How GPA is calculated
Your Grade Point Average is a weighted average of your grades, where each course's contribution depends on how many credit hours it's worth. A 4-credit course with an A counts for more than a 1-credit course with an A.
To calculate it: convert each letter grade to its grade point value (using the standard 4.0 scale below), multiply by the course's credit hours, add up all these values, then divide by the total credit hours across all courses.
Standard 4.0 grade scale
- A / 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
Frequently asked questions
How is GPA calculated?
GPA is calculated by converting each course grade to a grade point value, multiplying it by the course's credit hours, summing these values across all courses, and dividing by the total number of credit hours.
What is the standard GPA scale?
Most US institutions use a 4.0 scale, where an A equals 4.0, a B equals 3.0, a C equals 2.0, a D equals 1.0, and an F equals 0.0, with plus and minus grades adding or subtracting roughly 0.3.
Why do credit hours matter for GPA?
Credit hours represent the weight or workload of a course. A course with more credit hours has a larger impact on your overall GPA than a course with fewer credit hours, even if the grades are the same.
Does this calculator work for cumulative GPA?
Yes. Enter all courses you want included — whether from a single term or your entire academic history — and the calculator will compute the overall weighted average across all of them.