Calculate Your College GPA

Grade point average is an important measure of academic success used by admissions committees to gain admission to college.  Also, it is used to award scholarships throughout college.  For college students, it is vital to stay on top of your GPA.  Here is a basic overview of how college grades are calculated.

Gather Your College Transcript Information
This includes your list of classes, grades for each class, credits per class, and your school’s grading scale.

Create a GPA Spreadsheet
In a spreadsheet, enter the name of each class in the first column.  Then enter the number of credits per class in the next column.  Next, enter the letter grade for each class, with the number of grade points (from the grading scale) per class in the following column.

Make the GPA Calculation
Multiply the number of credits for each class by the grade points received.  Then sum this total for all classes.  Divide that number by the total number of credits.  The result is your weighted average GPA, or traditional GPA.  Note that a weighted GPA is different from a weighted average GPA.

Use an Online GPA Calculator as an Alternative
Instead of doing all the work yourself, check out our set of GPA calculators.  They automatically do all of the math for you.

 

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Create GPA Calculator Spreadsheet


This video outlines how to create a simple GPA calculator in Microsoft Excel. Use this to figure out your standard GPA, weighted GPA, or cumulative GPA.

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Grade Point Average Scale

This is a typical GPA scale.  Each teacher and school may vary this scale slightly.  Once you determine your grade in each class, use our online GPA calculators to calculate your cumulative GPA.
The most important part of calculating your GPA is using the proper grade scale.

GPA Scale

A = 94-100%

A- = 90-93.9%

B+ = 86-89.9%

B    = 83-85.9%

B-   = 80-82.9%

C+  = 76-79.9%

C    = 73-75.9%

C-   = 70-72.9%

D+  = 66-69.9%

D    = 63-65.9%

D-   = 60-62.9%

F    = Below 60%

Grade Points

Here is a breakdown of grade points awarded for each grade. This is the standard scale, although many schools may use a grade point scale that differs from this one.
A = 4.0 (5.0 weighted)
A- = 3.667 (4.667 weighted)
B+ = 3.333 (4.333 weighted)
B = 3.0 (4.0 weighted)
B- = 2.667 (3.667 weighted)
C+ = 2.333 (3.333 weighted)
C = 2.0 (3.0 weighted)
C- = 1.667 (2.667 weighted)
D+ = 1.333 (2.333 weighted)
D = 1.0 (2.0 weighted)
D- = 0.667 (1.667 weighted)
F = 0 (0 weighted)

Many colleges and high schools use alternative GPA scales. Because of this, it is crucial to work with your school’s office to properly calculate your GPA based on your school’s standards.

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