See how Honors and AP lift your GPA.
Add each course with its grade, credit hours and level. We compute your weighted GPA (which can go above 4.0 thanks to the Honors and AP/IB boost) alongside the plain unweighted GPA colleges also see.
Your courses
What this means
Weighted vs unweighted, course by course
GPA scorecard
Every course, scored
Base points are the 4.0-scale grade points. Boost is added for the course level. Weighted points = (base + boost) times credits.
| Course | Grade | Level | Base | Boost | Credits | Weighted pts |
|---|
Weighted GPA, explained
How Weighted GPA Differs From Unweighted
Unweighted GPA uses a strict 4.0 scale regardless of course difficulty. Weighted GPA adds a boost, typically +0.5 for Honors and +1.0 for AP/IB, to reward students who take more rigorous coursework. A student with all B grades in AP classes can have a higher weighted GPA than a student with all A grades in regular classes.
Honors and AP/IB Conventions
The +0.5 Honors and +1.0 AP/IB boost is the most common US convention but is not universal. Some high schools use +0.33 for Honors. A few use a 5.0 cap that limits boost magnitude. International Baccalaureate scoring sometimes uses percentage scales. This calculator follows the standard +0.5 / +1.0 boost, the most widely recognized.
What Colleges Actually See
Most selective colleges recalculate GPA using their own formula because high schools weight so inconsistently. Both the weighted and unweighted GPA appear on transcripts, and admissions officers look at the strength of your curriculum alongside the numbers. Taking a hard course load and earning Bs is often valued more than easy As.
How to Improve Your Weighted GPA
Three levers: take more AP/IB courses (raises the ceiling), earn higher letter grades in courses you already take (raises the base), and avoid dropping rigor (an A in an easy class is worth less than a B+ in an AP). Plan your schedule to maximize all three over four years.
Common questions
Why does my AP grade show 5.0?
AP and IB courses get a +1.0 boost on top of the standard 4.0 scale. An A in an AP class becomes 4.0 + 1.0 = 5.0 quality points per credit.
Will colleges see weighted or unweighted GPA?
Both appear on your transcript. Selective colleges typically recalculate using their own formula to normalize across high schools, so what you see may not match what they compute.
Does an Honors class with a C still help my GPA?
Marginally. A C with +0.5 boost becomes 2.5, which is below the unweighted A (4.0). The Honors C does not hurt as much as a regular C, but it does not help either.
What's a competitive weighted GPA for top colleges?
Highly selective colleges (Ivy League, Stanford, MIT) typically see admitted students with weighted GPAs of 4.0 or higher. Mid-tier selective colleges look for 3.5+ weighted.
Does this calculator account for dual-enrollment classes?
Most high schools treat dual-enrollment college courses as AP-level (+1.0 boost). Select AP/IB for these courses to apply the boost.
Estimates only. Grade-point scales and weighting rules vary by school, and most selective colleges recalculate GPA their own way. Check your school profile for the exact convention.