If you’re in Year 12 in Australia, the biggest thing on your mind at the moment is probably your upcoming ATAR result. You won’t receive it until December, but most universities start taking applications before your exams are even over. So when you haven’t received your ATAR yet, how can you know if you’re on the right track?
That’s where ATAR calculators come in.
ATAR calculators take the results of any assessment you’ve done so far and use this raw information to estimate what your final ATAR might be. It’s an easy way of seeing whether you’re on track to get the ATAR you need for your course or future pathway.
Are the results from ATAR calculators accurate?
Most of the ATAR calculators out there use data gathered from previous years to give you an idea of where you might fall on the scale.
Because assessment results and scaling change from year to year, it’s important to remember that the predicted ATAR you’re given from a calculator most likely won’t be the same as your actual final ATAR. However, they’re still good to get a general idea of what to expect.
It also depends on the calculator you use. We put the same subjects and same scores into four different calculators, and they all came out with slightly different results:
| Calculator | 95 Score | 90 Score | 80 Score | 70 Score | 65 Score |
| ATAR Notes HSC | 99.50 | 95.50 | 80.80 | 65.30 | 59.25 |
| KIS Academics | 99.50 | 95.55 | 79.60 | 60.90 | 52.25 |
| Matrix | 99.55 | 95.40 | 80.85 | 64.10 | 57.00 |
| UAC ATAR Compass | 99.50 | 95.70 | 81.40 | 65.20 | 58.40 |
Subjects used: English Advanced, Mathematics Advanced, Biology, Physics, Drama, Ancient History.
They might not seem like huge differences, but the lower your results are, the larger the gap becomes between estimates from different calculators.
What else are they useful for?
ATAR calculators can also be handy to see how different subjects scale. We used the same results as above but changed to Standard English and Mathematics to see how the estimated ATAR would change:
| Calculator | 95 Score | 90 Score | 80 Score | 70 Score | 65 Score |
| ATAR Notes HSC | 99.35 | 95.15 | 79.35 | 59.65 | 52.00 |
| KIS Academics | 99.30 | 95.40 | 79.25 | 59.25 | 49.85 |
| Matrix | 99.50 | 95.30 | 80.15 | 59.65 | 50.30 |
| UAC ATAR Compass | 99.35 | 95.30 | 80.30 | 61.00 | 51.95 |
By using the calculator, you get a good visualisation of how taking subjects that scale higher can raise your ATAR.
Where can I find one?
Here are some ATAR calculators we’ve found that you might want to take a look at:
- ATAR Notes (HSC, VCE, QCE, WACE, SACE)
- KIS Academics (HSC, VCE, QCE, WACE, IB)
- Revise Online (HSC, VCE, QCE, WACE)
- Matrix (HSC, VCE)
- UAC ATAR Compass (HSC)
- Deakin University (VCE)
- Monash University (VCE)
- La Trobe University (VCE)
- Excel Academics (QCE)
- calcATAR (SACE)
Important: We don’t endorse any particular calculator here at Study Work Grow, and keep in mind that the result you get might not be accurate and shouldn’t be exclusively relied on.
A final note
Remember that your ATAR isn’t everything! If your ATAR isn’t quite enough to get into your dream course, this doesn’t mean you have to give up. There are lots of alternative pathways you can take to reach your goals.
You might even like to consider a pathway that doesn’t require an ATAR, like studying a VET course, doing an apprenticeship or traineeship, or even jumping into a job.
Want more information on your future pathways? We have all that and much more on our website here.
