Cumulative GPA Calculator
Combine terms
Enter each term's GPA and its credits. Blank rows are ignored.
| Term GPA | Credits |
|---|
Reach a target
4.0 standard; set 4.33 or 5.0 if your school uses one.
How the math works
Both directions are the same identity read two ways. Combining: each term contributes GPA × credits, and the cumulative is the credit-weighted average. Solving: to end at the target, your total quality points must equal target × total credits, so the next term owes whatever the history has not yet supplied:
needed = (target × (current + planned) − currentGPA × current) ÷ planned
Worked example: a 2.80 over 45 credits, aiming for a 3.00, with 15 credits planned. Total credits after the term: 60. Points required: 3.00 × 60 = 180. Points banked: 2.80 × 45 = 126. The term owes 54 points over 15 credits — a 3.60 term. Realistic, but no accident: pulling an average up two-tenths against three times your credits takes a term eight-tenths above it.
Questions
How does the combine mode work?
Each term's GPA is multiplied by that term's credits, the products are summed, and the total is divided by all credits. Terms of 3.10 over 15 credits, 2.60 over 16, and 3.45 over 15 combine to 139.85 quality points over 46 credits - a 3.04 cumulative.
What formula does the target mode use?
needed = (target times (current credits plus planned credits) minus current GPA times current credits) divided by planned credits. A 2.80 over 45 credits aiming for 3.00 with 15 credits next term needs that term to average 3.60.
What does the not reachable state mean?
The required next-term GPA came out above your scale's maximum. No single term of that size can move the average far enough - the target needs more credits or more terms. The scale-max box (default 4.0) is editable for 4.33 and 5.0 systems.
What does already there mean?
The required next-term GPA is zero or below: even a 0.0 term would leave your cumulative at or above the target. The margin is finite, and the combine section lets you test a worst-case term against it.
Why does raising a GPA get harder every year?
Credits already banked outweigh the term you can still control. The same 15-credit term moves a 45-credit average two and a half times as much as a 135-credit average - the denominator grows, the lever shrinks. This tool makes that visible instead of hiding it.