Written by Christian Chinonso
Founder, LearnViaHub | Academic Credential & International Student Research
Short answer
Brazilian universities grade on a 0 to 10 scale, where 10 is the highest. There is no national passing mark: each institution sets its own, such as 5.0 for undergraduates at USP, PUC-Rio and UFES, and 6.0 at UTFPR and Universidade São Francisco. Many graduate programs record letter concepts (A, B, C, R) instead of numbers.
We found no official Brazil-to-US GPA formula. A US program or a credential evaluator converts your grades course by course, so report your grades as your transcript shows them, together with your average (the CR) and your university’s grading scale.
Last checked October 15, 2026 against university regulations and official sources. Part of our GPA systems around the world guide.
Brazil grade lookup tool
The tool gives an estimate. The sections below explain how Brazilian grades work and where conversions come from, so you can check any result.
The 0 to 10 scale
At the University of São Paulo, undergraduate grades range from 0.0 to 10.0 and can be rounded to the nearest tenth (USP). PUC-Rio’s academic information sheet gives the same range, notes that grading scales can vary even within one institution, and says grading is fairly severe: the top grades go to relatively few students and the failure rate in a course can be high (PUC-Rio).
Brazil had 2,561 higher education institutions and about 10.2 million students in 2024, according to the INEP Higher Education Census as reported by Agência Brasil. With that many institutions, rules differ, so the mark that counts is the one in your own university’s regulation.
Passing marks at Brazilian universities
These are the published rules of six institutions. They show that 5.0 and 6.0 are both common, and that the rule can differ between undergraduate and graduate study at the same university.
| Institution | Minimum to pass | Minimum attendance |
|---|---|---|
| USP (state, São Paulo) | Undergraduate 5.0; graduate uses letter concepts A, B, C | 70% undergraduate, 75% graduate |
| PUC-Rio (private, non-profit) | Undergraduate 5.0; graduate 6.0 | 75% (department guide) |
| UFES (federal) | Undergraduate 5.0; graduate 6.0 | 75% |
| UTFPR (federal technological) | 6.0 | 75% |
| Universidade São Francisco (private) | 6.0; after a final assessment, a combined average of 5.0 | 75% |
Some universities set the bar higher for passing without a final exam. A 2002 resolution of the State University of Mato Grosso do Sul (UEMS) sets direct approval at an average of 7 and approval after a final exam at 5.0. Confirm current rules with your own university.
Letter concepts in graduate programs
USP graduate courses are recorded as A (Excellent), B (Good), C (Satisfactory), R (Fail) or T (transferred credit), and a student earns credit with A, B or C and at least 75% attendance (USP). USP does not publish one numeric equivalent for these concepts. Its 2026 guidance to course coordinators says that any conversion table between grades and concepts is set by the instructor at the start of each course (USP graduate guidance).
So a table that gives A = 9.0 to 10.0 for USP graduate concepts is not an official equivalence. If you hold concepts, ask your program for its own conversion, or send the transcript to an evaluator with the course descriptions.
The CR: your weighted average
Your transcript shows a Coeficiente de Rendimento (CR) or a cumulative version (CRA). At UNIRIO the CR is the weighted average of final grades, weighted by the credits each course carries (UNIRIO resolution), and UFPE defines its CR the same way (UFPE resolution). Rules differ on details such as exempted courses, which UNIRIO and UNIG exclude from the calculation, so use the figure on your transcript.
| Course | Credits | Final grade | Grade × credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Course A | 3 | 8.0 | 24.0 |
| Course B | 4 | 6.5 | 26.0 |
| Course C | 5 | 9.0 | 45.0 |
| Total | 12 | 95.0 |
CR = 95.0 ÷ 12 = 7.92. The courses are illustrative and show the method only.
Converting Brazilian grades to a US GPA
We found no official conversion formula published by Brazilian or US government bodies. In practice, the receiving program or a credential evaluator converts each course, and each uses its own table. A Course-by-Course report from WES lists the US credits and grade for each course and a 4.0 GPA, while a Document-by-Document report does not include a GPA. WES says the GPA reflects the grading practices of the country where you studied (WES Advisor). See our WES guide for fees and timing.
One published conversion: PUC-Rio
PUC-Rio publishes a Brazilian-to-US grade table for its exchange partners (PUC-Rio academic information). The last column gives the grade points for those letters on the common US plus/minus scale used by James Madison University and Indiana University. Treat it as one institution’s reference, not a national standard.
| Brazilian grade | US letter (PUC-Rio) | Grade points (US scale) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | A+ | 4.0 |
| 9.5 | A | 4.0 |
| 9.0 | A− | 3.7 |
| 8.5 | B+ | 3.3 |
| 8.0 | B | 3.0 |
| 7.5 | B− | 2.7 |
| 7.0 | C+ | 2.3 |
| 6.5 | C | 2.0 |
| 6.0 | C− | 1.7 |
| 5.5 | D+ | 1.3 |
| 5.0 | D | 1.0 |
| Below 5.0 | F | 0.0 |
Worked example
Take the three courses from the CR example, with grades 8.0 (B), 6.5 (C) and 9.0 (A−). Converted course by course with the table above and weighted by credits, the result is (3.0 × 3 + 2.0 × 4 + 3.7 × 5) ÷ 12 = 35.5 ÷ 12 = 2.96. A shortcut such as CR ÷ 10 × 4 gives 7.92 ÷ 10 × 4 = 3.17 for the same courses. The two methods differ by more than 0.2 here, which is why a formula applied to the average is not a safe substitute for a course-by-course conversion, and why evaluators’ results can differ from yours.
How to report your grades on a US application
- Report your grades as the transcript shows them (the histórico escolar), including your CR, unless the application asks for a US-equivalent GPA.
- Include the grading scale from your transcript or registrar, and state your university’s passing mark, since it varies.
- If a formal evaluation is required, use the provider the program names and send official transcripts as instructed. Our WES guide explains one route.
- Do not round up. Report the figure your evaluator gives you.
- For authenticated copies, Brazil has been party to the Hague Apostille Convention since 14 August 2016 (HCCH), so Brazilian public documents can be apostilled if a program asks.
For how US schools calculate GPA, see our U.S. GPA guide.
FAQs
What is the minimum passing grade in Brazil?
There is no single national minimum. USP, PUC-Rio and UFES use 5.0 for undergraduates, while UTFPR and Universidade São Francisco use 6.0. PUC-Rio and UFES use 6.0 for graduate study. Check your own university’s rule.
What grading system does Brazil use?
A 0 to 10 numeric scale is used for undergraduate courses at the universities checked. Graduate programs such as USP’s record letter concepts A, B, C and R.
What is the CR in Brazil?
The CR (Coeficiente de Rendimento) is the average of your final grades weighted by course credits, as defined for example by UNIRIO and UFPE. Your transcript shows your university’s version.
Can I convert my Brazilian grades to one official US GPA?
No official formula exists that we could find. A US program or an evaluator converts your grades course by course, so the number you get depends on whose table is used.
Is a 7.0 a good grade in Brazil?
Under PUC-Rio’s published table a 7.0 corresponds to a C+. PUC-Rio also notes that grading is fairly severe, with top grades going to few students. Programs and evaluators use their own tables, so do not assume a 7.0 reads as a C+ everywhere.
What GPA do I need for a US graduate program from Brazil?
Each program sets its own minimum and states whether it wants an evaluated GPA. Check the program’s admissions page rather than relying on a general figure.
Should I use a formula like CR divided by 10 times 4?
Not as a final figure. In the worked example above it gives 3.17, while course-by-course conversion with PUC-Rio’s table gives 2.96. Use it, if at all, as a rough planning number.
How we researched this
Grading rules, formulas and figures were read from the sources below and compared. Last checked: October 15, 2026.
- USP FEA-RP academic information and USP graduate guidance on evaluation criteria (April 2026)
- PUC-Rio academic information sheet (hosted by a partner school) and PUC-Rio department guide
- UFES statement on its assessment system, UTFPR, Universidade São Francisco, UEMS
- UNIRIO, UFPE and UNIG on the CR
- Agência Brasil on the INEP Higher Education Census 2024 and HCCH on the Apostille Convention
- WES evaluations, WES on evaluation GPA, James Madison University and Indiana University
University regulations change and not every Brazilian institution publishes an English version. Where a source does not publish a figure, none is shown here, and the PUC-Rio table is one institution’s reference, not an official national conversion.
Christian Chinonso is the founder of LearnViaHub, with 6+ years of research experience in international education — including GPA systems, scholarships, student financing, and study-abroad guidance — for students worldwide.