This works out a grade point average, weighted by each course’s credit hours — the standard method most US institutions use, and the reason a 1-credit elective and a 4-credit core course don’t count equally toward the final number.
How it works
Credit-weighted GPA
GPA = Σ(grade points × credit hours) ÷ Σ(credit hours)
Grade points use the common 4.0 scale: A = 4.0, A− = 3.7, B+ = 3.3, B = 3.0, and so on down to F = 0.0.
Why credit-weighting is the whole point
A plain average of grade points — ignoring credit hours entirely — treats a 1-credit pass/fail elective the same as a 4-credit core course, which most institutions explicitly do not do. Weighting by credits means a heavier course pulls the overall average toward its own grade more strongly than a lighter one does, which is the entire reason the credit-hours field exists rather than just averaging letter grades directly.
There is no single official GPA scale
The 4.0 = A style scale used here is the most common US convention, but institutions genuinely vary — some use plus/minus grading with slightly different point values, some use a 4.3 or 4.5 scale, some don’t use a 4-point scale at all. A transcript GPA computed by your own institution’s registrar is the authoritative figure for anything official; this is a general-purpose estimate using the common convention.
How to use this calculator
- Enter one course per line: letter grade, comma, credit hours.
- Read the weighted GPA, total credits, and course count.
Frequently asked questions
Does this match my school’s official GPA exactly?
It should, if your school uses the standard 4.0 scale shown here — but always check against your own institution’s grading policy for anything that actually matters, since scales and rounding conventions do vary.
What grades does this accept?
A, A−, B+, B, B−, C+, C, C−, D and F, each mapped to the standard 4.0-scale point value. A grade outside this list, or a malformed line, is declined rather than silently skipped.
Why does a 1-credit A and a 5-credit C not average to a B?
Because they aren’t weighted equally — the 5-credit course counts five times as much toward the total as the 1-credit one does, so the weighted average sits much closer to the C than a simple midpoint would suggest.
Can I use this for a single semester or a cumulative GPA?
Both — enter whichever set of courses you want averaged. For a cumulative GPA across multiple semesters, list every course from every semester together.
What if I have a pass/fail course with no letter grade?
This calculator needs an actual letter grade for every line — a pass/fail course typically doesn’t factor into GPA at all at most institutions, so it’s usually correct to leave it out entirely rather than trying to assign it a grade.
