What test should I take first, the SAT or the SAT Subject Tests?

subject tests… meaning psats?

the more you practice, the better you’ll do.

Start with the regular SATs. Then, if you aren’t happy with your scores, take the subject tests to improve your overall scores.

I disagree with the idea that subject tests will improve your SAT…
I took the SAT first, then the subject tests. I found the subject tests much more difficult and did not score nearly as well on them as I did the reasoning test. I found that it was more convenient to get the regular SAT out of the way first and become familiar with the testing process before taking the more specialized subject tests.

“Subject tests” seems to mean what we used to call the “achievement tests”—tests in subject areas of your choice. “Subject tests” is actually a better name.

In my time it was customary to take the regular SAT, math and verbal, in the morning, and two achievement tests in the afternoon. Sometimes they were just called the “afternoon tests.” (This was before anyone “prepared” for them—they just took them. The idea was that you had been preparing for them for 11 or 12 years by then.) I would have been floored if I had started with the achievement tests. The regular SAT really gets your feet wet, as @lefteh says.

ahh, my area of expertise.
If you’re planning on doing well on the SATI (the traditional, long test), plan on taking it at least one more time. That being said, the issue is less which to take first, and more which do you want to study for at what time. The subject tests are not in anyway related to the SATI; they won’t help your score on that.
You’ll need to study alot for whichever tests you’ll be taking, but for a lot of colleges, subject tests aren’t even necessary. So, first figure out if you even need to take them.
Long-story short, it doesnt matter the order, as long as you adequately prepare for each one. If you have any more specific questions, don’t hesitate to ask.

I would take the SAT subject tests in May of the year that you’re taking a class related to it. For example: i took the SAT II in bio May of Freshman year, because my school has Biology for all freshmen, Chemistry for all sophomores, and Physics for all juniors. So I also took the SAT II in Chem at then end of Sophomore Year, and SAT II in physics at the end of Junior Year. That way, I wasn’t really studying for the SAT’S, I was studying for my finals as well, and everything was really fresh in my mind. If it’s too late to set something like that up… GOOD LUCK! It’s gonna be hell trying to remember what you learned years ago…
As for the timing of the regular SAT, I feel like all times are approximately equal. You’re never going to be quite ready, and as long as your math class has reached Algebra 2, you’ve learned everything you’re being tested on. All you have to do is prove that you learned it.