DOTS Calculator (and Wilks): Score Your Powerlifting Total

Enter your sex, bodyweight and squat, bench and deadlift—or your total—and the calculator returns your DOTS and Wilks scores. Both scale your total against what’s expected at your bodyweight, so you can compare lifters of different sizes. DOTS is the fairer of the two.

How do you use the DOTS calculator?

Enter your sex, bodyweight and either your three best lifts or your total, in lb or kg. The calculator converts everything to kilograms and shows your DOTS and original Wilks scores side by side. Use lifts from one day or block, performed to competition standards.

1. Enter bodyweight from the day you lifted.
2. Enter your squat, bench and deadlift, or enter their combined total.
3. Compare your score with another lifter or with your own score from a different block.

The formulas run in kilograms; one pound equals exactly 0.45359237 kilograms. DOTS is fitted for bodyweights from 40–210 kg for men and 40–150 kg for women; outside that range, the calculator uses the nearest limit and tells you. Gym lifts count, but high squats or touch-and-go benches can make a gym total score higher than a platform result. For estimated lifts, use the 1RM calculator, to estimate each lift from a rep set, and browse all our lifting calculators.

How is a DOTS score calculated?

DOTS equals your total in kilograms multiplied by 500, divided by a fourth-degree polynomial of your bodyweight. It uses separate coefficients for men and women. Tim Konertz created DOTS, which stands for Dynamic Objective Team Scoring; the German federation adopted it beginning in 2020 (OpenPowerlifting’s DOTS coefficients; DOTS background).

DOTS = total × 500 ÷ (A·bw⁴ + B·bw³ + C·bw² + D·bw + E)

Men:
A −0.0000010930, B 0.0007391293, C −0.1918759221
D 24.0900756, E −307.75076

Women:
A −0.0000010706, B 0.0005158568, C −0.1126655495
D 13.6175032, E −57.96288

For example, an 83 kg (183 lb) man totaling 600 kg (1,323 lb) scores about 405 DOTS and 400 Wilks.

Wilks applies the same basic idea with a fifth-degree polynomial and a numerator of 500. This calculator uses the original Wilks coefficients, not Wilks-2, whose 2020 update changed the numerator to 600 (Wilks coefficient history).

DOTS vs Wilks vs IPF GL: which score should you trust?

If you compete in the IPF, use GL because that is the federation’s ranking formula. Otherwise, use DOTS: in the IPF’s 2020 evaluation of championship data going back to 2011, GL ranked first, DOTS second, and both Wilks versions trailed (IPF formula evaluation).

• The evaluation scores, where lower is better: GL 23, DOTS 44, Wilks-2 50, Wilks 57, and the older IPF formula 66.
• An independent study of 26,472 open lifters found Wilks could fairly compare 53 of 98 weight-class pairings (54.1%) (Ferland, Allard & Comtois, 2020).
• IPF GL uses separate coefficients for men and women, classic and equipped lifting, and full meets and bench-only events. It has been valid at IPF-sanctioned events since May 1, 2020 (IPF GL coefficients; IPF formula rules).
• GL’s 100 points represents the average elite lifter’s level at that bodyweight, so 80 points is about 80% of that reference. This calculator does not compute GL.

What is a good DOTS or Wilks score?

There are no official grades, so we anchored scores to real lifts. A 180 lb man at Strength Level’s “intermediate” standard on all three lifts scores about 268 DOTS; “advanced” is about 338 and “elite” about 413. For a 150 lb woman, those scores are about 230, 311 and 401.

The table combines squat, bench and deadlift standards at the same level, then converts each total using the DOTS and original Wilks formulas. Strength Level’s figures describe lifts logged by its users (squat, bench press, deadlift).

• A 300 score is solid: between intermediate and advanced for a 180 lb man, and near advanced for a 150 lb woman. Strength Level defines “intermediate” as stronger than 50% of its users and associates it with about two years of regular training.
• For broader context, see the 1000 lb club and how long it takes and how much the average man can lift. These app-user benchmarks describe a trained population, not everyone who lifts.

How should you use your score in training?

Compare yourself with yourself, especially when your bodyweight changes. If a bulk adds weight and your DOTS rises, you gained strength faster than size; if it stays flat, the extra weight didn’t help the bar. On a cut, a steady DOTS suggests you kept your strength.

• Recalculate at each meet or training block using that day’s bodyweight.
• Track total and DOTS together: if your total rises while DOTS stays flat, most of the gain came from getting heavier.
• Don’t cut weight just to chase a higher gym-test score; DOTS is a ranking tool, not a training goal.

If you’re planning a gain phase, learn how to lean bulk without stalling. The score is useful feedback, but your lifts and training choices are what move progress forward.

What if your total has stopped going up?

Then your score stalls with it; the cause is in your training or recovery, not the formula. Stalled totals often trace to a missing progression rule, too little heavy practice, testing more than training, or recovery spent elsewhere.

• Check each lift separately; a stuck total often comes down to one lift.
• Look for a progression rule that tells you when to add weight, and enough practice with heavy attempts.
• Train the sticking point instead of repeatedly testing the same limit.
• Check sleep, stress and whether a diet deficit is cutting into recovery.

If your total is stalled, find out what’s capping your total. The strength track can help rank likely causes for your lifts so you have a clearer place to start.

FAQ

How do I calculate my DOTS score?

Multiply your total in kilograms by 500, then divide by the DOTS polynomial for your sex and bodyweight. Enter your sex, bodyweight and three lifts or total in the calculator, and it does the calculation. An 83 kg man with a 600 kg total scores about 405.

Is a 300 Wilks score good?

Yes, it’s solid. Using Strength Level’s app-user standards, a 180 lb man who is intermediate on all three lifts scores about 265 Wilks, while an advanced lifter scores about 334. For a 150 lb woman, 300 is close to advanced.

What is considered a good IPF GL score?

GL is scaled so 100 points equals the average elite IPF lifter at your bodyweight, making 80 points about 80% of that level. For scale, a 180 lb man at Strength Level’s intermediate standard on all three lifts scores about 55 GL points.

Is DOTS better than Wilks?

For comparing lifters of different sizes, yes. In the IPF’s 2020 evaluation of championship data, DOTS ranked second only to IPF GL and ahead of both Wilks versions. Wilks remains useful for comparison with older results, which is why the calculator shows both.