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Different question values? Add their points first. Extra credit can take the score above 100%.
What is 12 out of 20 as a percentage?
12 out of 20 (12/20) is 60%, a D- on the common US plus/minus scale.
Letter scale: Common US plus/minus scale
The plus/minus cutoffs Wikipedia lists for US colleges: A+ from 97%, A 93, A- 90, B+ 87, B 83, B- 80 and so on down to D- at 60. It is not universal, so use your syllabus's cutoffs when they differ. Source: Wikipedia, “Academic grading in the United States”.
| Letter | Lowest % | Remove |
|---|
Each letter starts at its lowest percentage and runs up to the next letter.
Rounding and decimal places
Follow your syllabus. A displayed percentage can round up while the unrounded score stays below a cutoff.
Only changes how results are shown. Extra places appear when rounding would push a score over a letter cutoff.
A letter typed as a score counts as the lowest percentage for that letter on this scale. Use the original percentage when you have it.
Check a single cutoff with the grading scale calculator.
Grading scales checked . Sources are at the bottom of the page.
The fraction, decimal and missing points
12/20 = 3/5 = 0.6
Divide 12 earned points by 20 possible points, then multiply by 100 to get 60%. 20 − 12 = 8 points missed.
Or count by points: each point is worth 100 ÷ 20 = 5%, so 12 × 5 = 60%.
The letter above uses the common US plus/minus scale. Your class may set other cutoffs: open “Letter scale” above to choose another scale or enter your own. For the general method, see how to turn points into a percentage.
What does one more point change?
| Points earned | Percentage | Points missed |
|---|---|---|
| 11 out of 20 | 55% | 9 |
| 12 out of 20 | 60% | 8 |
| 13 out of 20 | 65% | 7 |
One point changes this score by 5 percentage points. The denominator stays 20.