How French grades (out of 20) convert to a US GPA

French grades use the notation sur 20 — a 0 to 20 scale where 10 is the pass mark. The catch for US readers: marks above 16 are genuinely rare, so a 14/20 is a strong result, not a mediocre 70%.

The mentions

Results carry an honour label (a mention): passable (10–12), assez bien (12–14), bien (14–16), and très bien (16 and above). Because the top of the scale is so compressed, most strong students finish in the 12–15 range.

Mapping to a US 4.0 GPA

Evaluators typically read 16+/20 as a US 4.0 (A), 14–15 as around 3.7, 12–13 as around 3.0–3.3, and 10–11 as around 2.0. A naïve “multiply by 5 to get a percentage” badly overstates a French result because the scale is not used to its full range.

Why a 14 is better than it looks

An American reading “14/20 = 70%” would undervalue it. In France a 14 earns the bien mention and is competitive for graduate admission. Always present the mention alongside the number.

What to submit

Provide your transcript with the /20 marks and mentions, and let an evaluator convert. Preview the estimate on our France grading scale page.

Key takeaways

• France marks out of 20; 10 passes and 16+ is rare and excellent.
• Mentions (passable, assez bien, bien, très bien) signal the real standing.
• 16+ maps to ~4.0, 14–15 to ~3.7 — do not multiply by 5.
• Always show the mention so a 14/20 isn't misread as weak.