Passer Rating Calculator
Calculate NFL passer rating from completions, attempts, yards, touchdowns, and interceptions to get the official rating number for a game.
Passer Rating Calculator
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What the passer rating calculator does
Passer rating squeezes a quarterback's day into one number, built from five basic passing stats. This tool computes it. You enter attempts, completions, yards, touchdowns, and interceptions, choose the league, and it returns the official rating.
The NFL and the CFL share one formula, while college football uses a different one, and the tool handles both, because a rating from one is not comparable to a rating from the other.
How to use it
- Enter the passing attempts, completions, and yards.
- Enter the touchdowns and interceptions.
- Choose the league, NFL/CFL or NCAA.
Press Calculate for the rating, or Reset to clear the fields.
How NFL passer rating works
The NFL rating, used since 1973, is built from four components, each measuring one thing per attempt: completion percentage, yards per attempt, touchdown percentage, and interception percentage. Each component is scaled to a number and then capped so it cannot fall below 0 or rise above 2.375. The four capped numbers are added, divided by 6, and multiplied by 100:
Rating = ((a + b + c + d) ÷ 6) × 100
That capping is the clever part. Because no single component can exceed 2.375, the scale runs from 0 to a maximum of 158.3, and a quarterback cannot inflate the whole rating by being extreme in just one category. A perfect 158.3 takes all four maxed out at once, which means completing at least 77.5 percent of passes, averaging 12.5 yards per attempt, throwing a touchdown on 11.875 percent of attempts, and throwing no interceptions.
The NCAA formula is different
College football uses a separate formula with no caps at all:
Efficiency = (8.4 × yards + 330 × touchdowns + 100 × completions − 200 × interceptions) ÷ attempts
Because nothing is capped, a single big day can push a college rating well past 200, and the scale technically stretches from about minus 731 to over 1261. This is why an NFL rating and an NCAA rating should never be compared directly, even though both are called passer rating. On the college scale, roughly 150 and above is excellent.
An example with real numbers
Say a quarterback goes 25 of 35 for 300 yards, with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception, on the NFL formula.
- Completion part: (25/35 − 0.3) × 5 = 2.07
- Yards part: (300/35 − 3) × 0.25 = 1.393
- Touchdown part: (3/35) × 20 = 1.714
- Interception part: 2.375 − (1/35) × 25 = 1.661
- Rating = (2.07 + 1.393 + 1.714 + 1.661) ÷ 6 × 100 = about 114
So that line produces a rating of around 114, a strong game by NFL standards.
What counts as a good rating
The benchmarks have shifted over time. When the formula was new in 1973, an average performance scored about 66.7 and 100 was considered excellent. But rule changes that favor the passing game have steadily lifted completion percentages and yards while cutting interceptions, so the league average has climbed to around 90. On today's NFL scale, roughly 90 and up is a good game, and 100 and above is elite. The caps are doing real work in keeping the number honest: a quarterback who piles up yards but also throws a stack of interceptions will see that interception component sink toward zero, holding the overall rating down no matter how gaudy the other stats look.
Questions people ask
What is a perfect passer rating?
In the NFL, a perfect rating is 158.3. It requires all four components to hit their maximum of 2.375 at once: at least 77.5 percent completions, 12.5 yards per attempt, an 11.875 percent touchdown rate, and zero interceptions.
Why is the college rating so different?
Because the NCAA uses a separate formula with no caps on its components, so ratings can climb past 200. The NFL formula caps each part, holding the maximum to 158.3. The two scales are not comparable.
What is a good NFL passer rating?
Today the league average is around 90, so roughly 90 and up is good and 100 and above is elite. When the formula was created in 1973, average was about 66.7, but passing-friendly rules have raised the bar.
Is passer rating the same as QBR?
No. Passer rating is an open formula based only on passing stats. ESPN's QBR is a separate proprietary metric that also factors in rushing, sacks, and game situation.
References
- Pro Football Reference, Glossary (passer rating definition and formula). https://www.pro-football-reference.com/about/glossary.htm
Pujan Thapa is a graduate of MPSS Sports Science from TU, with experience across sports operations, team management, and event coordination. His background gives him a practical view of sports related planning, performance, and utility workflows. At Eon Tools, he reviews sports tools.