How to use the GPA calculator
Each row is one course. Type the letter grade from your transcript, such as A, B+ or C-, or the grade point itself, such as 3.3, then the course's credit hours. The course name is optional. Your GPA updates as you type.
- Credit hours are usually between 1 and 5 per course and appear on your transcript or class schedule, sometimes as credits or units. A course with 0 credit hours is ignored.
- Pass/fail and withdrawn courses carry no grade points at most colleges, so leave them out. Some colleges count a failed pass/fail course as an F, so check your registrar's rules.
- Retaken courses are handled differently from college to college. Many replace the first grade with the new one, while others average both attempts. Enter only the attempts your college counts.
- Transfer credits from another college usually count towards your degree but not towards your GPA, so leave them out unless your transcript includes them in the GPA.
- To update your cumulative GPA, choose Add to cumulative GPA, enter your current cumulative GPA and the credit hours you have completed, then add this term's courses.
- If your college uses different points for a letter, type the grade point instead of the letter.
Still waiting on a grade? You can work out a course grade from your assignments, or find the score you need on a final exam to reach the grade you want.
GPA formula with a worked example
Your GPA is a credit-weighted average. For each course, multiply the grade points by the credit hours to get the course's grade points earned (also called quality points). Add them up, then divide by your total credit hours:
GPA = total grade points earned ÷ total credit hours
| Course | Grade | Credit hours | Grade points earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biology | A (4.0) | 3 | 4.0 × 3 = 12.0 |
| Chemistry | B (3.0) | 4 | 3.0 × 4 = 12.0 |
| English | C (2.0) | 3 | 2.0 × 3 = 6.0 |
| Total | 10 | 30.0 |
30.0 ÷ 10 = 3.00. Credit hours matter: if the English course carried 1 credit hour instead of 3, the same three grades would give 26.0 ÷ 8 = 3.25.
When every course has the same credit hours, the GPA is a plain average. An A- (3.7) and a B+ (3.3), each worth 3 credit hours, give (11.1 + 9.9) ÷ 6 = 3.50. Round only the final answer, not each course, or small errors add up across a full transcript.
Letter grade to grade point table
These are the grade points the calculator uses, which follow the standard US 4.0 scale. Percentage cut-offs vary between colleges and courses, so treat that column as a typical guide.
| Letter grade | Grade points | Typical percentage |
|---|---|---|
| A+ | 4.0 | 97–100% |
| A | 4.0 | 93–96% |
| A− | 3.7 | 90–92% |
| B+ | 3.3 | 87–89% |
| B | 3.0 | 83–86% |
| B− | 2.7 | 80–82% |
| C+ | 2.3 | 77–79% |
| C | 2.0 | 73–76% |
| C− | 1.7 | 70–72% |
| D+ | 1.3 | 67–69% |
| D | 1.0 | 63–66% |
| D− | 0.7 | 60–62% |
| F | 0.0 | Below 60 |
The table is unweighted: an A in an honors or AP class counts the same as an A in any other class. Some colleges don't give D- grades or don't use plus and minus at all. That doesn't change the calculation, because you only enter the grades that appear on your transcript.
Need to convert a whole list of grades, or a scale with different plus and minus values? Try the letter grade to GPA converter.
Semester GPA vs cumulative GPA
Your semester GPA covers the courses from one term. Your cumulative GPA covers every term so far, weighted by credit hours, and it is the figure on your transcript and your applications. Don't average your semester GPAs to get it: a 12-credit term and an 18-credit term don't count equally.
To add a new term, turn your cumulative GPA back into grade points. Say you have a 3.50 cumulative GPA over 60 credit hours, which is 210 grade points, and this term you earn a 3.00 over 10 credit hours, which is 30 grade points. Your new cumulative GPA is (210 + 30) ÷ 70 = 3.43. That is the sum the calculator does in Add to cumulative GPA mode. The same term would move a 30-credit record further, because each new credit hour is a larger share of the total.
For a single term in more detail, use the semester GPA calculator. To combine several semesters at once, the cumulative GPA calculator takes each term's GPA and credits. High school students should use the high school GPA calculator with weighted and unweighted GPA for honors and AP classes. If your university reports a CGPA on a 5.0 or 10-point scale, the CGPA calculator for 5.0 and 10-point scales is a better fit.
GPA by country
Grading works differently outside the US. These pages explain local scales and how they compare with a 4.0 GPA.
- Egypt grading system
- Swedish grade calculator
- Hungarian grade calculator
- Italian grade calculator
- Bangladesh CGPA calculator
- Qatar CGPA calculator
- Canada CGPA calculator
- Saudi Arabia CGPA calculator
Studied A-levels in the UK? Use the A-level to GPA converter to estimate a US GPA.
FAQ
What is a good college GPA?
A 3.0 is the usual minimum for graduate programs and many scholarships. A 3.5 or higher is competitive and often meets the Dean's List cut-off, while honors such as cum laude usually start between 3.5 and 3.7, depending on the college. A GPA below 2.0 puts students on academic probation at many schools.
Does an A+ count as 4.3?
At most US colleges an A+ is worth 4.0, the same as an A, and this calculator follows that rule. A few colleges award 4.3 for an A+. If yours is one of them, check how your transcript reports the maximum before comparing your GPA with others.
How can I raise my GPA?
Focus on your courses with the most credit hours, because they move your GPA the most. Ask whether your college lets you retake a course and replace the old grade. The more credit hours you have completed, the more slowly your GPA changes, so improvements early in your degree count for more. You can predict how next term's grades will move your GPA before you register.
What if my school doesn't use the 4.0 scale?
Work out your GPA on your own scale first, then convert your GPA to another scale. If your grades are percentages, you can turn percentage marks into a GPA, and to go the other way, express your GPA as a percentage.
Is my data saved anywhere?
Everything is calculated in your browser, and nothing you enter is sent to a server. Results are saved to the history on this device only, and you can clear them at any time.
Author: SmartCGPA Editorial Team
Last reviewed: October 2026
How we calculate: Weighted grade-point formulas documented in our methodology.