Heavy classes move your GPA most
A 4-credit class carries four times the weight of a 1-credit lab. If you have to prioritise, the high-credit classes are where a better grade changes your GPA the most.
College GPA calculator
Letter grade and credit hours for each class. Your GPA updates as you type.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate my college GPA?
Multiply each class’s grade points by its credit hours to get quality points, add the quality points together, and divide by the total credit hours. An A (4.0) in a 3-credit class and a B (3.0) in a 4-credit class give 24 quality points over 7 credits: a 3.43 GPA.
Do credit hours change my GPA?
Yes. A college GPA is weighted by credits, so a 4-credit class moves it more than a 1-credit lab. The same A and C average 3.0 when both classes carry equal credits, but 3.33 when the A is in the 4-credit class and the C in a 2-credit one.
What is a 3.5 GPA as a letter grade?
On the standard 4.0 scale a 3.5 sits halfway between a B+ (3.3) and an A− (3.7), so it is roughly an A−/B+ average.
Do pass/fail classes count toward my GPA?
Usually not. At most colleges a Pass, No Pass, Withdrawal or Incomplete carries no grade points and its credits are left out of the division. Leave those classes out of the calculator.
How do I add this semester to my existing GPA?
Enter your current cumulative GPA and the credits it covers in the two optional boxes. The calculator turns them back into quality points, adds this term, and divides by all credits together.
How college GPA is calculated
Every letter grade has a grade-point value: an A is 4.0, a B is 3.0, and a plus or minus moves it by about a third of a point. Multiply that value by the class’s credit hours and you get the class’s quality points. Your GPA is all your quality points divided by all your credit hours.
The calculator above does exactly that and shows each line under “Show the math”, so you can check it against your transcript.
A worked example
Four classes in one semester, on the standard scale. The total is 39.3 quality points over 11 credits, so the semester GPA is 39.3 ÷ 11 = 3.57.
| Class | Grade | Points | Credits | Quality points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intro to Psychology | A | 4.0 | 3 | 12.0 |
| Calculus I | B+ | 3.3 | 4 | 13.2 |
| English Composition | A− | 3.7 | 3 | 11.1 |
| Biology Lab | B | 3.0 | 1 | 3.0 |
| Total | 11 | 39.3 |
Which grade scale does your college use?
Most US colleges use the standard 4.0 scale with plus and minus worth 0.3. Some give an A+ 4.3, some use thirds (an A− is 3.67), and some have no plus or minus at all. The difference is small but real: the same transcript can come out a few hundredths apart. Pick the scale in the calculator that matches your college’s catalog.
| Grade | 4.0 scale, A− = 3.7 | 4.3 scale, A+ = 4.3 | Thirds, A− = 3.67 | Whole letters only |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 4.0 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| A | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| A− | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.67 | 4.0 |
| B+ | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.33 | 3.0 |
| B | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| B− | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.67 | 3.0 |
| C+ | 2.3 | 2.3 | 2.33 | 2.0 |
| C | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| C− | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.67 | 2.0 |
| D+ | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.33 | 1.0 |
| D | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| D− | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.67 | 1.0 |
| F | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
What does not count
Grades with no grade points are left out of both the top and the bottom of the division. At most colleges these include:
- Pass/fail classes taken pass/fail (a Pass adds credits toward graduation, not to your GPA)
- Withdrawals (W), incompletes (I) and audits
- Transfer credit, which usually counts toward your degree but not your home GPA
- Repeated classes, where many colleges count only the newer grade — check your registrar’s repeat policy
Check it against your transcript
Enter last semester’s grades and compare the result with your official term GPA. If they match, you have the right scale selected for projecting this semester.
What this calculator assumes
- Grade points come from the scale you pick; the standard scale is The Princeton Review’s published table. All four scales are listed on the how we calculate page.
- Rows without a letter grade or with zero credits are ignored, not counted as zeros.
- Your GPA is shown to two decimals. Some registrars truncate instead of rounding, so your transcript can read 0.01 lower.