Wilks Calculator

By Jack Kyle — Jack Kyle writes about strength training and lifting math — calculators, programming and standards — with a focus on honest numbers and practical guidance.

Intro

Two lifters finish a meet with the same total. One weighs 74 kg, the other 105 kg. The raw total does not show that gap. That is what the Wilks score was built to close: it turns a total and a bodyweight into a single points number, so lifters in different weight classes can be compared on one scale.

This calculator gives you two versions side by side. Wilks is the original formula, used for years in powerlifting scoring. Wilks-2 is the revised version published in 2020, with updated coefficients fitted to more recent lifting data. Enter your bodyweight and total, pick male or female coefficients, and you get both scores at once, plus the coefficient each version used.

Seeing both matters because the versions do not rank every lifter the same way, especially at the light and heavy ends of the scale. When comparing results across years, run both and note which version each number came from. The formulas here come from published scoring work, and a human team reviewed this page before it was prepared for publication.

Calculator

Strength tools / Wilks

Wilks Calculator

Wilks and Wilks-2 (2020) side by side from sex, bodyweight and total.

Validated bodyweight range: 40–210 kg. The Wilks polynomials are only validated in this range — outside it they can produce negative scores, so the calculator refuses instead of showing a nonsense number.

Method: Wilks = total x 500 / (a + bx + cx2 + dx3 + ex4 + fx5); Wilks-2 (2020) = total x 600 / (revised polynomial), bodyweight in kg. Coefficients: original Wilks (Robert Wilks) and the March 2020 revision. Which is used where: Wilks-2 is the current Powerlifting Australia formula; the IPF uses IPF GL Points (see the IPF GL calculator); USAPL / USPA and most meet software use DOTS. Estimates only.

Estimates only — see our Disclaimer.

How it works

The formula

Wilks points = total lifted × Wilks coefficient.

The coefficient is 500 divided by a fifth-degree polynomial in bodyweight, with separate published coefficient sets for men and women. Wilks-2 keeps the same structure but uses a revised set of coefficients fitted to newer data. The calculator applies the published coefficient set for the sex you select and shows the coefficient it used, so the result can be checked by hand.

What to enter

  • Bodyweight. Your weigh-in bodyweight, in the same unit as your total. The coefficient changes with every kilo, so enter the weighed number, not a rounded class label.
  • Total. Your best squat + bench + deadlift total from one meet or one testing day. Mixing lifts from different days gives a total you never actually lifted.
  • Sex. Male or female coefficient set. The two sets differ because the bodyweight-to-strength relationship differs between the published male and female data.

Which version to use

Wilks-2 is the newer revision, so it is the natural default when you want a current comparison. The original Wilks is still useful when you are reading older results, records, or meet reports that were scored under the original formula. Scoring systems have changed over the years, and different federations and meets may use different systems today — check your federation’s current rulebook before treating either version as the official score for a meet. Do not assume a federation uses Wilks, Wilks-2, DOTS, or IPF GL without checking its published rules.

Honest limits

  • The coefficient is a curve fitted to group data. It describes an average relationship between bodyweight and strength, not your own body.
  • At the extremes of bodyweight the curve is fitted on thinner data, so small bodyweight errors move the score more than they do in the middle of the range.
  • Wilks and Wilks-2 scores are not interchangeable. Never average them, and always label which version a score came from.
  • A Wilks score compares totals across bodyweights. It does not measure technique, effort, or who is the better lifter in any wider sense.

FAQs

What is the difference between Wilks and Wilks-2?

Wilks is the original formula. Wilks-2, published in 2020, keeps the same formula shape but uses revised coefficients fitted to more recent lifting data. The calculator shows both so you can see how much the revision changes a given score.

Why do I need to pick male or female coefficients?

The published Wilks and Wilks-2 coefficient sets are sex-specific. The relationship between bodyweight and total differs between the male and female data the formulas were fitted to, so the calculator needs to know which set to apply.

Can I compare a Wilks score with a DOTS score?

No. Wilks, Wilks-2, DOTS, and IPF GL use different scales. A 400 Wilks is not a 400 DOTS. Compare scores only within the same system, and label the system every time you quote a number.

My Wilks score changed when my bodyweight changed but my total did not. Why?

Because the coefficient depends on bodyweight. At a lighter bodyweight the same total earns a higher coefficient, so the same total scores more. That is the point of the system: it credits lifting a given total at a lower bodyweight.

Should I use Wilks or Wilks-2 for a meet?

Use whichever system the meet or federation specifies. If the rules do not name a system, Wilks-2 is the newer revision and the safer default for a fresh comparison — but confirm the rulebook first rather than assuming.

See also