GPA Calculator
Find the minimum GPA you need in future courses to raise your GPA to a target, or keep it above a certain level.
A student came to me sure her GPA was a 3.4. She'd had a 3.8 one semester and a 3.0 the next, and (3.8 + 3.0) ÷ 2 = 3.4. Except the 3.8 was over 6 credits and the 3.0 was over 18. Her real GPA was 3.2. That's the kind of mistake this GPA calculator prevents. Add your courses with letter grades and credit hours, pick weighted or unweighted, and it gives you a semester or cumulative GPA on the 4.0 scale.
Entering your courses
One row per course. Choose the letter, enter the credit hours (use 1 for a typical full-year high school class), and tick AP, IB or honors if you want weighted. For cumulative, add your previous GPA and how many credits it covers.
A 12-credit semester, unweighted:
| Course | Grade | Points | Credits | Quality points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | A | 4.0 | 3 | 12.0 |
| Calculus | B+ | 3.3 | 4 | 13.2 |
| History | B | 3.0 | 3 | 9.0 |
| Spanish | A- | 3.7 | 2 | 7.4 |
41.6 quality points ÷ 12 credits = 3.47.
The math
GPA = Σ (grade points × credits) ÷ Σ credits
Credits are doing real work here. The B+ in 4-credit calculus pulled harder than the A- in 2-credit Spanish. Only have percentages? Turn them into letters with the letter grade calculator first.
Weighted GPA gives a bump to harder classes, often +0.5 for honors and +1.0 for AP or IB HL. An A in AP Biology becomes a 5.0. Schools vary a lot, and many colleges recompute your GPA their own way regardless. The blog has a full walkthrough of calculating weighted GPA.
Cumulative GPA stacks terms: (old GPA × old credits + new quality points) ÷ total credits. With a 3.20 over 30 credits plus this semester's 41.6 over 12: (96 + 41.6) ÷ 42 = 3.28.
Things to watch
- That semester-averaging trap from the top. Always weight by credits.
- Pass/fail courses usually stay out of GPA. A fail sometimes counts, so check.
- Retakes: some colleges replace the old grade, others average both.
- A+ is capped at 4.0 at most schools, not 4.3.
Coming from a different system? Philippine students can convert GWA to GPA, and IB students can total their diploma points with the IB grade calculator.
Also worth knowing: the more credits you've finished, the slower your cumulative GPA moves. That isn't you failing to improve. It's arithmetic. Early semesters count for the most, so a strong first year really pays off.
What one semester can actually do
People ask me this a lot, so here's a concrete case. You're at a 3.10 after 60 credits, and you take 15 credits next term with straight A's. That's (186 + 60) ÷ 75 = 3.28. A big jump for one term.
Same straight-A semester at 90 credits? (279 + 60) ÷ 105 = 3.23. Still good, but smaller.
So if you're trying to raise a cumulative GPA for a scholarship cutoff or grad school, start early, and take a full load when you're having a strong term. Running the numbers here before registration can help you decide how many credits to carry.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate my GPA?
Multiply each course's grade points by its credits, add those up, and divide by total credits. 41.6 over 12 credits is 3.47.
Weighted vs. unweighted, what's the difference?
Unweighted uses the plain 4.0 scale for everything. Weighted adds points for honors, AP or IB, so it can go over 4.0.
How do I get my cumulative GPA?
Old GPA × old credits, plus new quality points, divided by all credits. 3.20 over 30 plus 41.6 over 12 comes to 3.28.
Is a 3.5 GPA good?
Yes. It's roughly a B+/A- average and above typical averages in both high school and college.
Do pass/fail classes count?
A pass usually doesn't. It earns credit but no grade points. Some schools do count a fail.
How much can one semester raise my GPA?
It depends on how many credits you already have. At 30 credits, one strong term moves it a lot more than at 90.
From the blog
Want the reasoning behind the numbers? These guides go a bit deeper.