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High School GPA Calculator

Add your classes with grades, levels and credits, and see both numbers colleges look at: the unweighted GPA on the 4.0 scale and the weighted GPA, where honors classes add 0.5 and AP/IB classes add 1.0 grade point.

Weighted vs unweighted GPA

Unweighted GPA treats every class the same: A = 4.0 whether it's PE or AP Physics. Weighted GPA rewards rigor — the most common scheme adds 0.5 for honors and 1.0 for AP/IB/dual-enrollment, so an A in AP counts as 5.0 and a weighted GPA can exceed 4.0.

Schemes vary by district (some weight on a 6-point scale, some only weight semester grades), and colleges usually recalculate applicants' GPAs to their own standard anyway. Know both numbers: unweighted for comparability, weighted for class rank. An F earns no bonus in any scheme.

unweighted: A = 4.0 cap
weighted: honors +0.5, AP/IB +1.0 (an F stays 0)

Worked examples

Example 1: junior-year schedule, both GPAs

A in AP Biology, A− in Honors English, B+ in Algebra II, A in Spanish (1 credit each).

  1. Unweighted points.
    4.0 + 3.7 + 3.3 + 4.0 = 15 → 15 ÷ 4 = 3.75
  2. Weighted points: AP +1.0, Honors +0.5.
    5.0 + 4.2 + 3.3 + 4.0 = 16.5 → 16.5 ÷ 4 = 4.13

Unweighted 3.75, weighted 4.13.

Example 2: is a B in AP better than an A in regular?

Compare one class: B in AP History vs A in regular History.

  1. Weighted points.
    AP B: 3.0 + 1.0 = 4.0; regular A: 4.0
  2. Unweighted points.
    B: 3.0; A: 4.0

Weighted GPA ties at 4.0, unweighted favors the A — but admissions readers generally value the AP attempt; the real answer is "an A in AP".

Example 3: semester with a stumble

C+ in AP Calculus among four otherwise-A regular classes (1 credit each, 5 total).

  1. Weighted points.
    (2.3 + 1.0) + 4 × 4.0 = 19.3
  2. Divide by 5 credits.
    19.3 ÷ 5 = 3.86 weighted (3.66 unweighted)

Weighted 3.86 — the AP bonus softens the C+, but doesn't erase it.

FAQ

What GPA do colleges actually look at?+

Most recalculate: they take your transcript and apply their own scale — often unweighted core-subject GPA plus separate credit for rigor (how many AP/IB courses you took). So maximize both: strong grades AND challenging courses.

Can a weighted GPA be above 5.0?+

Under the common +1.0 scheme, 5.0 is the ceiling (all A's in all AP). Districts with +2.0 scales or A+ bonuses can produce the 5.3–6.0 GPAs you sometimes see in valedictorian stories.

Does freshman year count?+

For the transcript GPA, yes, all four years count (senior spring usually arrives after decisions). A few university systems — notably the UC schools — compute their own GPA from 10th–11th grade only.

Middle school classes on a high school transcript?+

High-school-level courses taken early (Algebra I, a language) often appear on the transcript and may count toward GPA depending on district policy — check whether yours includes or excludes them.

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