Short answer on how CAO points work: each Leaving Certificate grade has a fixed number of points. CAO adds up your six best results from one sitting. Higher Level maths at H6 or better gets 25 bonus points, but only when maths ends up in your best six. LCVP Link Modules can take the place of a sixth subject.
This guide walks through each rule with made-up examples. To add up your own grades, use the CAO Points Calculator.
Points for each grade
CAO's points grid gives every grade its points. The letter shows the level: H for Higher and O for Ordinary. The number is the grade, from 1 (best) to 8.
| Higher Level | Points | Ordinary Level | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| H1 | 100 | O1 | 56 |
| H2 | 88 | O2 | 46 |
| H3 | 77 | O3 | 37 |
| H4 | 66 | O4 | 28 |
| H5 | 56 | O5 | 20 |
| H6 | 46 | O6 | 12 |
| H7 | 37 | O7 | 0 |
| H8 | 0 | O8 | 0 |
Three things in this table are easy to miss:
- An O1 is worth 56 points, the same as a H5. An O2 matches a H6 at 46, and an O3 matches a H7 at 37.
- A H8, an O7 and an O8 are worth 0 points.
- Each step down the Higher Level scale costs between 9 and 12 points, until the drop from 37 to 0 at H8.
This grid is for grades from 2017 on. CAO scores earlier Leaving Certificate results on a separate page, which GradeCat has not checked.
Your best six, from one sitting
CAO's Leaving Certificate page says the six best results in one examination count, from one sitting only. So if you sit seven or eight subjects, your lowest results simply drop out. You cannot take your best grade in a subject from one year and add it to results from another year.
Worked example: seven subjects, 434 points
A made-up student sat seven subjects, with maths at Higher Level.
| Subject | Grade | Points | In the best six |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maths | H3 | 77 + 25 = 102 | Yes |
| Subject 2 | H2 | 88 | Yes |
| Subject 3 | H4 | 66 | Yes |
| Subject 4 | H4 | 66 | Yes |
| Subject 5 | H5 | 56 | Yes |
| Subject 6 | O1 | 56 | Yes |
| Subject 7 | H6 | 46 | No |
102 + 88 + 66 + 66 + 56 + 56 = 434. The H6 is the seventh result, so it does not count.
Note that the Ordinary Level O1 counts ahead of the Higher Level H6. Only the points matter when CAO picks your six, not the level.
The 25-point maths bonus, and when it counts
CAO adds 25 bonus points to Higher Level maths at H6 or better. CAO's grid says the bonus counts only when maths is in your best six after the bonus is added. Three things follow from that rule.
The bonus can be worth less than 25. Made-up example: H5 in maths and H3 in six other subjects. Maths is 56 + 25 = 81, so it is in the best six: 81 + 5 × 77 = 466. Without the bonus, the best six would be the six H3s, 462. The bonus raised the total by 4 points, because maths pushed out a H3 rather than adding to it.
The bonus can be worth nothing. With H6 in maths and the same six H3s, maths is 46 + 25 = 71. That is lower than every H3, so maths is not in the best six, and the total stays 462.
A H7 gets no bonus. A H7 in Higher Level maths is worth 37 points and nothing more. Ordinary Level maths never gets the bonus, so an O1 in maths is worth 56.
For comparison, a H6 in Higher Level maths with its bonus is worth 71 points, more than an O1 at 56. The bonus applies to Higher Level maths alone.
LCVP Link Modules
If you took the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme, CAO's grid scores the Link Modules at 66 points for a Distinction, 46 for a Merit and 28 for a Pass. The result counts in place of a sixth subject, so it helps only when it beats your sixth-best subject.
Made-up example: O2 in maths and H3, H3, H4, H5, H6 and O3 in six other subjects. The best six are 77 + 77 + 66 + 56 + 46 + 46 = 368. With an LCVP Distinction, its 66 points replace a 46: 77 + 77 + 66 + 66 + 56 + 46 = 388, a gain of 20 points. A Merit, at 46, only ties the sixth result, so the total stays 368. A Pass, at 28, does not count at all.
Foundation maths
Foundation Level maths is the only Foundation subject on CAO's grid. An F1 is worth 20 points and an F2 12. The grid lists no points for F3 to F8, so GradeCat counts them as 0. CAO notes that some colleges may not award Foundation maths points, so check with each college you apply to.
Made-up example: F1 in maths and O1, O2, O3, O3 and O4 in five other subjects give 20 + 56 + 46 + 37 + 37 + 28 = 224 points. At a college that does not award Foundation maths points, the same results give 204.
Add a seventh subject at O5, worth 20 points, and the total is 224 either way. The O5 takes the sixth place if the F1 is not awarded, so the Foundation question stops mattering.
From a percentage to points
Each grade covers a band of percentages. Nuffic's page on Irish grades gives the bands: grade 1 is 90 to 100%, grade 2 is 80 to 89%, and so on in steps of 10 down to grade 7 at 30 to 39%. Grade 8 is 0 to 29%.
So 73% at Higher Level is a H3, worth 77 points. A single mark can matter at a band edge: 69% at Higher Level is a H4, worth 66 points, while 70% is a H3, worth 77. The Leaving Cert Grading Scale has a lookup for any percentage.
Nuffic's page names Higher and Ordinary Level only. Percentage bands at Foundation Level are UNVERIFIED, so this guide gives no Foundation bands.
The 625 maximum
The most anyone can score is 625: five H1s at 100 points, and a H1 in Higher Level maths at 100 + 25. CAO does not print this number. GradeCat works it out from the grid.
What points do not tell you
- CAO says minimum entry requirements apply separately from points. A high total does not show that you meet a course's subject or grade requirements.
- The points needed for each course change every year, so GradeCat does not list them. Check each course on cao.ie or with the college.
- A levels are scored on a different scale, set out on CAO's A level page. This guide covers the Leaving Certificate only.
- QQI FET (PLC) awards: CAO's scoring scheme for them is in a PDF that could not be read.
- Changes from the redeveloped Senior Cycle: the SEC and NCCA sites could not be opened, so GradeCat could not check whether it changes grades or points in coming years.
How CAO points work FAQ
How many CAO points is a H1?
100 points. A H2 is 88, a H3 77 and a H4 66. At Ordinary Level, an O1 is 56 points.
Does the maths bonus always count?
No. Higher Level maths at H6 or better gets 25 bonus points, but they count only when maths is in your best six after the bonus is added. With H6 in maths and six H3s, the bonus does not count.
Can I combine results from two Leaving Certs?
No. CAO counts the six best results from one sitting only.
Does the LCVP count as a subject for CAO?
It counts in place of a sixth subject: 66 points for a Distinction, 46 for a Merit and 28 for a Pass. It raises your total only when it beats your sixth-best subject.
Do all colleges accept Foundation maths points?
Not always. CAO's grid gives an F1 20 points and an F2 12, and notes that some colleges may not award them.
What is the maximum number of CAO points?
625: six H1s, one of them in Higher Level maths with its 25 bonus points. CAO does not print this number; it follows from the grid.
Related tools and guides
- CAO Points Calculator: your best six with the maths bonus, LCVP and Foundation maths, worked out for you.
- Leaving Cert Grading Scale: every grade with its percentage band and points, and a percentage lookup.
- All tools for Ireland
- All GradeCat calculators
Sources
- CAO: Irish Leaving Certificate Examination Points Calculation Grid (opened 4 November 2026)
- CAO: Irish Leaving Certificate Examination Points (opened 4 November 2026)
- Nuffic: Grades and study results (Ireland) (opened 4 November 2026)
- CAO: GCE A-level/AS Level/GCSE (opened 4 November 2026)
A points total worked out here is an estimate, not an official result. CAO's own rules come first. Found a mistake? Tell us.