TL;DR: HMMT, which started as the Harvard-MIT Mathematics Tournament, is a math competition for high school students run by Harvard and MIT students. HMMT November is at Harvard on Nov 7, 2026, and the harder HMMT February is at MIT on Feb 13, 2027. An adult coach applies for you, and the organizers pick who gets a spot by lottery. This season's registration closed on Sept 20, 2026. The best way to prepare is to take timed past HMMT tests and learn from every mistake.
If you're a high schooler who loves hard math problems, you've probably come across HMMT while looking at math competitions for high school students. You don't need a qualifying score to enter HMMT, and how well you do depends mostly on how you prepare.
What is HMMT?
HMMT is a math tournament for high school students that Harvard and MIT students run twice a year. HMMT November is held at Harvard in early November, and HMMT February is held at MIT in mid-February.
At each HMMT tournament, you'll spend a weekend in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and compete on Saturday. The contest has individual tests, a team round, and a fast-paced round called the guts round. On Sunday, Harvard and MIT professors, alumni, and students teach short classes in higher math (HMMT Tournament Information).
HMMT November vs. February
HMMT November is the easier tournament, so it's the best place to start. HMMT February is much harder. Its toughest problems are at the level of an olympiad, the proof-based contests at the top of US high school math (HMMT November vs. February).
You can use the AMC to decide which one fits you. The AMC is a 25-question multiple-choice contest that many US high schools offer each year. Top AMC scorers are invited to a harder 15-question test called the AIME. As a rough guide, choose HMMT November if you haven't qualified for the AIME yet, and HMMT February if you have and can solve several AIME problems. In February's team round, you'll also write full proofs, so it helps to have practiced them.
How does HMMT registration work?
An adult coach registers you for HMMT, and the organizers use a random lottery to pick which teams and individuals get a spot. Any responsible adult, like a teacher, can be your coach and apply for a team or just for you (HMMT Registration Information).
HMMT registration usually closes in September, and HMMT doesn't accept late applications. If you've missed this season's deadline, you can still practice with HMMT's online version and line up a coach over the summer. You can find each year's exact dates on HMMT's Deadlines page. Here are the key facts for 2026-27, as of October 2026:
Tournament dates: HMMT November is on Nov 7, 2026, and HMMT February is on Feb 13, 2027.
Registration: The deadline for both tournaments was Sept 20, 2026.
February waitlist: The last day to confirm a spot from the waitlist is Jan 30, 2027.
Who can compete: Students under 21 in full-time primary or secondary school. You can enter one tournament per season.
Team size: 4 to 6 students for November, and 6 to 8 for February.
Cost: $80 per team or $10 per individual, with need-based financial aid available.
What does each HMMT round test?
At HMMT, you'll solve problems in four areas of math: algebra, counting and probability, number theory, and geometry. Half of your team's score comes from the individual tests, and the other half is split evenly between the team and guts rounds (HMMT Testing Information). Here's what you'll do in each round.
November individual tests: There are two, called General and Theme, each with 10 problems in 50 minutes. Both mix all four areas. In problem 6 of the 2025 General test, students had to count the paths a frog could take through a 3D grid. On the Theme test, every problem is part of one story, which in 2025 was the solar system (November 2025 problems).
February individual tests: In February, you'll take a separate test for each subject: Algebra and Number Theory, Combinatorics (counting and probability), and Geometry. So it helps to practice all three.
Team round: In November's team round, you give answers, and in February's, you write proofs. In 2026, the first February team problem was about a regular hexagon cut into two pieces. Students had to prove that if the pieces have the same ratio of area to perimeter, they also have the same area.
Guts round: This is an 80-minute race through 36 short problems, handed out in small sets. A teammate called the runner hands in each set before your team gets the next one. The last set is mostly estimation, and you still earn some points for a close answer.
How to prepare for HMMT
The best preparation is HMMT's own past problems, practiced under the same rules you'll face on the day. You'll find years of past tournaments in the Problems and Results archive. Here are 6 steps to turn those tests into progress.
Find your level with one timed past test. Take the November 2011 General test and give yourself 50 minutes. The problems get harder as you go, so you can tell your level by how far you get. If you finish most of it, try the February 2013 tests as well.
Follow our study plan for your level.
Level 1, if you got stuck in the first three or four problems: Build the basics in all four areas, starting with your weakest. You can learn each area from the Introduction books by Art of Problem Solving (AoPS), a math publisher. Ask your math teacher about taking the AMC at school, and aim for HMMT November next year.
Level 2, if you reached the second half of the November test: Study counting, probability, and algebra with AoPS's Intermediate Counting & Probability and Intermediate Algebra books. Aim for HMMT February next year.
Level 3, if you finished most of November and the first half of February: Focus on probability and expected value, remainders and primes, and complex numbers. Use AoPS's Precalculus book for complex numbers. For the geometry of circles and triangle centers, try Euclidean Geometry in Mathematical Olympiads (EGMO), a book by olympiad coach Evan Chen.
Level 4, if you solved problems in the second half of the February tests: Write olympiad proofs in every area and work through past February team rounds. Aim for HMIC, HMMT's invitational test for its top 50 February students.
Take one timed test every week. Give each test 50 minutes and leave your calculator out, just like at HMMT. Between tests, Evan Chen suggests in his contest FAQ that you do lots of problems just above your current ability. Start with the 2009 to 2013 sets HMMT suggests, and save November 2025 and February 2026 for your last practice runs.
Review every test on the same day. For each mistake, work out whether it came from a gap in what you know, a method that was too slow, or a careless slip. For a gap, you can reread that part of your book, a tip from the AoPS Wiki. For a slow method, study the approach in the official solution, then redo the problem without a timer.
Rehearse a full guts round with your team. Take an 80-minute past guts round with a teammate acting as your runner. Move quickly through the early sets so you have time for the last ones, which are worth the most points.
Write out full proofs for February. You get better at proofs by writing each one out in full. Then ask a teacher or teammate to check it for gaps. After that, try the USA Mathematical Talent Search (USAMTS). In this proof contest, you get a month for each round, and the organizers send you written feedback.
Wherever you're starting from, you can begin preparing for HMMT this week with one past test and an honest review.
How to do well at HMMT
On HMMT day, your individual tests matter most, so take them carefully. Here are 3 more tips for the tournament itself.
Plan team roles early. Before the tournament, agree who will take the hardest team problems, who will check answers, and who will be your runner.
Keep the guts round moving. HMMT doesn't expect anyone to finish all 36 problems. So never let one problem hold up a whole set.
Hand in an estimate every time. You earn points for a close answer and nothing for a blank. Just check each problem's rule first.
Long after the tournament, you'll keep using the math you built for it. The probability and careful reasoning you practice for HMMT are also a big part of AI. If you've never coded but would like to see that math at work, you can start with AI Scholars at Veritas AI. You learn in live classes with one mentor for every 5 students. By the end, you and 3 or 4 classmates build a real AI project. You can even bring AI into math research as a high schooler.
FAQs
1. How prestigious is HMMT?
In our view, HMMT February is one of the most respected math contests in the US. In 2026, four of HMMT February's 10 best individual scorers were on the six-person US team at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO). One was Alexander Wang, who won HMMT February that year (HMMT results, IMO results).
2. Does HMMT help with college admissions?
No, HMMT says taking part on its own has no effect on college admissions (HMMT FAQ). What can stand out to colleges is what you go on to do with your math, like a top finish or a project you lead yourself. If you already know some Python, that project could be in AI. In the AI Fellowship at Veritas AI, you meet one-on-one with a mentor for 15 sessions to build it. A publication specialist also joins you for 4 sessions, so a journal or competition submission is a real possibility.
3. Can middle school students compete in HMMT?
Yes, HMMT doesn't set a minimum grade, so a strong middle schooler can enter through a coach like anyone else. If HMMT November's early problems still feel hard, the AMC is a great first contest to build toward it.
4. Is there an online version of HMMT?
Yes, HMMT runs an unofficial online version after each in-person tournament (HMMT Online Tournament). You can take HMMT's online tests once the in-person round is over, with no need to register in advance. If you take February online, you won't have a proof round.
Sources
You can check the details for your season on HMMT's own pages.
HMMT Registration Information: who can compete, team sizes, and fees.
HMMT Deadlines: this season's dates.
HMMT November vs. February: how the two tournaments differ.
HMMT Problems and Results: past problems to practice on.
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