6 Best SAT Prep Books for Mathematics

The Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) formerly known as Scholastic Aptitude Test is a standardized test that has to be taken by aspirants to seek admission to colleges or universities in the United States. A good score then enables candidates to get admission to decent colleges.

The competition will be tough, but candidates will be able to achieve a good score if they try for it dexterously. Studying for SAT may be hard for a few but not for those who start their preparations in time and do enough practice under the right guidance. Here are a few popular SAT prep books that students could use for rigorous practice, especially in Mathematics.

List of SAT Prep Books for Mathematics

Books	Price
Official SAT Study Guide 2020 Edition	$19.98
SAT Prep Black Book	$21.35
SAT Math Workbook (Barron's Test Prep)	$16.89
The College Panda's SAT Math: Advanced Guide and Workbook	$31.46
SAT Math Prep (Kaplan Test Prep), 8th Edition	$11.53
1600.io SAT Math Orange Book Volume I and II	$27.55 and $29.00

1

Official SAT Study Guide 2020 Edition

Cost- $19.98
Publication Date- May 7, 2019
All of the official website's practice exams are available in print form only in The Official SAT Study Guide, which also includes more than 250 pages of extra advice, instruction, and test information. This edition takes the best-selling SAT guide and makes it even more relevant and useful with strategies and up-to-date information straight from the exam writers. Practice problems reflect the most recent information, and the guidance has been updated.

Students will be able to relate their academic performance to the SAT to understand how it works. They can view sample questions to get a feel for the test. With the eight practice questions in the book, students can get a feel for the test's pace and go over the comprehensive explanations of correct and incorrect responses.

Pros-

• Eight official SAT practice tests, created by the same team of writers and using the same methodology as the real test
• Thorough explanations of the math and reading and writing portions supported by evidence
• Specific practice questions for every kind of SAT question
• Instructions for the new optional essay, along with sample answers and practice questions
• Smooth integration with Khan Academy's Official SAT Practice. Teenage age range.

Cons-

• The practice exams in this book do not appear in the order 1, 2, or 3. They are not in chronological order.
• Readers were not expecting all exams to be identical to those at Khan Academy.
• Students won't receive in-depth instruction in math and grammar, which can be essential for improving test results.
• The Official SAT Study Guide 2020 is almost the same as the previous edition, carrying over all of its shortcomings and merits.

2

SAT Prep Black Book

Cost- $21.35
Publication Date- July 1, 2019
Candidates who wish to prep themselves without enrolling in different online and offline courses for cracking the SAT exam will find this book the one-stop they will have to make. The book will leave one confident to attend the examination even if they have used only this book to prepare.

This book has been made not in a way that reviews high school subject concepts but with ideas and tricks that can help one crack the SAT brilliantly with less effort. Candidates can go through the original questions by downloading them from their website and reading the book and the official questions simultaneously.

Reviewers claim that this book is the ultimate go-to if the candidate is a self-disciplined and independent learner willing to put in the hours required for the preparation. The approaches in the book trace out ways in which the candidate is getting the wrong answer and how the correct answer can be figured out from an SAT perspective. The former point is found to be absent in most of the prep books available in the market making this a go-to book for beginners and pros alike.

Pros-

• Containing both subject sections and practice tests, it is the walkthroughs that help candidates understand SAT and SAT preparation better.
• It contains 600+ questions that have been taken from the questions framed by the College Board and have synced detailed explanations along with them.
• The book contains walkthroughs if they are trying to prep for the exam on short notice and do not have the time to study concept by concept. They help candidates deal with problems in multiple ways where there will be ways that can be way shorter thereby buying them a lot of time during the exam.

Cons-

• The practice tests provided are in digital format making it hard for candidates to print them all out for practice.
• Reviewers claim that the way information has been organized is user-unfriendly.
• Candidates who wish to score above 1550 might find the book unhelpful since it deals mostly with the basics of the test rather than with competitive tips that can help them score higher.

3

SAT Math Workbook (Barron's Test Prep)

Cost- $16.89
Publication Date- February 5, 2019
This book contains plenty of practice questions and other exercises that will help candidates prepare themselves for the SAT. It doesn't rely upon pages and pages of information regarding concepts and assumes that the student is already aware of the subjects. But at the same time, the book ensures that the answer key holds explanations every examinee should be able to follow despite their varying prowess in the area. The book is often recommended by experts and tutors given the brand name that doesn't disappoint and the steady quality of the work.

Pros-

• This guide contains hundreds of revised math questions with answers and detailed explanations.
• It is structured in such a way that the first two chapters cover important details about the math section of the SAT along with strategies that ought to be resorted to.
• The strategies often include methods that reduce the number of steps and help pace the students about the examination at hand.
• The chapters have several topics and "tune-up" exercises at the end along with keys and explanations.

Cons-

• Reviewers claim that the book contains plenty of typos that keep candidates from focusing on the problems at hand.
• The book does not contain detailed subject reviews making it hard for students who are taking the SAT after a break.

4

The College Panda's SAT Math: Advanced Guide and Workbook, 2nd Edition

Cost- $31.46
Publication Date- January 19, 2020
This book skips the filler and goes straight to the point of problem-solving, spending very little time on the fundamentals. Every lesson in the book typically begins with an example on the first page of the relevant chapter. In certain chapters, the only topics covered are problems and their solutions. In addition to saving time, this direct, no-nonsense approach to studying can help make math problems seem less scary and more manageable.

Improvements from the first edition include: Boxplots; Ratio questions; Function transformations; an Additional chapter on minimum and maximum word problems; There are numerous more practice questions scattered throughout, numerous adjustments to better align the study material with the most recent SAT, Many corrections, and formatting

Pros-

• From the most basic to the most complex math concepts, the book provides concise explanations of each one.
• Hundreds of examples to show every kind of question and the various ways they can appear
• For students to help them grasp every subject, the book includes more than 500 practice questions with explanations.
• Additionally, it clarifies the most frequent errors made by students.

Cons-

• Although many readers say this book taught them a lot, they don't think it can be used alone. To fully understand, readers had to watch YouTube videos and use Khan Academy.
• In addition to the book questions being significantly harder than the actual SAT questions, readers found the explanations of the concepts to be difficult to understand.
• Many typos and errors were discovered by readers in the book.
• Some readers complain that the book skips over important SAT topics. The book contains a lot of geometry. A lot of algebra is on the test. No in-depth algebraic content

5

SAT Math Prep (Kaplan Test Prep), 8th Edition

Cost- $11.53
Publication Date- August 2, 2020
The book helps students concentrate their studies on the most crucial math topics to improve their scores by going over every concept, from basic algebra to advanced trigonometry. This concentrated study guide offers comprehensive explanations of all math topics covered on the SAT in addition to practical score-boosting techniques and speed accuracy-boosting strategies from Kaplan's top math experts.

With more than 400 practice questions in the book and an online component, it promises a higher score or a refund. Each topic is covered in its chapter, and there are tests at the back. This book has incredibly thorough and well-organized explanations. There are engaging exercises to demonstrate understanding of the subjects covered.

Pros-

• The book includes over 250 practice questions with professional explanations and 16 thorough math practice sets with thorough explanations.
• It contains techniques for multiple choice, grid-in, and extended thinking questions as well as methods and strategies to raise students' math scores.
• It also aims to review key mathematical concepts.
• The questions appear to be true to the actual SAT, and the explanations are quite clear.

Cons-

• Some readers found the book to be unsatisfactory due to the explanations being overly general.
• The digital layout did not sit well with readers. Pages had to resize as problems were finished and were dependent on the magnification that readers had selected on their digital devices.

6

1600.io SAT Math Orange Book Volume I and II

Cost- $27.55 and $29.00 respectively
Publication Date- February 12, 2021 and February 13, 2021
Students should buy both volumes of this two-volume set in order to have access to the entire text because the topics are split between the volumes. This book is not a compilation of "tricks" or "hacks" to circumvent the purpose of the SAT, which is to evaluate students' abilities. Rather, it satisfies the test's requirements by offering thorough, lucid, and patient instruction in each mathematical topic that may come up on the test in accordance with the test's officially released guidelines.

With 850 pages, 22 chapters, over 900 practice problems divided into 95 distinct categories, over 200 example problems with multiple written solutions, over 600 SkillDril mini-problems, video explanations for 1,350 practice problems and SkillDrill, and an inventive appendix that connects all 1,508 SAT problems from 26 publicly available practice tests to their corresponding topic explanations in the book, this text is incredibly rich and comprehensive.
The following chapters are split between the two volumes:

• Volume I- The Volume I contains the following chapters:
  • Foundations
  • Linear Relationships
  • Slope-Intercept Form
  • Standard Form/Parallel and Perpendicular Lines
  • Systems of Linear Equations
  • Linear Inequalities and Absolute Value
  • Exponents and Radicals/Roots
  • Introduction to Polynomials
  • Solving Quadratic Equations
  • Extraneous Solutions and Dividing Polynomials
  • The Graphs of Quadratic Equations and Polynomials
  • Number of Zeros/Imaginary and Complex Numbers
• Volume II- The chapters included in Volume II are:
  • Ratios, Probability, and Proportions
  • Percentages
  • Exponential Relationships
  • Scatterplots and Line Graphs
  • Functions
  • Statistics
  • Unit Conversions
  • Angles, Triangles, and Trigonometry
  • Circles and Volume
  • Wormholes

Pros-

• The books include chapter lessons, strategy advice, and thorough question explanations in addition to a well-structured and attractive collection of mock SAT math practice questions. The goal is to assist students in learning the material rather than just "hacking" the test.
• The book's step-by-step methodology enables students to solidify concepts that they might have overlooked or never acquired.
• The books employ a variety of solution techniques, allowing students to select the one that best suits their needs.
• Additionally, students can access video solutions to help them better understand the concepts in the book that they may find challenging.

Cons-

• It annoys readers that the writers constantly use the registered term "SkillDrill," as though they were the ones who came up with the idea of practicing fundamental math concepts before tackling more challenging problems.