Best Books for ACT Mathematics

ACT is one of the official examinations in the USA required to enter colleges and universities. Conducted by ACT, Inc., this test assesses the academic achievements of students in high schools and their credentials for higher studies. Mathematics, being the second most significant one in the 3 hours 35 minutes test after English, is given 60 minutes for 60 questions. To crack the exam by solving one problem in under one minute requires specific training that can be acquired through detailed study. Below are the best books to prep from, which the candidates find useful to prep for Mathematics.

List of Best ACT Mathematics Prep Books

Books	Price	Parameters
ACT Prep Black Book: 2nd Edition	$28.49	Strategies and Tips 600+ Walkthroughs Roadmap to ACT
The Official ACT Mathematics Guide	$20.95	Strategies and Tips Detailed Subject Reviews Practice Questions
Kaplan ACT Prep Plus 2021	$27	Practice Tests Subject Reviews Online Content Section for Repeated Questions
Barron’s 6 ACT Practice Tests	$15.47	Practice Tests Diagnostic Test 1600+ Practice Questions
Kaplan’s ACT Math & Science Prep- 4th Edition	$16.99	500+ Practice Questions Key Content Reviews 100+ Official Practice Questions
Barron’s ACT Math and Science Workbook-3rd Edition	$10.45	Content Chapters with Mini-Test Sessions Practice Tests More on Tricky Questions

1

ACT Prep Black Book: The Most Effective ACT Strategies Ever Published- 2nd Edition

Cost: $28.49
This book is offered by Mike Barrett who is an ACT tutor with an international clientele. The book claims to be a detailed walkthrough of the Official ACT Prep Guide and aims to aid above-average students in entering the Ivy League or to score a 10 per section to claim sports scholarships.

Even when certain aspects mentioned may seem commonsensical, the way the information has been articulated makes one wonder about the simplicity and complexity of the approach simultaneously. The book aids in making the student understand their mistakes and repeat their steps correctly thereby eliminating the necessity for a tutor.

Pros-

• The book is full of strategies and tricks, especially in the mathematics section, and about approaching the ACT, especially in the introduction section along with the first chapter. To be able to understand the approach makes this book a worthy investment in itself.
• The book contains 600+ walkthroughs for real ACT questions along with a roadmap to the ACT examination.
• The book provides tips and strategies that candidates can use for answering questions within the least possible time duration.

Cons-

• To use the book to its fullest, one will have to purchase the Official ACT Prep Guide 2018 Edition since the questions and answers that the book refers to have been taken from the same.
• Since the book only contains answers to those available in another book, candidates will have to put in the extra effort to buy the correct book that corresponds to this one without which the book will be rendered useless.

2

The Official ACT Mathematics Guide

Cost: $20.95
Being the only prep book created by ACT and dedicated to mathematics, this book is supposed to review the entire ACT mathematics test. The book includes official information regarding ACT, the need-to-knows for test prep, and test day must-haves among other information. The book, in fact, contains more explanations than problems which can be considered a drawback.

Pros-

• The book follows a step-by-step pattern including how one should approach the test along with detailed explanations to improve one's performance.
• It doesn't presume that the student is already well versed in the topic and goes into detail about every topic. This may be considered unnecessary since most of the topics are covered in the school syllabus but at the same time will be of immense help to students who have not grasped the concept yet and for aspirants preparing for the exam after a year gap.
• The book focuses mainly on providing information about the content and the methods by which one can clear the questions at a better pace.

Cons-

• The main drawback of the book is that it does not contain enough practice questions but rather focuses on the tips and strategies that one can use for the examination.
• The book is targeted at those who are beginners in learning for the examination and can be found to have redundant information for those who have been actively preparing for the examination during their high school years.
• Some reviewers claim that the mathematics section has typos and other errors in writing that can make it confusing during prep.

3

ACT Prep Plus 2021(Kaplan Test Prep)

Cost: $27
Kaplan, being an official teaching partner of ACT, updates itself regularly providing students with fresh content. The book has a lot of organized information divided into plenty of sections which helps candidates choose the sections without skimming through the entire book to find a particular section. This helps students skip entire portions they do not want to go through and also helps them understand the categorical difference between sections that can aid in individually focusing on the section after section than all of them in bulk.

Pros-

• This particular book offers five practice tests, proven strategies, and online content with subject reviews and even video lessons.
• Purchasing these avails one printed full-length practice test along with four online tests which will be accessible for a year along with additional quizzes and videos to enable better performance.
• There are strategic notes written in every math chapter which can be used exclusively while preparing for the ACT.
• It features a section called "smart points" that points towards questions that are often asked for the exam. It helps retain the focus on areas that have a greater probability of being repeated for the next test.

Cons-

• Candidates who have purchased the book and tutors who have been handling Kaplan books previously claim that the 2019 edition is probably better than the 2021 edition.

4

6 ACT Practice Tests (Barron's Test Prep)- 4th Edition

Cost: $15.47
Candidates who have been going through book after book reading and studying the strategies required but need to finally use these strategies in detail will find this book handy. The questions lean from moderate to difficult and hence can make the original exam appear simpler comparatively which is good practice. It is a book that caters to people with a low budget though that doesn't imply a lack of quality.

Whether one tries to practice one section at a time or an entire paper at a time, it helps to manage time and understand where they are falling back since it is in the structure of a question paper than a guide.

Pros-

• This relatively lightweight book contains six practice tests that are similar to the original test in structure, length, and difficulty. There are detailed analyses after question papers stating why the answers marked correct are right.
• It includes a full-length diagnostic test, over 1600 practice questions, and all three difficulty-level based reading passages that one can customize to their learning program
• The answers and explanations come after the full question paper which can give candidates a tendency of going back after every question to check their response. Even in this scenario, the book helps one understand where exactly was there a flaw in judgment and rectify the same.

Cons-

• Reviewers claim that the content of the book is similar to the previous editions of the book.
• There are general typos in the book that candidates find confusing during prep sessions.

5

Kaplan's ACT Math &Science Prep- 4th Edition

Cost: $16.99
ACT aspirants looking for a book that focuses on teaching problem-solving skills by correcting mistakes and reiterating basics until the concepts have been completely mastered will find this book to be well-suited for their needs.

Kaplan's book, though for both Science and Mathematics, lacks the same quality for science when compared with the latter. The questions in the Science section seem to be pretty basic and hence the purchase can be made solely for Mathematics and can still be deemed worth it.

Pros-

• This book offers over 500 practice questions and focuses on providing an essential review of key concepts along with the questions.
• It breaks down Mathematics into sections and subsections for a beginner. The various categories range from algebra, pre-algebra, algebra II, etc. to plane geometry and trigonometry.
• The guide consists of at least 100 questions dedicated solely to the ACT which can be seen to be slightly deviating from a high school syllabus perspective.
• Reviewers also claim that there are seven question quizzes in the book which serve as a quick revision of chapters ensuring that certain key points have not been overlooked.

Cons-

• Reviewers claim that the section for science is comparatively less helpful than the mathematics section of the book.
• The kindle version of the book does not display the practice questions that are included in the paperback version. It also lacks the geometry problems in the mathematics section.
• The book does not include sections for statistics and probability which are considered to be components of the mathematics part of the examination.

6

Barron's ACT Math and Science Workbook- 3rd Edition

Cost: $10.45
This prep book contains separate Mathematics chapters and Mathematics tests with even a topic like algebra divided into pre-algebra, elementary algebra, and intermediate algebra. There are separate chapters, yet again, for plane geometry, coordinate geometry, and trigonometry. At the end of each section, candidates will be able to find a mini-test session that is not in an ACT pattern but is based on the section alone. This test comprises around 10-15 questions and focuses primarily on assessing the candidate’s understanding of the section. This guide can then be described as one for beginners before moving on to practice tests alone from other sources. Pros-

• The book contains separate sections for content within the mathematics part of the examination and candidates will be able to find mini-test sessions at the end of every chapter that they can use to revise the content they have just learned.
• Toward the end of both the sections, 2 practice tests are in the original ACT format and it is only here that one will be able to assimilate all that has been learned throughout the text.
• The book provides detailed insights into solving individual questions. This becomes an asset when one has seemingly mastered the concept and yet fumbles through tricky questions in the test.

Cons-

• It is a drawback that there are only 2 practice tests in all since an examinee will not just have to understand the concepts and questions but will be required to get the hang of taking the test as well.
• The book does not provide detailed explanations for all the questions provided.
• The book has been described as a practice book rather than a strategy guide and hence students who are already knowledgeable about the content will be able to utilize the book best.

7

Ultimate Guide to the Math ACT

Cost: $23.99
Candidates who want to traverse through the test from the lower end of abilities to the higher end, and are willing to work for it, should indeed purchase this book. The book offers an in-depth study of every topic but doesn't stop there. While the book caters to beginners, the book at the same time offers difficult practice papers for those students who want to apply the knowledge of the basics to a higher domain.

Each section is written in a unique way that helps students in reading, understanding, and tutoring themselves. This eliminates the necessity of an external tutor and makes the student learn from mistakes thereby increasing knowledge in the subject.

Pros-

• The book claims to cater to both high-end scoring students and moderately scoring students through its structure. This newly developed structure allows students to skip the fundamentals that they might not require and move on to advanced preparation and at the same time allow beginners to focus only on the fundamentals before they can finally approach the advanced-level questions.
• It covers topics from algebra, geometry, pre-calculus, and statistics through over 550 problems and their solutions.
• It also contains tips on using the calculator during the ACT.

Cons-

• Candidates who are purchasing this book will also need guidance for effectively using the book. Hence, it cannot be recommended for people preparing for the examination at the last minute.
• The book contains too much information regarding the details of the examination rather than the content of the examination making half the book useless to those who already know about the examination.
• The kindle version of the book has general typos and other errors in a format that make it hard to use.