Wilks Score Calculator
Reviewed by Hamza Gujjar, Algorithm Architect & Software Developer
Last updated: July 27, 2026Comparing lifters fairly across bodyweights
Raw powerlifting totals naturally favor heavier lifters, since strength tends to scale with body mass - the Wilks formula, developed by Robert Wilks in 1994, applies a bodyweight-specific coefficient to normalize totals, letting lifters of any size be meaningfully ranked against each other.
Worked example
For an 83kg male lifter with a 500kg total:
Wilks Score = 333.75 Wilks points
The Wilks formula uses a 5th-degree polynomial with coefficients that differ between men and women, since strength-to-bodyweight scaling patterns differ by sex - always select the correct sex option, since using the wrong formula produces a meaningfully incorrect score.
Wilks scores remain a widely used comparison tool in powerlifting competitions and rankings, though some federations have since adopted newer formulas (like the IPF GL Points system) that some consider more statistically refined.