How to Calculate a Wilks Score to Compare Powerlifting Totals

Why raw totals need a handicap

A heavier lifter almost always moves more absolute weight than a lighter one, simply because a bigger body can support more muscle. If you ranked a meet by raw total, the heaviest athletes would win by default, and a superb lightweight would never place. The Wilks coefficient fixes this by scaling each total against what is typical for that bodyweight.

The result is a strength-per-bodyweight score that lets a 132 lb (60 kg) woman and a 265 lb (120 kg) man share one leaderboard. It is why meets award a Best Lifter title across all classes using Wilks or a similar coefficient, rather than simply crowning the person who lifted the most iron.

The formula and a worked example

The Wilks coefficient is C = 500 ÷ (a + bx + cx² + dx³ + ex⁴ + fx⁵), where x is bodyweight in kilograms. Men and women use different constants a through f, which is why the two sexes are scored separately. Your Wilks score is simply your competition total multiplied by this coefficient — powerlifting totals sum your best squat, bench and deadlift.

Take a man weighing 200 lb (91 kg) with a 1,300 lb (590 kg) total. Plugging 91 into the men's formula gives a coefficient of about 0.596, so his Wilks is 590 × 0.596 ≈ 775. A woman at 132 lb (60 kg) with an 880 lb (400 kg) total has a coefficient near 0.98, giving roughly 392. The calculator holds all the constants, so you just enter total, bodyweight and sex.

Wilks, Wilks2 and IPF GL points

The original Wilks formula dates to 1994 and remains widely used, but it is not the only scoring system. A 2020 update called Wilks2 refit the coefficients to newer data, and the IPF now uses its own GL Points for international meets. Each answers the same question — strength relative to bodyweight — with slightly different math.

For comparing yourself over time or against training partners, the original Wilks is perfectly fine as long as everyone uses the same system. Just be sure you are comparing like with like: a Wilks score means nothing next to an IPF GL score. Check which coefficient a leaderboard uses before reading too much into where you land.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good Wilks score?

As a rough guide, a Wilks around 300 is a solid intermediate, 400 is advanced, and above 500 is elite territory reached by competitive lifters. Values differ by federation and era, so treat these as broad landmarks rather than hard cutoffs.

Does a lighter lifter really get an advantage?

Not an advantage — a fair adjustment. A lighter lifter has a higher coefficient because moving a given weight is harder relative to their size. The formula equalizes the comparison; it does not hand anyone free points.

Is the Wilks score still used?

Yes, widely, though it now shares the stage with newer systems. Many federations and gym leaderboards still use the original Wilks, while the updated Wilks2 and the IPF's GL Points have gained ground for official international rankings.

Do I use pounds or kilograms?

The Wilks formula is defined in kilograms, so any pounds figure is converted first (1 lb ≈ 0.4536 kg). The calculator accepts either unit and does the conversion, so enter your numbers in whichever you train with.