Japanese GPA Calculator

The S/A/B/C (秀·優·良·可) letters as a 4.0 GPA, credit-weighted - computed live.

Course recordJapan - S/A/B/C scale (4.0 GPA)

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Most Japanese universities now compute a GPA from the traditional letters: S (秀, 90+) carries 4.0, A (優, 80-89) is 3.0, B (良, 70-79) is 2.0, C (可, 60-69) is 1.0, and 不可 is 0, each weighted by course credits. Enter your courses below and the GPA updates as you type.

Two things worth knowing at the edges. Universities that skip the S grade map 優 to 4.0 instead - so the same transcript can produce two different GPAs depending on the table, and your grade report names which applies. And a JASSO scholarship does not ask for a different GPA: for students already enrolled, JASSO sets its academic standard by position - the top third of your faculty, or a GPA in the top half where financial need is exceptional - so what matters is where this number places you among your classmates, not a second formula.

The scale this page uses

Grade	Grade points
S (秀, 90+)	4.0
A (優, 80-89)	3.0
B (良, 70-79)	2.0
C (可, 60-69)	1.0
F (不可, below 60)	0.0

Japan has no national grading instrument. This is the pattern at Kyushu Kyoritsu, read from its own GPA notice: S (秀) 4.0, A (優) 3.0, B (良) 2.0, C (可) 1.0 and 不可 0, weighted by course credits. Other universities set their own, some with an extra top grade, so your grade report states which table applies.

Source. This scale is set by Kyushu Kyoritsu University, GPA seido notice, which is the body that writes the rule. Click for authoritative source. We last read that document on 3 October 2026, and the sources page says when we check it again.

Worked examples

One of each passing grade

S, A, B and C, each in a 2-credit class. Each grade point is multiplied by the class's credits, and the total is divided by all the credits: (4 × 2 + 3 × 2 + 2 × 2 + 1 × 2) ÷ 8 = 20 ÷ 8 = 2.50. Halfway between a B and an A, which is about what you'd expect from one of each.

A 4-credit seminar and a fail

An S in a 4-credit seminar, then A, B and 不可 in three 2-credit classes: (4 × 4 + 3 × 2 + 2 × 2 + 0 × 2) ÷ 10 = 26 ÷ 10 = 2.60. The seminar counts twice as much as each small class. The fail earns no points, but its 2 credits stay in the total you divide by, so it still pulls the average down.

The same GPA, written out of 100

Two S grades and an A in 2-credit classes, plus an A in a 1-credit class: (4 × 2 + 4 × 2 + 3 × 2 + 3 × 1) ÷ 7 = 25 ÷ 7 = 3.57. Hiroshima University writes the same average as a score out of 100 and cuts it off after two decimal places: 25 × 100 ÷ (7 × 4) = 2500 ÷ 28 = 89.28. Both numbers describe the same grades, so check which form your university prints before you compare.

How this scale works

Each Japanese university sets its own grade labels. This page uses the five-step version that Hiroshima University prints: 秀 (S) is 90 or more out of 100, 優 (A) is 80 to 89, 良 (B) is 70 to 79, 可 (C) is 60 to 69, and 不可 (F) is under 60 and a fail. They carry 4, 3, 2, 1 and 0 grade points.

Your GPA is the average per credit: multiply each grade point by the class's credits, add them up, and divide by your credits. Japan's Ministry of Education describes GPA in exactly those terms, and its survey found that 746 universities, about 98 percent, used a GPA system at undergraduate level in 2022.

The details are set by each university, so read your own rules for three things. First, the labels and the points each one carries, which may not match this table. Second, the divisor: at Hiroshima University it's all your registered credits, so a fail counts. Third, how the number is written: Hiroshima, for example, reports it out of 100 and truncates it to two decimals.

Where these rules come from

Read from a government instrument and the institution's own rules, quoted below in their own words.

What a GPA is in Japan. The Ministry of Education (MEXT) defines the GPA system as grading each class on, for example, five steps, giving them "４、３、２、１、０のように数値(グレード・ポイント：ＧＰ)" (number values such as 4, 3, 2, 1, 0, the grade points) and taking "この単位あたりの平均" (the average per credit). The same survey reports that in 2022 "学部段階で746大学（約98％）が導入" (746 universities, about 98 percent, used it at undergraduate level). Source: MEXT, 令和４年度の大学における教育内容等の改革状況について (PDF).

A university's own table. Hiroshima University grades on "秀，優，良，可及び不可の 5 段階評価" with 秀 at "90 点以上", 優 80～89, 良 70～79, 可 60～69 and 不可 "60 点未満" (a fail). Its formula multiplies the credits of each grade by 4, 3, 2 and 1, divides by "総登録単位数× 4" (all registered credits times 4) and multiplies by 100, and says "小数点第 3 位以下を切り捨てる" (drop everything from the third decimal place). Source: Hiroshima University, 学業に関する評価の取扱いについて (PDF).

Checked on 2026-10-01 against the sources linked above.

Questions this calculator gets asked

How is GPA calculated at Japanese universities?

Letters convert to points - S (秀) = 4.0, A (優) = 3.0, B (良) = 2.0, C (可) = 1.0, 不可 = 0 - multiplied by each course's credits and divided by total credits. This calculator applies exactly that table.

What do 秀, 優, 良, and 可 mean?

The traditional Japanese grade ladder: 秀 (shū, excellent, 90+), 優 (yū, very good, 80-89), 良 (ryō, good, 70-79), 可 (ka, acceptable, 60-69), and 不可 (fuka, fail). Universities without 秀 award 優 from 80 up and map it to 4.0.

What is a good GPA in Japan?

Grades cluster in 優 and 良, so small GPA differences carry more information here than on a scale that spreads out. What a programme requires is published by that programme.

Does a JASSO scholarship use a different GPA?

Not a different formula - a different test. For students already enrolled, JASSO's published academic standard is positional: the top third of your faculty, or, where financial need is recognised as exceptional, a GPA in the top half of your school. So the number this calculator gives you is the right one to know; the question is where it places you. Your university applies the standard and can tell you the cut-off.

How does a Japanese GPA compare to a US one?

Directly in form - both are 4.0 scales - but Japanese grading awards fewer top marks in many faculties, which admissions offices familiar with Japan account for. Report the GPA with its scale and let the evaluator contextualize.

Is this Japanese GPA calculator free and private?

Yes. No sign-up, nothing uploaded - the GPA is computed in your browser and your courses never leave your device.

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