ABC Tools

Wilks and DOTS Scores, Explained

After reading this you can turn any powerlifting total and bodyweight into DOTS, classic Wilks and IPF GL points by hand, and know which one to trust when you compare lifters across weight classes.

What these scores do

A 60 kg lifter and a 120 kg lifter cannot compare raw totals directly. The heavier lifter has more muscle to work with, so a bigger total is expected. Bodyweight-adjusted scores fix this. Each one multiplies your total by a coefficient that depends on your bodyweight and sex, producing a single number that is meant to be fair across the whole weight range.

Here is the hook. A 60 kg woman totals 400 kg. An 82.5 kg man totals 500 kg. Whose lift is more impressive? On DOTS the woman scores about 577 and the man about 328. The raw numbers said the man lifted more. The adjusted score says the woman is far closer to the human limit for her size. That inversion is the entire point of these formulas.

DOTS, Wilks and IPF GL all answer the same question in slightly different ways: given elite performances across bodyweights, how far up that curve is this lifter? They disagree because they were fit to different data from different eras.

When to use each score, and when not to

Use these scores to rank lifters in one meet regardless of weight class, to track your own progress as your bodyweight drifts, and to compare gyms or friends fairly. DOTS is the current default at most federations and the safest choice for a general comparison. Classic Wilks is still common in older results and casual apps. IPF GL points are used in IPF competition and here are fit to raw three-lift totals.

Do not read these as a percentage of anything, and do not compare a DOTS number to a Wilks number. They live on different scales. A DOTS of 500 and a Wilks of 500 are not the same performance. Also, none of them predicts what you will lift. They score what you did lift.

All three curves are fit to elite competition totals. They behave oddly at the extremes. A 40 kg child or a 200 kg strongman sits outside the data the polynomial was built from, so the coefficient there is an extrapolation, not a measurement.

The formula and the intuition

DOTS and Wilks share the same shape. A fifth-degree polynomial in bodyweight b produces a denominator, and your coefficient is 500 (Wilks) or 500 (DOTS) divided by that polynomial.

\text{score} = \text{total} \times \frac{C}{a + b_1 x + b_2 x^2 + b_3 x^3 + b_4 x^4 + b_5 x^5}

Here x is your bodyweight in kg, C is a scaling constant, and a through b_5 are fitted constants that differ by sex and by formula. The polynomial estimates the elite total at bodyweight x. Dividing by it means a lifter who hits the elite total for their weight scores near the same number at every bodyweight. That flat line across weight classes is what makes the score fair.

For DOTS the male coefficients are C = 500, a = -307.75076, b_1 = 24.0900756, b_2 = -0.1918759221, b_3 = 0.0007391293, b_4 = -0.000001093, and b_5 = 0 (DOTS uses a fourth-degree fit). IPF GL points use an exponential form instead:

\text{IPF GL} = \text{total} \times \frac{100}{A - B \cdot e^{-k \cdot x}}

with raw male constants A = 1199.72839, B = 1025.18162, and k = 0.00921. As x grows, e^{-kx} shrinks toward 0, so the denominator rises toward A and the coefficient falls. Heavier lifters get a smaller multiplier, exactly as you would expect.

A worked example with the demo numbers

Male, 82.5 kg, 500 kg total

These are the tool's default values. Work the DOTS score first.

  1. Set x = 82.5 kg. Compute the powers: x^2 = 6806.25, x^3 = 561515.6, x^4 = 46325036.
  2. Denominator terms: -307.75076, 24.0900756 \times 82.5 = 1987.43, -0.1918759221 \times 6806.25 = -1306.9, 0.0007391293 \times 561515.6 = 415.1, -0.000001093 \times 46325036 = -50.63.
  3. Sum the terms: -307.75 + 1987.43 - 1306.9 + 415.1 - 50.63 \approx 737.25.
  4. Coefficient: 500 / 737.25 \approx 0.6782.
  5. DOTS: 500 \times 0.6782 \approx 339.

For IPF GL points, compute e^{-0.00921 \times 82.5} = e^{-0.7598} \approx 0.4678. The denominator is 1199.72839 - 1025.18162 \times 0.4678 \approx 720.1. The coefficient is 100 / 720.1 \approx 0.1389, so IPF GL \approx 500 \times 0.1389 \approx 69.4. Classic Wilks for the same lifter lands near 333. Three formulas, three different numbers, all describing one lift.

Reading the results

Round numbers help. On DOTS, roughly 300 is a solid intermediate raw total, 400 is advanced, 500 is national-class, and 600 and up is world-class. The scale is similar for men and women by design, so a 450 DOTS means about the same standing whatever the sex or weight class. The chart below shows how the same 500 kg total scores across bodyweights on DOTS.

The same total scores higher at lower bodyweight, because the elite reference total is lower there. The marker sits at the demo lifter's 82.5 kg.

Notice the curve is not a straight line. It falls fast at light bodyweights and flattens above about 120 kg. That is the polynomial trying to match the diminishing returns of extra mass in the heaviest classes.

Hold the total fixed at 500 kg and vary bodyweight: DOTS falls from about 441 at 52 kg to 339 at 82.5 kg to 286 at 120 kg. Hold bodyweight fixed and vary the total instead: DOTS scales linearly, so doubling the total doubles the score.

How the three formulas disagree

Because they were fit to different data, the three scores rank the same lifters slightly differently, especially at the ends of the bodyweight range. The table compares the demo lifter against a light and a heavy lifter, each holding a 500 kg total.

Same 500 kg male total, three bodyweights, three scores
Bodyweight (kg)DOTSClassic WilksIPF GL
6040138881.9
82.533933369.4
12028628960.2

DOTS and Wilks agree within a few points here, but they cross over near the top of the range: Wilks is slightly kinder to the 120 kg lifter, DOTS slightly kinder to the 60 kg lifter. IPF GL sits on its own scale entirely. The lesson is to pick one formula and stick with it inside any single comparison.

Common mistakes

The errors that produce wrong scores are almost always input errors, not math errors.

  • Mixing units. Enter both bodyweight and total in the same unit. If you lift in pounds, convert cleanly: 500\ \text{lb} \approx 226.8\ \text{kg} using 1\ \text{lb} = 0.45359237\ \text{kg}.
  • Using the wrong sex coefficients. The male and female polynomials differ substantially. A woman scored on the male curve will look far too low.
  • Comparing a Wilks number to a DOTS number. Different scales, no meaning.
  • Scoring a single lift as if it were a full total. You can put one lift in the total field for curiosity, but the standards above assume a squat plus bench plus deadlift total.

If you weigh in at, say, 83.1 kg, use that exact number, not your weight class of 83 kg. The coefficient changes smoothly, and rounding your bodyweight to the class limit shifts the score by a point or two.

Related tools

For Olympic weightlifting, the equivalent bodyweight adjustment is the Sinclair coefficient. Compute it with the Sinclair Calculator. To see where a single lift ranks by experience level rather than against elite totals, use the Strength Standards Calculator. And when you are ready to load the bar for your next total, the Barbell Plate Calculator tells you which plates go on each side.

Frequently asked questions

Which score should I use, Wilks or DOTS?

Use DOTS. Most federations switched to it because the older Wilks curve was seen as slightly unfair to the lightest and heaviest lifters. For the 82.5 kg demo lifter the two agree within about 6 points, so for a middleweight the choice barely matters.

Why is my IPF GL number so much smaller?

IPF GL points are on a scale near 100 for a strong lifter, while DOTS and Wilks run into the hundreds. The demo lifter scores about 69.4 GL and 339 DOTS. They are not comparable numbers, only comparable rankings within their own scale.

Can I compare a man and a woman with these?

Yes, that is the design intent. Each sex has its own coefficients that flatten the elite curve to roughly the same level, so a 450 DOTS means a comparable standing for both. The 60 kg woman at 400 kg in the opening example outscores the 82.5 kg man at 500 kg precisely because of this.

Does a higher bodyweight always lower my score for the same total?

For DOTS and Wilks, yes, across the normal competition range: 500 kg is worth 401 DOTS at 60 kg and 286 at 120 kg. The only way to raise your score is to add to the total faster than you add bodyweight.

How accurate are these numbers?

The formulas are curve fits to competition data, not physical laws. Near the middle of the bodyweight range they are stable to within a point or two between formulas. At the extremes they diverge and become extrapolations. Treat a difference of 5 points as noise, not a ranking.

Try it yourself in the tool

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