Banked already
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Final Grade Calculator
Do you know what you need on the final? Put in your current grade, the target you want and how much the exam is worth — the answer is one line of arithmetic away.
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Enter your grades above
Final can add
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Best possible total
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Floor if you score 0
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The formula
A course total is a weighted average of everything that has been graded. Split it into everything that already happened and the exam that has not:
final total = current × (1 − w) + exam × w
Here w is the exam weight written as a decimal, so a final worth 40% of the course is w = 0.40 and everything before it is worth 1 − w = 0.60. You know the target total and you want the exam score, so solve the same equation backwards:
required exam score = (target − current × (1 − w)) ÷ w
Two numbers fall straight out of this and they bracket what is possible. Banked already is current × (1 − w) — the points you cannot lose, and also your floor if the exam goes badly. Best possible total is that same banked figure plus the whole weight of the exam, current × (1 − w) + 100 × w. If your target sits above the best possible total, no result on the exam gets you there.
A worked example
Say you are sitting at 84%, you want to finish at 85%, and the final is worth 40% of the course.
- Banked: 84 × 0.60 = 50.4 points are already locked in.
- The exam controls the remaining 40 points, so your ceiling is 50.4 + 40 = 90.4%.
- Required exam score: (85 − 50.4) ÷ 0.40 = 34.6 ÷ 0.40 = 86.5%.
So a B-grade student needs a solid B+ on the exam to move the needle by a single point, because most of the mark is already banked. Contrast that with an ambitious retake: sitting at 82% and aiming for 90% with an exam worth 30% requires (90 − 82 × 0.70) ÷ 0.30 = (90 − 57.4) ÷ 0.30 = 108.7%, which is above anything the exam can deliver — the ceiling there is 57.4 + 30 = 87.4%, so reaching 90% is off the table no matter how the exam goes.
Limitations
This model assumes one remaining graded item. Real syllabi are messier: if homework, a project and the final are all still open, put them together as a single "remaining weight" and read the result as the average you need across everything remaining. It also assumes the percentages you enter are the ones your school actually uses — some systems keep points rather than percentages, some drop the lowest quiz score, and some curve the final.
Nothing here accounts for extra credit, participation marks, rounding policies or whether your instructor rounds 89.5 up to 90. The arithmetic is exact; the inputs come from your syllabus, so read that first.
Frequently asked questions
It says I need more than 100% — what does that mean?
Exactly what it sounds like: your target is beyond reach even with a perfect exam. Compare it with the "Best possible total" figure to see the highest grade you can still finish with, and check whether extra credit or a curve applies before giving up on the higher mark.
What if I have several assignments left, not just a final?
Add their weights together and enter the total as the exam weight. The number you get back is the average score you need across everything remaining, which is often more useful than looking at each item separately.
Does it handle letter grades?
Convert to percentages first, using your own school's scale. A common US default is A 93, A− 90, B+ 87, B 83, B− 80, C+ 77, C 73, C− 70, but plenty of institutions use 90/80/70 instead.
Do teachers round up?
Some do, some do not, and the cutoff varies — 89.5 becomes 90 at some schools and stays a B+ at others. Ask rather than assume, and treat anything within about half a point of a boundary as genuinely borderline.
My current grade includes participation I cannot change. Does that matter?
No, as long as you enter the current percentage as-is. Whatever is already earned sits inside the banked figure, whether or not you can still influence it.
Last updated
For general calculations only. Always check your course syllabus for the actual weighting — see our disclaimer.