Guide
DOTS vs Wilks
Quick answer
DOTS and Wilks answer the same question: how does this total compare across body weights. You enter a body weight and a squat-plus-bench-plus-deadlift total. Each formula returns a score. A higher score means a better total for that body weight, under that formula.
They will not match. Wilks is the older coefficient, with a numerator of 500 over a fifth-degree polynomial. DOTS uses a different polynomial, published through OpenPowerlifting. The IPF later moved competition scoring to IPF Goodlift (IPF GL). Using Wilks because a forum post from 2014 said so will not match a current IPF meet.
Estimates only. Testing a true max carries risk; use a spotter or safety arms. Not medical advice.
DOTS calculatorScore a total with DOTS. Wilks is a separate page.Open →On this page
- How do the formulas differ?
- Which score should you use?
- What do these scores ignore?
- How do you read a single score?
- Key takeaways
- FAQ
How do the formulas differ?
Both divide a total by a bodyweight factor and scale the result. Wilks uses one set of coefficients for men and another for women, in a polynomial from the first power of body weight through the fifth. The original numerator is 500. DOTS uses a different set, also split by sex, and clamps body weight to a range (40–210 kg for men, 40–150 kg for women in the version this site runs).
The coefficients are on the DOTS and Wilks pages. Check them against a primary write-up before you publish a score somewhere else. A copied coefficient with a rounded digit will not match.
Which score should you use?
Use the one your federation uses if you are entering a meet. For a current IPF event that is IPF GL, not classic Wilks. The DOTS page shows IPF GL as a secondary figure so you can see the difference. It is not a substitute for the federation's own scoring sheet.
If you are comparing your own totals across a year at a similar body weight, either score will tell you whether the total moved. Pick one and stick to it. Switching formulas mid-year to celebrate a bigger number is not progress.
What do these scores ignore?
Equipment. A multi-ply total and a classic raw total are not the same sport. Age. A master's total and an open total are not the same comparison. Sex, which is why the coefficients differ. And honesty of the lifts. A gym total with a high squat will outscore a meet total that was judged.
They also ignore whether you should be lifting that much today. A score is arithmetic.
How do you read a single score?
Against your last score, or against meet results in the same class and equipment category. OpenPowerlifting is the public database for that second comparison. A lone number with no class attached is trivia.
Body weight is in kilograms inside both formulas. If you weigh yourself in pounds, convert first. This site uses 1 lb = 0.45359237 kg.
A score does not replace saying what the lifts were. FFMI is a different use of body size. If only the deadlift moved, read deadlift standards before you celebrate the total.
Key takeaways
- Both scores adjust a total for body weight.
- They are different polynomials, not different lifts.
- IPF competition moved on to IPF GL.
- Pick one score and keep it if you are tracking yourself.
FAQ
Did Wilks get replaced?
For IPF competition scoring, yes. The federation moved to IPF Goodlift. People still calculate the old Wilks number. Label which one you mean.
Is a higher DOTS always better?
Only as a comparison of totals under that formula. It does not measure health or whether the lifts would pass.
Can I score a bench-only day?
The formulas expect a three-lift total. A bench by itself is not a DOTS score.
Why do men and women have different coefficients?
The polynomials were fit separately. Using the wrong table does not 'adjust' anything. It just mis-scores the total.
What is IPF GL doing on the DOTS page?
A second score, so you can see that federation math is not DOTS. The coefficients are the classic ones used since 1 May 2020, listed on that page.