How the conversion works
We find how far your GPA sits along its scale, then place it at the same position on the target scale.
All scales here start at 0, so a 3.4 on a 4.0 scale is 85% of the way up, which is 4.25 on a 5.0 scale, 8.5 on a 10-point scale and 17 on a 20-point scale.
Inputs
- GPA8.2
- From10-point
- To4.0
Calculation
- 8.2 ÷ 10 = 0.82 of the range
- 0.82 × 4 = 3.28
Result
3.28
linear estimate on 4.0
- GPA
- your value on the source scale
- Source maximum
- the top of that scale (4, 4.3, 5, 10, 20 or 100)
- Target maximum
- the top of the scale you are converting to
When to use a converted value
- Good for: getting a rough sense of where a grade sits when you move between countries or systems, or sanity-checking an application form.
- Not good for: filling in an official form that asks for a converted GPA. Use the institution's method, or report your original GPA and scale — most applications allow this.
Why conversions are approximate
Grading scales are not stretched copies of each other. They differ in three ways a formula can't capture:
- Where the pass mark sits. A 10/20 is a pass in France; 50% might be a fail elsewhere.
- How grades are distributed. A 16/20 can be rarer than a 4.0 at many US colleges.
- What's included. Weighted scales add bonus points for course level, so a 5.0 GPA isn't just a bigger 4.0.
That's why the result is labelled as a linear estimate. When an admissions office or employer publishes its own conversion table, use theirs.
If you have your letter grades, recalculating in the GPA calculator is more reliable than converting a finished GPA.
Questions
Is this an official GPA conversion?
No. It's a proportional estimate. Universities, scholarship bodies and employers each use their own tables, and those take priority. Use this to get a rough sense of where a GPA sits, not to report an equivalency.
Why does a 3.0 convert to 75%?
Because the conversion is linear: 3.0 is 75% of the way along a 0–4 scale. In real grading, a 3.0 is usually a B, which most US schools award for roughly 83–86%. That gap is exactly why the result is labelled an estimate.
How do I convert a weighted 5.0 GPA to 4.0?
Proportional conversion (dividing by 5 and multiplying by 4) gives a number, but it isn't the same as your unweighted GPA. For that, recalculate from your letter grades in the GPA calculator with weighting switched off.
Which scale does my country use?
It varies by country and often by institution: 10-point scales are common in India and parts of Europe, 20-point scales in France and several other countries, and 4.0 or 4.3 in North America. Pass marks also differ, which a linear conversion can't account for.