DOTS calculator (with Wilks and IPF GL points)

A relative strength score turns a powerlifting total into points that account for bodyweight, so a 59 kg lifter and a 120 kg lifter can be ranked on one list. With an 83 kg bodyweight and a 600 kg raw total, a man scores about 405 DOTS, 83 IPF GL points, 401 Wilks and 481 Wilks2020. Those are four different scales, not four different verdicts.

What this calculator works out

Every score here has the same shape: your total multiplied by a coefficient that shrinks as bodyweight goes up. Heavier lifters lift more in absolute terms, but not in proportion to their size, so the coefficient evens that out. The formulas differ in how the curve was fitted and to whose results.

Here x is bodyweight in kg, and every formula has separate coefficients for men and women.

DOTS

DOTS was created by Tim Konertz for the BVDK, the German IPF member federation, so men and women could be scored together in team competitions. The coefficients used here are the ones in OpenPowerlifting's published source code, which also notes the bodyweight range: 40 to 210 kg for men and 40 to 150 kg for women, with values outside held at the edge. OpenPowerlifting ranks lifters by DOTS by default, which is a big reason the number is so widely quoted.

IPF GL points

The International Powerlifting Federation replaced its earlier formula with IPF GL points from 1 May 2020 for all IPF sanctioned events, and asks its member federations to use the same method nationally. The official coefficient document lists A, B and C for men and women, classic and equipped, powerlifting and bench press. It sets the average elite lifter at each bodyweight to 100 points, so a GL score reads roughly as "percent of elite level for your size". That document is labelled for May 2020 to December 2023 and says coefficients should be reviewed on a four-year cycle; as of this writing the IPF formula page still links those 2020 coefficients, which is what this tool uses. This tool scores the three-lift total only.

Wilks and Wilks2020

The original Wilks formula, by Robert Wilks, was the standard for many years and the IPF used it until the end of 2018. In 2020 Wilks published new coefficient tables on a 600-point scale. The coefficients here match Powerlifting Australia's published Wilks table to four decimals (for example 0.8016 for an 83 kg man). Because the scale changed, a Wilks2020 score is not a "corrected" old Wilks, it is a different number.

Worked example

An 83 kg man with a 600 kg raw total:

• DOTS: coefficient 0.6751 × 600 = 405.05
• IPF GL (classic): 600 × 100 ÷ (1199.72839 − 1025.18162 × e^(−0.00921 × 83)) = 83.06
• Wilks: coefficient 0.6675 × 600 = 400.50
• Wilks2020: 0.8016 × 600 = 480.99

The same 600 kg at 83 kg for a woman gives 555.26 DOTS and 113.85 IPF GL, which shows why every score is sex-specific.

To check the maths against published numbers, we ran real meet results through the same formulas. OpenPowerlifting lists John Haack at 99.1 kg with a 1,044 kg raw total as 645.14 DOTS, 637.69 Wilks and 132.46 GL; this calculator gives the same to two decimals. It also reproduces a result OpenPowerlifting's own tests take from the 2019 IPF World Open Championships: an equipped 1,035 kg total at 92.04 kg scores 112.85 GL.

Which score should you use?

• Entering an IPF-affiliated meet? Best lifter awards use IPF GL points, so that's the one to track.
• Comparing yourself with lifters on OpenPowerlifting or across federations? DOTS, because it's the default sort there and doesn't change with equipment.
• Reading older results or articles? They will usually mean original Wilks. Don't compare an old Wilks with a Wilks2020 number.

Limits worth knowing

These scores were fitted to competition lifters, most of them experienced. They rank performances at a meet; they aren't a fitness grade.

• Not a beginner progress tracker. Early on, your total climbs fast while bodyweight swings, and the score just mirrors your total. Track the lifts themselves; the one-rep max calculator and a sensible sets-and-reps plan help more.
• Gym lifts are not meet lifts. Competition rules demand depth on the squat, a pause on the bench and full lockout. A gym total with high squats will flatter every score.
• The ends of the bodyweight range are rough. Each formula has a defined bodyweight range, and outside it the coefficient is simply held at its edge value.
• Bigger isn't automatically better. Gaining weight to raise your total can lower your score, which is the point of the formulas.

If you're under 18 or managing a medical condition, get a coach or doctor to sign off before testing maxes.

Useful links

• IPF GL Formula page and announcement, International Powerlifting Federation
• IPF GL Coefficients, 2020 (PDF)
• OpenPowerlifting coefficient source code: DOTS, Wilks, Wilks2020, GL
• Powerlifting Australia: Wilks formula tables
• Barbell plate calculator for loading your attempts

General information for training and comparison, not medical advice.