How AP weighting works
Most US high schools weight AP courses at +1.0 on top of the standard 4.0 scale. An A in AP Calculus earns 5.0 grade points. A B+ in AP Bio earns 4.3.
The bonus applies to the course grade, not the AP exam score. Your AP exam score (1-5) goes to colleges separately for credit decisions but does not enter your high school GPA.
What about AP self-study or exam-only courses?
If you sat an AP exam but did not take the corresponding course at your high school, there is no course grade to weight. The exam score still counts for college credit but not for high school GPA.
UC and Cal State differences
UC and CSU cap the AP/honors bonus at 8 semester courses. See /uc for the full rules.