Percentages & Everyday Math
GPA Calculator
Work out a term or cumulative GPA from letter grades and credit hours, or convert a percentage.
Result
Example with the values filled in above
Term GPA
3.52
13 credit hours · 45.7 grade points
Cum laude range · Grade points are credits × the point value of each grade
| Course 1 — A | 12 | 3 credits × 4 points |
|---|---|---|
| Course 2 — B+ | 9.9 | 3 credits × 3.3 points |
| Course 3 — A- | 14.8 | 4 credits × 3.7 points |
| Course 4 — B | 9 | 3 credits × 3 points |
| Term totals | 45.7 points | 13 credit hours |
Change any value and press Calculate for your own result.
Calculating…
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How fast a cumulative GPA recovers
- 4.0 every term
- 3.5 every term
Show the numbers
| Terms | 4.0 every term | 3.5 every term |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2.50 | 2.50 |
| 1 | 3.00 | 2.83 |
| 2 | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| 3 | 3.40 | 3.10 |
| 4 | 3.50 | 3.17 |
| 5 | 3.57 | 3.21 |
| 6 | 3.63 | 3.25 |
| 7 | 3.67 | 3.28 |
| 8 | 3.70 | 3.30 |
How GPA is calculated
GPA is a credit-weighted average, not a plain average of your grades. Each letter grade converts to a point value, that value is multiplied by the course's credit hours to give grade points, and the total is divided by the total credits:
GPA = total grade points ÷ total credit hours
The weighting is the part people miss. An A in a 1-credit seminar and an A in a 4-credit lab do not count equally — the lab carries four times the influence.
The 4.0 scale
| Grade | Points | Typical percentage |
|---|---|---|
| A / A+ | 4.0 | 93–100% |
| 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% |
| D | 1.0 | 63–66% |
| F | 0.0 | Below 60% |
Percentage bands vary between institutions — some put an A at 90% rather than 93%, and many cap A+ at 4.0 while others award 4.3. Check your own school's table before treating a converted figure as official.
Worked example
| Course | Grade | Credits | Grade points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calculus | A (4.0) | 3 | 12.0 |
| Literature | B+ (3.3) | 3 | 9.9 |
| Chemistry lab | A− (3.7) | 4 | 14.8 |
| History | B (3.0) | 3 | 9.0 |
| Total | 13 | 45.7 |
45.7 ÷ 13 = 3.52 GPA. A plain average of the four grade points would have given 3.50 — close here, but the gap widens whenever credit hours differ more sharply.
Cumulative GPA and why it moves slowly
Cumulative GPA folds the new term into everything before it, weighted by credits:
cumulative = (old GPA × old credits + new points) ÷ (old credits + new credits)
This is why GPA becomes harder to shift over time. A student with 90 credits at 3.0 who takes a perfect 4.0 term of 15 credits only reaches 3.14 — the existing record outweighs the new term six to one. The corollary is more encouraging: a single bad term early is easier to recover from than one late.
Weighted vs. unweighted GPA
A weighted GPA adds bonus points for advanced coursework — typically +1.0 for AP or IB and +0.5 for honours — which is how a scale that stops at 4.0 produces a 4.3. An unweighted GPA ignores course difficulty entirely. US universities generally recalculate applicants onto their own scale, so the number on a transcript is not always the number an admissions office uses.
Converting international grades
| System | Scale | Roughly equivalent to 4.0 GPA |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 0–4.0, higher is better | 4.0 |
| United Kingdom | Classifications | First-class honours |
| Germany | 1.0–5.0, lower is better | 1.0–1.3 |
| India (CGPA) | 0–10 | 9.0–10 |
The German scale runs backwards, so a 1.0 is the top mark and a 4.0 is a bare pass — the opposite of what the same number means in the US. Any conversion between systems is approximate, and universities apply their own tables, often through a credential evaluation service.
GPA, CGPA, and SGPA
| Term | Means | Used in |
|---|---|---|
| GPA | Grade point average, usually for one term | US, Canada |
| SGPA | Semester grade point average | India, South Asia |
| CGPA | Cumulative across the programme | Everywhere, but on different scales |
The trap is the scale. In the US, CGPA sits on 4.0. In India and much of South Asia it sits on 10. A CGPA of 8.5 is excellent on a 10-point scale and impossible on a 4-point one, so the number alone is meaningless without the scale attached to it.
A rough conversion used by many Indian universities is percentage ≈ CGPA × 9.5, though this varies by
institution and should be confirmed against the university's own formula.
For a plain unweighted mean of a list of numbers, use the average calculator; to convert a raw score to a percentage, the percentage calculator does it directly.
GPA Calculator — frequently asked questions
How is GPA calculated?
Multiply each course's grade points by its credit hours, add them up, and divide by the total credit hours. It is a credit-weighted average, so a 4-credit course counts four times as much as a 1-credit one.
How do I convert a percentage to GPA?
On the common US 4.0 scale, 93% and above is 4.0, 90 to 92% is 3.7, 87 to 89% is 3.3, and 83 to 86% is 3.0. Bands vary between institutions, so check your own school's table.
How do I calculate cumulative GPA with my current GPA?
Multiply your current GPA by your existing credit hours to recover your total grade points, add the new term's points, then divide by the combined credits.
Why does my GPA barely move after a good term?
Because it is weighted by credits. With 90 credits at 3.0, a perfect 4.0 term of 15 credits only lifts the cumulative figure to 3.14 — the existing record outweighs the new term six to one.
What is the difference between GPA and CGPA?
CGPA is the cumulative figure across a whole programme rather than one term. In India and parts of South Asia the term usually refers to a 10-point scale, so the numbers are not comparable to a 4.0 GPA.
What is a weighted GPA?
One that adds bonus points for advanced coursework — typically +1.0 for AP or IB and +0.5 for honours — which is how a 4.0 scale can produce a 4.3. Unweighted GPA ignores course difficulty.