Grade Calculator
Add each assignment with the points you earned and the points it was worth. Your course percentage and letter grade update as you type.
Grade
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Letter grade
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Points earned
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| Assignment | Earned | Possible | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
Sign in or create a free account to save this calculation. Everything else works without one.
Your grade is total points earned ÷ total points possible. Bigger assignments count for more automatically, because they carry more points — you do not need to weight anything yourself.
Related calculators
Weighted Grade Calculator
Calculate a course grade where homework, tests and projects each count for a different percentage.
Final Grade Calculator
Find the score you need on the final exam, or the course grade a given final score will give you.
Grade Average Calculator
Average a list of grades and see the highest, the lowest and the resulting letter grade.
Test Grade Calculator
Turn correct or wrong answers out of a total into a percentage and letter grade.
How to use this calculator
- Add each assignment, quiz or test, with the points you earned and the points it was out of.
- Names are optional — they only appear in the breakdown and in anything you copy.
- Pick the grading scale your school uses so the letter grade is right.
Leave out anything not yet graded to see where you stand now, or include it with an expected score to see where you are heading.
How the calculation works
Every assignment is worth whatever it is worth in points. Add up what you earned, add up what was available, and divide.
This is a points-based course, sometimes called total-points grading. It is the simpler of the two common systems, and the weighting happens by itself: a 200-point final counts twenty times as much as a 10-point homework because it carries twenty times the points.
A worked example
| Assignment | Earned | Possible | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quiz 1 | 45 | 50 | 90% |
| Midterm | 88 | 100 | 88% |
| Lab report | 27 | 30 | 90% |
| Total | 160 | 180 | 88.89% |
160 ÷ 180 = 0.8889, so 88.89% — a B+ on a standard scale.
Averaging the three percentages instead would give (90 + 88 + 90) ÷ 3 = 89.33%, which is nearly half a point higher. The difference comes from the midterm being worth 100 points while the other two are worth 50 and 30 — it deserves more weight, and the points method gives it that automatically.
Points or weighted categories?
Courses are graded one of two ways, and using the wrong method gives the wrong answer.
| If your syllabus says… | Use |
|---|---|
| Total points, or lists assignments with point values and nothing else | This calculator |
| Homework 20%, tests 50%, final 30% — categories adding to 100% | Weighted Grade Calculator |
| You just want to know what you need on the final | Final Grade Calculator |
Important notes and limitations
Your instructor's gradebook is the record
Courses drop lowest scores, apply curves, round in their own way and sometimes weight categories on top of points. This calculator does the arithmetic on what you enter; your syllabus describes the rules that actually apply.
- Dropped scores. If your lowest quiz is dropped, leave it out rather than entering it.
- Curves. A curve is applied after this arithmetic and varies by instructor.
- Rounding. Some instructors round 89.5% up to an A-, others do not round at all. Ask before assuming.
- Extra credit shows up as points earned without matching points possible, which is why a grade can exceed 100%.
Frequently asked questions
Is this the same as averaging my assignment percentages?
No, and the difference matters. This adds up all the points you earned and divides by all the points available, so a 100-point midterm counts ten times as much as a 10-point quiz. Averaging the percentages would treat them equally and give you the wrong number.
What if my course uses weighted categories instead?
Use the Weighted Grade Calculator. If your syllabus says something like "homework 20%, tests 50%, final 30%", that is a weighted course and points alone will not give the right answer.
Should I include assignments I have not done yet?
Leave them out to see where you stand now. Include them with an expected score to see where you are heading — just remember the second is a projection.
My grade is above 100%. Is that a mistake?
Usually it means extra credit, and the calculator leaves it as it is rather than capping it. If you did not earn extra credit, check for a points-possible figure entered too low.
What letter grade does my percentage give me?
That depends on your school's scale, which is why you can change it above. An 88% is a B+ on a scale with plus and minus grades and a plain B on one without.
Guides that explain this
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How to Calculate Weighted Grades
Turning a syllabus of percentages into a course grade, including what to do when your categories do not add up to 100%.
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How to Calculate Your Final Grade
Both directions of the final exam formula — the grade you will end with, and the score you need — plus when the target is out of reach.