How to calculate your marks percentage and target

Steps

1. Add up your marks obtained and the total marks. Here: 432 and 500.
2. Divide the marks obtained by the total: 432 ÷ 500 = 0.864.
3. Multiply by 100: 86.4%.
4. For a target, multiply the target percentage by the total and divide by 100: 90 × 500 ÷ 100 = 450.
5. Subtract what you have to see what is missing: 450 − 432 = 18. Or use the marks percentage calculator.

More examples

Scoring 340 out of 400 is 85%. To reach 90% you need 360 marks, which is 20 more. Scoring 72 out of 80 is exactly 90%. For 95% you need 76 marks, which is 4 more.

The marks needed are rounded up to the next whole mark, because you cannot score a fraction of a mark in most exams, and falling short by even a little misses the target.

Across several papers

To get an overall percentage, add all the marks obtained and all the total marks, and divide once. Do not average the percentages of papers with different totals, because that gives a larger paper the same weight as a smaller one. If the papers have the same total, the two methods agree.

Using the target

Work backwards from the target to plan. Suppose the earlier papers gave 340 out of 400 and the last paper is out of 100. A target of 85% of 500 is 425 marks, so the last paper must give 85. Check your board’s rules on rounding and on which papers count, because the percentage printed on a marksheet is the one used officially.