Grade Calculator
Weighted grade from your homework, quizzes, midterms and final — plus the score you still need on the final to hit your target.
Weight counted: 100%.
What do I need on the final?
Leave the weight column empty to average every score equally. Weights that do not add to 100 are divided by the total you entered, which gives your grade on the work graded so far.
This grade calculator works out your current course grade from the scores and weights you enter, shows the letter and GPA points it maps to, and then solves the question everyone actually asks in December: what do I need on the final?
A weighted grade is not an average of your scores. Each item is multiplied by how much it counts, so a 40% final moves your grade eight times as much as a 5% homework set. Below: the formula, a worked example with every contribution shown, the letter-grade scale, and the mistakes that make a self-calculated grade disagree with the one on your transcript.
How to calculate your grade
- List every graded item that has a real score: homework, quizzes, the midterm, the final.
- Convert each score to a percentage. 18 out of 20 is 90.
- Multiply each score by its weight. Homework at 92% counting 20% contributes 92 × 0.20 = 18.4 points.
- Add the contributions: 18.4 + 13.2 + 19.5 + 34.0 = 85.1.
- Divide by the total weight. At 100% the division changes nothing; at 70% it gives your grade on the work graded so far.
- Read the percentage, then the letter band it falls in — 85.1% is a B, worth 3.0 grade points.
Example
A course with four graded items: homework 92% at 20%, quizzes 88% at 15%, midterm 78% at 25%, final 85% at 40%. The contributions are 18.4, 13.2, 19.5 and 34.0, which total 85.1% — a B. The midterm and final decide 65% of the grade between them, which is why a rough start can still be repaired and a good start can still be lost.
Weighted grade formula
Grade % = Σ (score × weight) ÷ Σ weight. Unweighted: grade % = Σ score ÷ number of scores. Needed on final = (target − current × (1 − final weight)) ÷ final weight, with weights as decimals.
How to use this calculator
- Type a name for each item. It is optional and only there to keep the rows straight.
- Enter the score as a percentage. If you only have points, divide earned by possible first.
- Enter the weight from your syllabus. Leave it blank to average every score equally.
- Watch the grade, letter, and GPA points update as you type, then use the panel underneath to set a target and see the final score it requires.
The grading scale
Letter grades come from the US percentage bands below. Whole-letter grading uses five of them; most high schools and universities add plus and minus steps, which is what this calculator reports. A school that does not use +/- will treat 87% and 83% as the same B, so check which scale your transcript follows before you read a borderline result as good or bad.
| Letter | Percentage | GPA points |
|---|---|---|
| A+ | 97–100% | 4.0 |
| A | 93–96% | 4.0 |
| A− | 90–92% | 3.7 |
| B+ | 87–89% | 3.3 |
| B | 83–86% | 3.0 |
| B− | 80–82% | 2.7 |
| C+ | 77–79% | 2.3 |
| C | 73–76% | 2.0 |
| C− | 70–72% | 1.7 |
| D+ | 67–69% | 1.3 |
| D | 63–66% | 1.0 |
| D− | 60–62% | 0.7 |
| F | Below 60% | 0.0 |
Standard US plus/minus scale. An A+ is usually reported as 4.0 and does not lift a GPA above 4.0.
Weighted vs. unweighted grade
An unweighted average adds your scores and divides by how many there are, so a quiz and the final count the same. A weighted average multiplies first. The gap can be large: scores of 95, 95 and 60 give an unweighted average of 83.3%, but if the 60 is the final worth 50% the weighted grade is 77.5% — a C+ instead of a B.
Clear the weight column on this page to get the simple average. That is the right answer only when every graded item really is worth the same, such as a set of equally weighted quizzes or daily work.
What the weights actually do
Weight is leverage. A final worth 40% is 40 points of your course grade, so the gap between scoring zero and scoring 100 on it is 40 percentage points. A 5% homework set moves the same total by five points.
Take the worked example and drop the final row: 51.1 points out of the first 60% of the course is 85.2%. Score zero on the 40% final and you finish at 51.1%, a fail; score 100 and you finish at 91.1%, an A−. Identical coursework, a full letter range apart.
How the final score is solved
The question is the weighted formula run backwards. Your current grade covers the part of the course already done, which is one minus the final weight. The final has to make up the rest of the target.
With an 85.1% going in and a final worth 30%, a target of 88% needs (88 − 85.1 × 0.7) ÷ 0.3 = 94.8% on the final. A target of 90% needs 101.4%, which is impossible — the arithmetic says so before the exam does. That is the useful part: you find out while there is still time to ask about extra credit or a replacement assignment.
What counts as a passing grade
A D is the usual floor, which is 60% on this scale. But passing a course and earning credit toward a major are different bars: many departments require a C (70%) or better in courses that count toward the degree, and some require a C+ or B− in the major itself. A pass/fail course sets its own threshold, often 60% or 70%, and does not affect your GPA.
If a grade is borderline, the syllabus or the department handbook is the authority — not this page, and not the grading scale you remember from high school.
Grades, percentages, and GPA
Three numbers describe the same performance. The percentage is the weighted average of your scores. The letter is the band that percentage lands in. The GPA is the grade points that letter is worth on a 4.0 scale, averaged across courses by credit hours.
This page gives you the grade points for a single course. For a term or a transcript you need credit hours: multiply each course grade point by its credit hours, add those up, and divide by total credit hours. A B in a 4-credit course pulls harder than a B in a 1-credit lab. The GPA calculator does that across a whole semester.
One thing this page cannot do is convert between scales. A school that reports 83–86% as a B and one that reports it as a B+ will produce different GPAs from the same scores, and weighted high-school GPAs with AP bumps are a separate calculation again.
Points-based gradebooks
Not every course uses category weights. A points-based gradebook adds raw points instead: 480 points earned out of 600 possible is 80%, regardless of how those points are distributed. If your syllabus lists points possible per assignment, convert each row to a percentage first, or leave the weight column blank and enter the percentages — the average is the same when the weights are the point totals.
Do not mix the two. A points total multiplied by a category weight produces a number that means nothing.
Common mistakes
- Counting ungraded work as a zero. Only enter items that have a real score, or the grade reads far lower than it is.
- Mixing weights with point totals in the same calculation.
- Forgetting a dropped score. If the lowest quiz is dropped, leave it out so the result matches the gradebook.
- Rounding too early. An 89.5% can round to an A− or stay a B+ depending on the school rule — keep decimals until the end.
- Ignoring a curve. Enter the curved score, not the raw one.
FAQ
How do I calculate my grade?
Multiply each score by its weight, add the results, and divide by the total weight. With homework 92% at 20%, quizzes 88% at 15%, a midterm 78% at 25% and a final 85% at 40%, the grade is 18.4 + 13.2 + 19.5 + 34.0 = 85.1%.
What is a weighted grade?
A grade where some items count more than others. If the final is 40% and a homework set is 5%, one point on the final moves your course grade eight times as much as one point on the homework.
How do I calculate my grade without weights?
Leave the weight column empty. The calculator then adds your scores and divides by how many there are. Use it when every item is worth the same, like a set of quizzes.
What grade do I need on the final?
(Target − current × (1 − final weight)) ÷ final weight. At 85.1% with a 30% final, a target of 88% needs 94.8% and a target of 90% needs 101.4% — which is why the number sometimes tells you the goal has already gone.
How much does the final exam matter if it is worth 20%?
Twenty points of your course grade. Scored zero and 100, the final moves your total by 20 percentage points, which is usually one letter grade or a little more. At 40% it moves 40 points, which is closer to two letter grades.
What is 85% as a letter grade?
A B on the standard plus/minus scale, worth 3.0 grade points. 87–89% is a B+, 83–86% is a B, and 80–82% is a B−.
Can I add extra credit?
Yes, if the extra credit sits outside the 100% of weighted categories. Add it as its own row with a weight, or add the points before converting to a percentage. How a teacher applies it varies, so follow the syllabus.
Does this work for college and high school?
Yes. Weighted averaging is identical from middle school to university. What changes is the grading scale and whether a C or better is required for credit in your major.
How do I turn a course grade into GPA?
Convert the letter to grade points on the 4.0 scale — A 4.0, A− 3.7, B+ 3.3, B 3.0 — multiply by the course credit hours, and divide by total credits. This page shows the points for one course.
What is a passing grade?
A D, which is 60% on the standard scale. Courses that count toward a major often require a C (70%) or higher, and pass/fail courses set their own floor.
Why does my calculated grade differ from the portal?
Usually a dropped score, an ungraded item entered as zero, a curve applied after the fact, or a category weight the syllabus does not spell out. Compare row by row against the gradebook before assuming the arithmetic is wrong.