This calculator works out your GPA for one term from your course grades and credits. Use the 4.0 scale for most college and unweighted high school GPAs, or switch to the weighted scale if your school adds points for Honors or AP courses.
How it’s calculated
Each letter grade is worth a number of quality points. Multiply those points by the course’s credits, add up the results, and divide by your total credits:
GPA = Σ (grade points × credits) ÷ Σ creditsA course with more credits counts for more. An A in a 4-credit course lifts your GPA more than an A in a 1-credit course.
Worked example
This example comes from Rowan University’s registrar: four 3-credit courses with grades of A, B+, B and A-.
- Multiply each course’s credits by its grade points: 3 × 4.0 = 12; 3 × 3.3 = 9.9; 3 × 3.0 = 9; 3 × 3.7 = 11.1.
- Add the quality points: 12 + 9.9 + 9 + 11.1 = 42.
- Divide by the total credits: 42 ÷ 12 = 3.5.
GPA = 3.50.
Grade points on the 4.0 scale
| Letter grade | Grade points |
|---|---|
| A+ or A | 4.0 |
| A- | 3.7 |
| B+ | 3.3 |
| B | 3.0 |
| B- | 2.7 |
| C+ | 2.3 |
| C | 2.0 |
| C- | 1.7 |
| D+ | 1.3 |
| D | 1.0 |
| D- | 0.7 |
| F | 0.0 |
Values from the Rowan and James Madison registrars. The US National Center for Education Statistics describes the four-point scale as the most common. Schools can set their own values.
The weighted scale
Weighted scales differ more from school to school. This calculator follows a published example, the table used by Turpin High School in Ohio’s Forest Hills School District. Honors courses add 0.5 and AP courses add 1.0 to grades of C- and above, so an A in an AP course is worth 5.0. D and F grades get no bonus. If your school weights another kind of course the same way as AP, choose AP for it.
Take the Rowan example above, as a course load of AP Calculus (A), Honors History (B+), regular Biology (A-) and AP English (B). The quality points become 3 × 5.0 + 3 × 3.8 + 3 × 3.7 + 3 × 4.0 = 49.5, and 49.5 ÷ 12 = 4.125.
Weighted GPA = 4.13.