 160-Point score improvement guarantee.
Cons
- PrepScholar does not have a mobile app. However, their course is still accessible and usable on mobile devices, just not necessarily as seamless as a dedicated app.
Princeton Review SAT
Princeton Review is known for its high-level test prep for students aiming to get a score in the 90th percentile or higher in order to get into a top-tier university of their choice. The Princeton Review method is to prioritize the most important parts of the SAT and teach them to you in the most efficient way. Princeton Review is one of the most experienced test prep providers and offers quite a few different packages with score guarantees.
The Princeton Review offers three different packages with score guarantees. There is the SAT 1240+ and SAT 1400+, both guaranteeing scores above 1240 and 1400 marks. The SAT prep provider also offers private tutoring packages with a 150-point score improvement guarantee.
One method that allows Princeton Review to be so confident in their score guarantees is by hiring impressive instructors that are true SAT and test prep experts with tons of experience. Each instructor is required to go through 37 hours of Princeton Review training before they can even begin to instructor tutor. Many of the instructors have been with Princeton Review for decades and their experience and love for tutoring students shows. Not only are the instructors extremely knowledgeable, but why also have a great sense of humor and an ability to keep classes interesting and fun.
On top of experienced tutors, Princeton Review has had 35 years of test prep experience and data collected to enhance their test prep experience. By using artificial intelligence, Princeton Review’s SAT prep courses are able to personalize your study time. The system automatically adjusts to give you exactly the type of problem you need to work on next right after every drill you complete. Each Princeton Review course offers a personalized study plan that’s based on your goal, timeline, and the score you achieved before taking the test.
When you enroll in the Princeton Review SAT 1400+ or SAT 1240+ prep courses, you have access to tutors on-demand where you can reach out to one of their tutors if you have an issue with a problem or a lesson anytime. There’s no limit to how often you can reach out and the tutors are even available around the clock. This means that you won’t have to spend unnecessary time struggling with a question or a concept when there’s an expert SAT tutor to help you out in just a few minutes.
Pros
- Princeton Review self-paced prep courses offer access to both SAT and ACT programs, which is great for students who are considering taking both tests.
- Princeton Review’s SAT prep course provides the second-largest amount of practice questions – 3,200! If you’re struggling in an area, you can rest assured knowing you have more than enough questions to practice with.
- Princeton Review offers courses in every format – self-paced online, live online, in-person, and private tutoring. If you start with a self-paced program and realize you like tutoring, you can also get it from the same source instead of having to change to an entirely different company.
Cons
- Princeton Review SAT prep lessons are the second highest-prices for both in-person and live online courses. Its self-paced online course has the third-highest price, behind Testive and PrepScholar.
Kaplan SAT
No SAT Prep review is complete without Kaplan. Kaplan is one of the oldest and most reputable organizations in the test prep industry. They’re provided tutoring and test prep courses that help students further their academic goals. Kaplan is one of the only few long-standing giants of test preparation and is both a well-established business and cutting-edge industry leader.
The SAT prep classes and products Kaplan sells feature a trove of test strategies and concept explanations with invaluable practice tests that simulate the SAT. You also get customizable quizzes with thorough score reports and plenty of other features that simply reaffirm Kaplan’s place as a premier SAT prep company.
As mentioned before, Kaplan has enough resources to offer all types of SAT prep instructions. Students can take their On Demand (self-paced) course, Live Online course, In-Person course, or even an UnLImited Prep option that includes all the content of On Demand and Live online classes. If you need more guidance, Kaplan even has an SAT Tutoring option which is perfect for those who need intensive 1-on-1 instruction.
One of Kaplan’s most prized test prep features is their Qbank which is their specially designed customizable quiz system. QBank’s level of customizability and detailed inside is truly unmatched. Students taking their SAT courses online can make use of thousands of SAT prep questions designed by Kaplan’s expert instructors in any way they like to create custom quizzes that test their skills in the areas that require practice. Once the student completes their QBank quiz, they’ll even receive a detailed score report that reveals how they performed on the quiz overall and which questions they took too much time on.
Kaplan understands that taking an important test like the SAT can be very stressful and is just as much about managing your test strategies as it is about knowing academic content, which is why they’ve incorporated high-fidelity practice tests into each of the prep courses. The practice test questions are modeled after sample SAT exams provided by the College Board with essay prompts that students can use to hone their writing abilities.
With all of their courses, Kaplan SAT provides students with some of their top-notch reading material. Students who purchase Kaplan’s Tutoring, Live Online & Unlimited Prep SAT courses will receive Kaplan’s SAT prep books as supplementary material. However, it is important to note that even though Kaplan has some of the best SAT prep books, these are not nearly as effective as a full SAT course.
Pros
- Kaplan offers last-minute, 1.5 hour SAT Rapid Review Live cram sessions where students can watch teachers review commonly-tested topics and key test-taking strategies.
- Kaplan offers courses in every format – self-paced online, live online, in-person, and private tutoring. If you start with a self-paced program and realize you like tutoring, you can also get it from the same source instead of having to change to an entirely different company.
- Kaplan includes books with their live online and in-person courses as supplementary material.
Cons
- Kaplan allows you to access your online course for 6 months only. More access time, such as a year of access could help those who want to retake the test.
- Kaplan score guarantee isn’t as robust as some other SAT prep providers on the market. Any score improvement with Kaplan, no matter how insignificant, voids eligibility for their full refund guarantee.
Olive Book SAT
Olive Book is a new face in the world of SAT preparation, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have what it takes to help you crush the test. Olive Book was founded by an architecture professor at Virginia Tech with a simple goal in mind: to provide unique, top-of-the-line virus content that engages students and helps them efficiently prepare for the SAT.
What sets The Olive Book apart is their emphasis on visual learning as they believe that all students can benefit from the visual educational material. They put this philosophy into practice by providing in-depth animated explanations of SAT concepts, no matter how complex the content and structure are. Although they emphasize the visual content of their curriculum, it doesn’t mean that there’s all there is since every practice question in your Olive Book Course comes with a detailed text explanation that you can read your way through as well.
Olive Book comes in a self-paced format with no strict deadlines. The test preparation provider lets you progress through the course by completing whatever content you like, whenever it’s convenient for you. Many students work well with the self-paced format, but some might wish they had a little more structure, which is what the Olive Book providers.
Olive Book’s SAT courses come with four different syllabi: a 1-month schedule, 2-month schedule, 3-month schedule, and 4-month schedule. This gives you the flexibility to study whatever content you’re interested in whenever you like, but also have the option to follow a structure if that works better for you.
Other than that, the Olive Book also has a great discussion feature that allows students to create assignment-specific posts while they’re progressing through their course. Other students can also choose to reply to those posts if they like, but an Olive Book instructor will always respond to your question with thoughtful and extensive responses that do an excellent job of explaining concepts.
Pros
- Olive Book believes that every learner is a visual learner and they create high-quality animated explanations for their practice questions.
- Olive Book understands that some students want good test prep materials but can’t afford them. So they provide their course absolutely free for students and educators who can demonstrate financial need.
Cons
- Olive Book SAT course includes fewer practice questions than other SAT courses on our lists, and they have not created video explanations for every question in their course yet.
Final Thoughts on SAT Preparation Classes
There are plenty of SAT Prep Courses available online, there are also great options for those on a budget. Before making any final decision on which is the best SAT prep course for you, do remember to take some time to note down exactly what you want from an SAT prep course and see which ones match your list. We hope today’s review has given you enough information and knowledge to make an informed decision.
FAQ
Will a SAT prep classes raise my score?
Yes, most certainly. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee if you do not allocate your study time well. But, based on the statistics, we have found that taking a SAT preparation program will have a higher chance to increases your SAT score when compared to self-studying. Some prep businesses will even guarantee that promise.