Marks and GradesHow to calculate the percentage of marks
Percentage means "out of a hundred". To find it, divide the marks you scored by the maximum marks and multiply by 100.
percentage = marks obtained ÷ maximum marks × 100
One subject
You scored 68 out of 80 in science. 68 ÷ 80 = 0.85, and 0.85 × 100 = 85. Your percentage is 85%.
Several subjects
Add all the marks you scored. Add all the maximum marks. Then divide the first total by the second and multiply by 100.
| Subject | Marks | Out of |
|---|---|---|
| English | 78 | 100 |
| Hindi | 84 | 100 |
| Mathematics | 91 | 100 |
| Science | 73 | 100 |
| Social science | 80 | 100 |
| Total | 406 | 500 |
406 ÷ 500 × 100 = 81.2%.
When subjects have different maximum marks
Do not average the percentages of the subjects. Add the marks and add the maximums. Suppose theory is 52 out of 70 and practical is 28 out of 30. The total is 80 out of 100, so 80%. If you averaged the two percentages (74.3% and 93.3%) you would get 83.8%, which is wrong, because the theory paper carries more marks.
Averaging percentages is correct only when every subject has the same maximum.
Best of five
Some colleges and employers ask for the percentage in your best five subjects. Leave out the lowest-scoring subject or subjects, then calculate as above. Which subjects may be left out, and whether English must be included, is decided by the institution that asks, not by you. Read their rule. The page best of five explained says what the boards themselves do and do not publish.
Rounding
Work to at least two decimal places and round only at the end. 406 ÷ 500 is exactly 81.2. With 407 out of 600 you get 67.8333..., written 67.83%. Do not round up to cross a cut-off: 59.6% is not 60% unless the form says percentages are rounded, and most do not.
Going backwards
To find the marks for a given percentage, multiply the maximum by the percentage and divide by 100. To score 75% in a 500-mark examination you need 500 × 75 ÷ 100 = 375 marks. Our marks needed calculator does this, including when some papers are already finished.
Common mistakes
- Dividing by the number of subjects when the maximums differ.
- Counting an additional sixth subject in the total when the form asks for five.
- Leaving out practical or internal marks that are part of the subject total.
- Typing the maximum as 100 when the paper was out of 80.
Use the percentage calculator to add up any number of subjects and see the working.
Check with your board or university. The rules quoted on this site were read in the official documents on 12 November 2026. Boards and universities revise them, and yours may differ. For anything that decides an admission or a job, use the rule printed on your own mark sheet or in your institution's regulations. This is an independent site.