A letter grade needs a point value before it can enter a GPA calculation. The charts below show two illustrative mappings and a worked example. Use your institution’s actual table when reproducing a transcript.
A sample letter-grade chart, visualized
In this sample, A+ and A each receive 4.0 points. Other values are stated explicitly; the chart does not establish a national standard.
Letter grade to GPA points (4.0 scale)
Notice that A+ and A produce identically full bars — that's the visual signature of a capped scale. Below, we'll look at what changes when a school extends the scale instead.
The same chart, as a table
| Letter grade | Sample points |
|---|---|
| A+ / A | 4.0 |
| A− | 3.7 |
| B+ | 3.3 |
| B | 3.0 |
| B− | 2.7 |
| C+ | 2.3 |
| C | 2.0 |
| C− | 1.7 |
| D+ | 1.3 |
| D | 1.0 |
| D− | 0.7 |
| F | 0.0 |
The table deliberately omits percentage bands: those require a separate course grading rule. See percentage-to-letter conversion if you are starting with a raw score.
A grade-point value and a GPA cap are different
A school can assign the same points to A and A+, or assign A+ a higher value. It can also impose a separate limit on a reported average. These are policy choices; the arithmetic does not dictate which policy a school must use.
For a concrete example, ASU's grading policy assigns 4.33 points to A+ and caps cumulative GPA at 4.00. Therefore, “the cumulative GPA is capped at 4.0” does not necessarily mean “A+ contributes only 4.0 points.”
Check the course-point table first, then any term or cumulative reporting cap. Do not infer one from the other.
Two A+ point values, visualized
On a shared 0–4.3 axis, compare two hypothetical A+ values:
A and two sample A+ point values
The bars compare course points only. They do not show any subsequent cap on a term or cumulative average.
A quick worked example
Suppose a student earns the following grades in one semester:
| Course | Credits | Letter Grade | Grade Points (capped scale) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calculus | 4 | A+ | 4.0 |
| Chemistry | 4 | A- | 3.7 |
| English | 3 | B+ | 3.3 |
| Art History | 2 | A | 4.0 |
Total credits: 4 + 4 + 3 + 2 = 13
Total quality points: (4.0×4) + (3.7×4) + (3.3×3) + (4.0×2) = 16.0 + 14.8 + 9.9 + 8.0 = 48.7
GPA = 48.7 ÷ 13 = 3.75
If this same student's school used the extended scale instead, only the Calculus grade point value would change (4.0 → 4.3), adding 0.3 × 4 = 1.2 quality points. The new total is 49.9, and 49.9 ÷ 13 = 3.84 — an increase of about 0.09 in this hypothetical uncapped average. The four-credit weight must be included in the adjustment.
Common edge cases
- Schools with no plus/minus grading: If your institution only issues whole letters, skip the modifiers entirely and use the base value (A = 4.0, B = 3.0, and so on).
- A+ that isn't achievable in every course: Some instructors or departments choose not to award A+ at all, even where the school's official scale technically allows it.
- Different plus/minus increments: A scale may use 0.33 instead of 0.3 per modifier (making B+ worth 3.33 rather than 3.3), so do not substitute one increment for the other.
- Graduate-level compressed scales: Some graduate programs use a narrower effective range, where a B is close to the lowest grade that still counts favorably, changing how much weight the top of the chart carries.
Try it yourself
Use the GPA calculator with a scale that matches your record. If its preset differs, create a custom grading scale. Check any separate reporting cap yourself; adding a grade value does not implement an institution’s full policy.
