How to Compute Cumulative GPA

Your cumulative grade point average (CGPA) is the total number of grade points earned divided by the total number of credits taken, where "total" means you include each completed term or year. CGPA can be calculated in two different ways:

(1) You can add up all of your grade points for each year you have attended school and divide by the total number of credits taken.

(2) You can compute the weighted average of your GPAs for each term, where the weights are the number of credits you completed each term.

The calculator on the left uses the second method. (To apply the first method, use the standard GPA calculator.)

Example 1

Sara attends college for four years and her GPAs for each of the four years are

3.82, 3.14, 3.70, 3.96.

The number of credits she completed each year are, respectively,

28, 36, 33, 32

Her cumulative GPA is thus

[3.82(28)+3.14(36)+3.70(33)+3.96(32)] ÷
[28+36+33+32]

= 468.82/129 = 3.634

Example 2

Steve's high school awards more grade points for Advanced Placement classes. He takes many AP classes and receives good grades, so his GPAs for each of the eight semesters of high school are

4.00, 3.92, 4.00, 4.08, 3.84, 3.76, 4.24, 4.16

During the first two years of high school he takes 7 credits per semester; during the last two years he takes 6 credits per semester. His CGPA is

[4.00(7)+3.92(7)+4.00(7)+4.08(7)+
+3.84(6)+3.76(6)+4.24(6)+4.16(6)]/52
= 208/52 = 4.00.


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You can use the calculator above to compute any weighted average, not just GPAs. Enter the amount of each quantity in the second column and the weights in the third column.

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